A smart approach

On the trip to Kenya, the team witnessed how computers and the internet had helped children living in slums to learn about COVID-19 before the outbreak in their country, so they could be prepared in advance.

Bridge International Academies, a low-cost private school chain across Africa, have been set up in slums. They give tablets that guide teachers step by step in class to standardize lecture content and teaching methods, as a strategy to deal with the lack of quality teachers.

"The progress technology has brought to education in Kenya is even more remarkable than in developed countries," Chen says.

The documentary has also discussed the importance of training for parents and teachers. "The trend of the day urges us to move away from telling kids exactly how to do things to encouraging them to explore themselves and become capable and brave enough to pursue self-fulfillment," Chen says.

Zhang says they're considering carrying forward their observation on educational topics in the digital era, such as how to reduce inequality and improve cost-effectiveness, and how to improve the intimacy between more and more demanding parents and their children.

"We want to record the stories of our time and to offer insight to our audience by focusing more on topics of public value, such as education," says Yang Ruichun, deputy editor-in-chief of Tencent's content production department.