Updated on June 16, 2024

·

Created on September 8, 2017

RACHEL

Open-source

Combination of freely available software and content modules that enable online educational materials into places with limited or no internet access

Developed By
  1. Hackers for Charity
  2. World Possible
Tested By
  • Northwest Nazarene University’s Doceō Center
  • RACHEL
  • World Possible
Content Partners
Unknown

Author
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Product Description

RACHEL, the Remote Area Community Hotspot for Education and Learning, is a combination of freely available software and content modules that enable online educational materials into places with limited or no internet access. The content is available in multiple languages and can be customized to suit local needs.

It is divided into two areas:

– RACHEL Content Library, which can be installed and deployed freely and everywhere by downloading content from their site

– RACHEL Hardware, a hardware, pre-installed with the most-used RACHEL content.

Target SDGs

SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

SDG 4: Quality Education

Market Suggested Retail Price

$749.00

Target Users (Target Impact Group)

Household, Community

Distributors / Implementing Organizations

World Possible.

Competitive Landscape

Direct competitors include Kiwix and Internet-in-a-box.

Manufacturing/Building Method

RACHEL Content Library is developed mainly with Shell, PHP and Perl. The RACHEL-Pi is based on the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B.

Intellectural Property Type

Open-source

User Provision Model

RACHEL Content Library is provided through their GitHub site and FTP site. RACHEL Hardware can be purchased through the project's web page.

Distributions to Date Status

Rachel is used by hundreds of partner organizations in over 40 countries worldwide

Type of service

Provides content and information for off-grid networks.

Telecommunication service required

Local wired or wireless connection required for end-users to access content repositories.

Fixed network connection required (Y/N)

No.

Additional device required

To be accessed it requires users to have a devices such as smartphone or personal computer. If deployers do not get RACHEL Hardware a server in which content will be installed is required.

Two way communication (Y/N)

Yes.

Battery life (hours)

For RACHEL Content Library it does not apply. For RACHEL Hardware there are differentiated attributes for every product.

Network capacity

  • RACHEL-Corrections 3.0: # of simultaneous users 20-50
  • RACHEL-Plus: # of simultaneous users: 10-50
  • RACHEL-Pi: # of simultaneous users: 1-10

Power requirements

Power requirements will depend on selected hardware applied to install solution.

Average packet loss

N/A

Application

Education.

Design Specifications

RACHEL-Corrections 3.0 - Required skills: None - Number of simultaneous users: 20-50 - Supported content storage: 500GB HDD RACHEL-Plus - Required skills: None - Number of simultaneous users: 10-50 - Supported content storage: 500GB HDD RACHEL-Pi - Required skills: SSH or linux command line for safe shutdown (recommended) - Number of simultaneous users: 1-10 - Supported content storage: 64GB

Product Schematics

Technical Support

There is an open community for support and a side community called RACHEL Friends that aims to improve, expand, spread, and document RACHEL, the best ways use it, and experiences deploying it.

Replacement Components

For RACHEL Content Library it does not apply. For RACHEL Hardware there are differentiated policies for every product.

Lifecycle

For RACHEL Content Library it does not apply. For RACHEL Hardware this is unknown.

Manufacturer Specified Performance Parameters

  • Easy to build
  • Easy to use: Turn it on and connect to "RACHEL" as you would any wifi network. Open a web browser and type the web address (a number listed on the front sticker of your RACHEL). Once you're connected to RACHEL, you can instantly access offline versions of the world's best free educational websites including Wikipedia, Khan Academy, and over 100 more.

Vetted Performance Status

Results of an independent evaluation of the Sergio Paiz Andrade Foundation’s (Funsepa) pilot program in Sacatepéquez presented in this report. The pilot aimed to take an innovative approach to Funsepa’s traditional programming and enhance student academic performance in mathematics. The results show that consistently, students with access to e-education resources scored more than 10% that their control group counterpart. An independent evaluation of The Samuel Morris Scholar’s Pilot Program initiated by Innovative Education Liberia (IEL) in a remote, rural county of Liberia during the 2015-2016 academic year show that, relative to the comparison group, the pilot intervention leads to an average increase of 10 points in math scores, out of a maximum possible score of 100 points, which is double the increase of five points produced by Funsepa’s traditional program.

Safety

N/A

Complementary Technical Systems

None.

Academic Research and References

“World Possible’s RACHEL Server – The Best of the Web Offline.” n.d. World Possible. Accessed June 16, 2024. https://worldpossible.org/

“RACHEL-Plus 4.0 ($500).” n.d. World Possible. Accessed June 16, 2024. https://racheloffline.org/collections/frontpage/products/rachel-plus

“RACHEL-Plus 4.0 ($500).” n.d. World Possible. Accessed June 16, 2024. https://worldpossible.org/products/rachel-plus

“Goal 9.” n.d. Sdgs.Un.Org. Accessed June 16, 2024. https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal9

Rachel-Web: Code for RACHEL Content Website. n.d. Accessed June 16, 2024. https://github.com/worldpossible/rachel-web

“World Possible’s RACHEL Server – The Best of the Web Offline.” n.d. World Possible. Accessed June 16, 2024. https://racheloffline.org/

“World Possible Community.” n.d. World Possible Community. Accessed June 16, 2024. https://community.worldpossible.org/

N.d. Learningequality.Org. Accessed June 16, 2024. https://learningequality.org/media/FUNSEPA_Final_Evaluation_Report_27May2016.pdf

Compliance with regulations

Yes. All content available within RACHEL solution is open source and can be freely share everywhere.

Evaluation methods

For verification of proper hardware and software installation, an operation test on connectivity and data accessibility must be performed.

Other Information

There are video-tutorials on the Jeremy Schwartz YouTube Channel.

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