• On 12 January, Ayuda en Acción signed an agreement with lyntia, the benchmark neutral service provider in Spain’s wholesale telecom market.
• The partnership agreement aims to work with three public primary schools (CEIP Cerro Coronado, CEIP Doctor Gálvez Moll and CEIP Manuel Altolaguirre) in Malaga’s Palma-Palmilla district, taking into account the components of Ayuda en Acción’s school model. 
• The agreement also aims to narrow the digital gap and promote equal opportunities and learning in the Palma-Palmilla district through the economic collaboration of lyntia. The intervention is slated to last 12 months.

Malaga, 25 January 2022. The purpose of the agreement is to establish collaboration between the telecommunications provider, lyntia, and the foundation, Ayuda en Acción, to promote an inclusive education system in the Palma-Palmilla (Malaga) district, with an initial duration of 12 months. 

With the goal of promoting an inclusive education system in the Palma-Palmilla district that reinforces the drive of students in vulnerable situations to continue their studies, Ayuda en Acción has launched the “A school that breaks barriers in Palma-Palmilla” project at three local primary schools.

Ayuda en Acción’s intervention model considers it instrumental to work comprehensively to create an inclusive school model that takes into account the needs and abilities of the student body and eliminates all forms of discrimination, as well as barriers to participation. One increasingly pertinent obstacle resulting from the pandemic is the digital gap. 

In the Palma-Palmilla district, high unemployment rates and a severe lack of professional training often causes social exclusion and intergenerational poverty. Moreover, the three public schools selected (CEIP Cerro Coronado, CEIP Doctor Gálvez Moll and CEIP Manuel Altolaguirre) face additional problems, such as absenteeism and segregation, substandard academic performance, digital gap, minimal presence and activity of the local PTA, and a socially disadvantaged student body. Taken together, these factors contribute to a serious lack of motivation among students to continue their education. 

In an effort to quickly diagnose the status of education and schools in the district, the Ayuda en Acción team began working with two public primary schools to pinpoint the problems that exist and identify viable intervention alternatives. 

After conducting a diagnosis, further infrastructure issues appeared affecting both education and motivation, in addition to a lack of human resources (teaching staff). 

Given the social gap is wider than the digital gap, the latter also exists and is reflected in the difficulty of communicating with the families. In addition, many homes have no internet connection. 

Although there are basic devices for students and teachers in schools, the technology is insufficient and outdated. Students in years five and six, for example, do not have sufficient equipment for individualised learning. 

Through the partnership agreement with lyntia, the benchmark neutral service provider in Spain’s wholesale telecom market, which offers fibre optic connectivity services with extensive network coverage and excellent capillarity, Ayuda en Acción will implement a model prototype designed to promote inclusion, advance the digital transformation, and guarantee the efficiency, relevance, and sustainability of the actions carried out at the three public primary schools selected in Palma-Palmilla. lyntia will participate as an institute and volunteer in educational workshops with the schools, contributing to an awareness of networks and connectivity options for schools and households.