Age
12
Country of Residence
Kenya
Founding Story: What was the spark that led you to start your project? What was the "Aha!" moment that led you to get started and see the potential for this to succeed?
Dijitali Maths grew directly out of our founder's own journey. As a child in Kenya, she struggled with mathematical concepts and was made to feel that she was simply "not a maths person." She counted on her fingers and sang to make sense of numbers, but school expected mathematics to be grasped only one way. Years later, as a mathematics teacher at Kayole 1 Comprehensive School in Nairobi, she recognized the exact same struggle in her students: curious, brilliant children losing self-esteem because traditional rote memorization wasn't designed for their learning style. What began with learner-centered weekend activities has grown into games-based learning, hands-on manipulatives, digital tools, holiday camps, teacher workshops, and community math festivals across Nairobi and Nakuru counties.
How do you encourage other people to join your project or learn about the problem you’re working on? If you have a new idea, tell us how you will do this in the future.
Dijitali Maths activates others by creating opportunities for learners, teachers, and education partners to experience mathematics differently and become part of the change. So far, we have reached 1,000+ learners and engaged 400+ teachers through mathematics learning sessions, challenges, practical activities, teacher engagement, and learning resources. Teachers have participated in activities that demonstrate how games, manipulatives, visual representations, discussion, and digital tools can make mathematics more engaging and accessible. Learners participate in challenges and collaborative activities where they are encouraged not only to find answers but also to explain their thinking and show different ways of solving a problem. We also use our growing education network and community relationships to share ideas, gather feedback, and encourage others to rethink how mathematics is taught and experienced. As we develop Dijitali Way-In, we will deepen this approach by involving teachers and learners directly in testing and improving the solution. Teachers will help us identify classroom barriers and test learning pathways, while learners will provide feedback on what helps them understand. We will also document and share our learning through workshops, demonstrations, community events, and digital platforms, enabling more educators to adopt and adapt the approach.
How many people are on your team?
6
Impact: How has your project created impact / made a difference so far? Or, if at an early stage, what will impact look like?
Dijitali Maths began from a personal experience: I once believed I was “not good at math." As a leaner, I later saw many other learners developing the same belief not because they lacked potential, but because they needed more opportunities to explore, practice, and make sense of mathematics in different ways. So far, Dijitali Maths has reached 1,000+ learners and engaged 400+ teachers across 2 counties in Nairobi and Nakuru through learner sessions, mathematics challenges, teacher engagement, practical learning activities, and digital and low-cost learning resources. Our work has also recorded over 30% average improvement in mathematics assessments among participating learners. Beyond the numbers, the change we care about is what happens when a learner moves from “I can't do math" to “Let me try,” then “I understand,” and eventually “Let me show someone else.” We have seen learners become more willing to attempt unfamiliar problems, explain their thinking, and engage with mathematics through games, manipulatives, visual representations, and real-world challenges. As we develop Dijitali Way-In, we want to deepen and measure this impact more systematically. We will track not only whether learners get answers correct, but also whether they understand concepts, can apply them in new situations, explain their reasoning, and become more confident mathematical thinkers.
Project Category
My project is an existing project that I started
Project Stage
Pilot-Stage (We’ve tried an activity or two)
Project Summary: Describe your project in one sentence
Dijitali Maths transforms mathematical learning from rote memorization into playful discovery, interactive problem-solving, and lasting confidence for every child.
Project title
Dijitali Maths
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve? Why does it matter to you and your community?
Many learners experience mathematics as a subject they are simply “not good at.” I know this feeling personally. As a learner, I have struggled with mathematics, relied on my fingers, and memorized procedures without always understanding them. Later, my mathematics teacher saw the same pattern in many other learners: children who were capable of reasoning and solving problems in other areas began to lose confidence when mathematics was taught mainly through memorization, repetition, and a single expected method. The problem is not always a lack of ability; often, learners are given the same mathematical concept in the same way, even when they think, process information, and make sense of ideas differently. When a learner does not understand one explanation, we often give them more of the same, more examples, more exercises, and more correction. Over time, repeated difficulty can become an identity: “I can't do math." This matters to me because I have experienced that journey myself and have witnessed it in many other learners in other classrooms. Through Dijitali Maths, my teacher and I want to help change how learners experience mathematics, from a subject they fear or memorize into one they can explore, understand, apply, and explain. Every learner can do math; sometimes they just need the right way in.
