STORY
- 7 min read
Education in Emergencies (EiE) – Empowering hard-to-reach teachers
International Rescue Committee (IRC)
Education in Emergencies (EiE)
IMPACT SECTOR
AprendIA
SOLUTION
International Rescue Committee (IRC)
PARTNER
Worldwide
LOCATION
​Providing personalized Healing Classrooms Training for teachers in crisis settings
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The International Rescue Committee (IRC) provides essential educational support to teachers in some of the world’s most challenging environments. In regions affected by conflict, teachers often lack resources and training to address students’ emotional needs. IRC sought a specialized, accessible tool to offer healing-centered guidance, empowering teachers to create safe, supportive classrooms.
What is AprendIA?
AprendIA is an AI-driven chatbot platform delivering personalized learning experiences through familiar messaging platforms, accessible even in low-tech environments. Designed for crisis settings, AprendIA enables teachers to access vital training materials, ensuring continuous learning despite challenging conditions.
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French Lab’s Role: Leveraging GenAI for enhanced learning
French Lab played a central role in developing the Education in Emergencies - AprendIA chatbot, an AI-driven tutor deployed on WhatsApp that supplements IRC’s Healing Classrooms training. Tailored to IRC’s Healing Classrooms content, AprendIA combines French Lab’s expertise in GenAI and pedagogical modeling, transforming IRC’s established curriculum into structured, conversational AI flows. Each course progresses through understanding, application, evaluation, and analysis phases, guiding teachers through core concepts before practical application.
To support learner progress, French Lab incorporated two feedback mechanisms:
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Direct Feedback: The AI identifies errors, explains them, and provides correct answers.
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Socratic Questioning: GenAI prompts users to reflect on incorrect answers, guiding them to discover the correct response.
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This feedback is supplemented with open-ended discussions for deeper exploration, allowing teachers to engage fully with each topic.
Ethical AI and targeted assessments
French Lab crafted an ethical, mission-aligned AI experience for IRC, with controlled feedback flows and iterative prompts that adapt to user input. This tailored approach ensures AprendIA maintains accuracy and educational purpose. AI responses are contextualized through conversation history, preserving content integrity and aligning with IRC’s values.
Why AprendIA is Impactful
This project serves as a testing ground for enhanced GenAI capabilities through a collaboration with OpenAI, integrating advanced AI-driven support for crisis-affected educators. Through the EiE AprendIA chatbot, French Lab was pleased to collaborate with IRC in redefining educational support in crisis contexts, delivering safe, high-quality learning opportunities to teachers. This initiative supports IRC’s Airbel Impact Lab in demonstrating how EdTech can empower educators, build resilience, and transform educational access in crisis settings globally.