Learn with El Chavo
In 2016, I was invited to join Televisa Foundation as a Program Officer/Product Manager. One of the three initiatives I took on was the online bilingual learning platform, Learn with El Chavo, covering multiple topics such as English, Spanish, Coding, Math, and Science in way that is free, friendly, and fun.
As a Product Manager, I oversaw the completion of Learn Math with El Chavo, I established the strategy and roadmap for Learn Science with El Chavo, measured performance of existing El Chavo products in all digital distribution platforms making sure the strategy and business goals were being met.
In this case, I will go over my involvement in the creation and completion of the Learn Math with El Chavo app.
Video by Televisa Foundation.
El Chavo is the main character of a Mexican television sitcom that gained enormous popularity among millions of Hispanic Americans, showing the strong cultural affinity with the character. Produced by Televisa, a Mexican multimedia mass media company and the largest in Latin America and the Spanish-speaking world.
Goals and Objectives
To increase parental engagement and to strengthen the mathematical skills of Hispanic children ages 3 to 5.
Learning goals:
Numbers and Operations
Geometry and Special Sense
Measurement and Data
Algebraic Thinking
Constraints
When I took over the project, 20% of the design had been completed and had to get up to speed in only a few days. Since none of the previous team members were Learning Designers, there were several adjustments to be made.
Setbacks due to a highly bureaucratic financial team operating in Mexico.
High employee rotation required constant onboarding of new members.
Team
Executive Director - Alicia Lebrija
Project and Product Manager - Rocío Almanza
UX - Kathleen Chiluiza, Columbia University
Subject Matter Expert - Herbert P. Ginsburg, Professor of Psychology & Education at Teachers College, Columbia
Development - Washa Washa
Image by Televisa Foundation.
Product Management & Outreach
Curriculum Development
A subject matter expert was hired to develop the curriculum that would guide the design of the app. My predecessor worked with Herbert P. Ginsburg, a “leading interpreter of children's understanding of mathematics, with research and teaching interests in intellectual development, mathematics education, and testing and assessment.”
Design & Build
Request for proposals were sent to a few companies and the winner was Washa Washa, an interactive media agency based in Mexico City in charge of developing the eight levels of the game for iOS, Android, and web.
My responsibilities as a Product Manager included guiding the completion of the project, owning the roadmap and setting priorities to achieve Televisa Foundation’s strategic goals for the platform. I provided feedback in terms of user experience and learning goals throughout the development of each level and worked closely with developers, artists, and brand managers.
Additionally, as a Program Officer I was in charge of developing an outreach strategy, establishing partnerships with foundations, community organizations, and service providers such as consulates and government offices.
Example of adjustments. Note that most of the work was done remotely; developer was based in Mexico City while I was based in Denver, Colorado. Image by Televisa Foundation.
Validation, Testing, Iterations, Launch
Along with Kathleen, the UX designer, and Katy, the product manager in transition, I designed the instrument to test the beta version of the game that included qualitative and quantitative methods.
The results indicated that, in general, children liked the game but got stuck in several parts of it. Retention was higher among the oldest kids in the target audience’s age range. Adjustments were made and we had a few more testing sessions, this time remotely. After a few more tweaks, the design for the Version 1.0 was finalized in 2016.
Promotion and Launch
Because Televisa Foundation is part of Grupo Televisa, S.A.B. a global media company, these apps are heavily publicized on commercial TV in Mexico and the US (through Univision) and the product manager is also in charge of supervising the completion of the promos and online ads. I worked with several teams within Televisa to plan and execute a multimedia campaign. Multiple trips to Mexico City were required to assure the quality and completion of the aforementioned campaign. Finally, in the summer of 2016 the promos aired successfully and the app was launched gaining thousands of downloads in only a few weeks.
Continuous Improvement
After the launch, I was in charge of tracking key performance indicators through the analytics in different distribution platforms (app store, play store, and Google analytics) and present the results to the leadership team and different stakeholders.
Then, after a few months, four more levels were added.
Reflections and Outcomes of this Experience
It was great to work remotely with a global organization based in Mexico City in a transnational project using such a popular and beloved brand.
I enjoyed working with the developers in fast paced environment but I also cherish the opportunity to establish connections with renowned organizations such as the Bezos Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Packard Foundation, the Mexican Consulate in the US, and the United Nations, to name a few.