Website URL(s) or social media handles.
https://dijitali-maths.vercel.app/
What’s Next: What are the next steps you plan to take to grow or strengthen your project over the next year? If your project is still in the idea stage, describe the steps you will take over the next three months to launch or begin developing it.
Over the next year, Dijitali Maths will focus on testing, validating, and strengthening Dijitali Way-In before scaling it. First, we will select a focused learner group and a high-leverage mathematics concept, such as fractions, and pilot the Way-In approach with learners. We will develop short diagnostic activities to identify different conceptual barriers and test multiple learning pathways, including visual representations, manipulatives, real-world contexts, games, discussion, and symbolic approaches. We will track changes in conceptual understanding, ability to apply and explain mathematical ideas, and learner confidence, using baseline and endline assessments alongside learner and teacher feedback. This evidence will help us identify which pathways work, for whom, and under what conditions. We will then refine the Way-In methodology into a repeatable learning framework and prototype, documenting the diagnostic process, learner pathways, activities, and mastery measures. Alongside product development, we will strengthen relationships with schools, teachers, mathematics educators, education organizations, and potential technology partners to support testing and refinement. Our goal is to have a tested prototype, evidence of its effectiveness, a clearer model for delivering it at scale, and a stronger foundation for developing a technology-enabled version.
Your Innovation: What is different about your project compared to other programs or solutions already out there? How is your project new or innovative?
Dijitali Maths is innovating around a simple but often overlooked question in mathematics education: when a learner is struggling, do we understand why before deciding how to help them? Many mathematics interventions focus on increasing access to content, providing additional practice, gamifying learning, or grouping learners according to their performance level. Dijitali Maths takes a different approach. Through Dijitali Way-In, we are developing a system that connects a learner’s specific conceptual barrier to a different pathway for reaching the same understanding: Different Doors. Same Understanding. A learner who struggles with fractions, for example, may not need more worksheets. They may need to physically manipulate fraction pieces, see the concept on a number line, connect it to a real-life situation, discuss their reasoning, or receive support connecting a visual representation to mathematical symbols. Way-In seeks to identify these differences and guide learners toward the pathway that helps them make sense of the concept. Our innovation is therefore not simply the use of games, manipulatives, or technology; these already exist. It is the learning design and decision-making layer that connects diagnosis, learner thinking, and targeted pathways. We are also intentionally developing the approach in low-resource contexts using materials and tools that teachers can realistically access, rather than assuming reliable internet, one-to-one devices, or expensive technology We are currently testing this methodology manually before developing the most effective elements into a scalable product. This allows us to validate what actually helps learners understand mathematics before adding technology or AI. Ultimately, we want to shift mathematics support from “Here
Your Solution: How are you solving this problem? Share your specific solution.
Dijitali Maths is developing Dijitali Way-In, a learner-centered mathematics learning system built around one simple idea: Different Doors. Same Understanding. Instead of giving every learner the same explanation when they struggle, Way-In seeks to understand where and how a learner is getting stuck, then provides an alternative pathway into the same mathematical concept. In practice, a learner begins with a short diagnostic activity that goes beyond marking answers as right or wrong. We look at how they approach a problem, the strategies they use, the misconceptions they reveal, and how confidently they explain their thinking. Based on this, the learner is guided through an appropriate "door," for example, a visual model, hands-on manipulatives, a real-world context, a game or challenge, discussion, or symbolic mathematical representation. The learner then practices, applies the concept to a new situation, explains their reasoning, and completes a mastery check. Their response helps determine whether they need another representation or are ready to progress. For example, if three learners struggle with fractions, one might need to physically build fractions, another may need a number-line representation, while another may need support connecting a visual model to mathematical symbols. The destination, mathematical understanding, is the same, but the pathway can be different. We are initially testing this approach manually with specific concepts and learner groups before developing the most effective elements into a scalable product. Our goal is to move mathematics learning from simply asking “Did you get the answer?” to asking “Do you understand, and what is the right way to help you get there?”
Your team: What role(s) do your team members play? How do you share leadership with them?
Dijitali Maths is currently founder-led, with Brenda Atieno Odhiambo serving as founder and executive director, leading the learning design, mathematics programs, partnerships, and product development. I work as the student learning lead alongside Tr. Stephen Okoth, who is the program manager, where we support learner engagement, implementation, and feedback; contribute ideas; test activities; share learner insights; and participate in decisions about program design and improvement.
