Using tech for good: Connecting youth to their future with Need a Tutor

By Bronwyn Covill, CEO and Founder of Need a Tutor

Bronwyn drives the company's technology, partnerships and long term strategic direction. She has spanned a career in corporate Learning & Development over 25 years developing a passionate interest in social educational support after witnessing first hand the difficulty of marginalised and disadvantaged students.

She received the Pride of Australia medal in 2019, Finalist 2021 Impact 25 Awards, Optus Future Maker 2020 and Blue Chillies Alumni 2020. She sits as a current Board Member (volunteer) for Cambodian Kids Can charity.

As the pace of technology adoption speeds up exponentially, so is the possibility that the digital divide between ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ will broaden quickly, too.

But this doesn’t have to be the case. The same problem solving and innovations that are creating emerging technologies can also address social issues with digital solutions. This premise underpins Optus’ Future Makers, a capacity building and accelerator program for social start-ups that are using technology for good. And I’m proud to say that Need a Tutor is among the talented innovators using tech for good in Optus’ Future Makers.

Just as technology opens up opportunities for businesses – which can just as easily reach a global customer as one down the street – it allows improved educational outcomes to reach further. And this simple premise – that we can connect world-class tutors with remote and rural students – is what Need a Tutor is all about.

We believe every child deserves an equal chance to a bright future, regardless of where they live.

Need a Tutor provides educational support through live online tutoring with can be truly future-making for those in rural, remote or geographic isolation. All individuals are matched with a qualified teacher or tutor and lessons are held via our proprietary platform. This makes for seamless, safe, secure delivery providing a scalable and sustainable approach to the provision of educational support.

Who are our students? 83% are primary aged. 96% are indigenous. 47% are Female. Literacy and numeracy are major focus areas for our students.

Through its Future Makers program, Optus said Yes to funding Need a Tutor, enabling us to build our capacity and impact. Through Optus and others’ generous support we have managed to reduce our waitlisted student numbers by half and onboard new tutors and remote schools. But we have a waitlist of more students who are seeking the support of Need a Tutor.

We have so many people who help make our important happen – and there are so many ways you can make a difference.

For those who want to get on board, sponsorship makes a tremendous impact, with arrangements which provide tutoring to individual students through targeted sponsorship by organisations, corporates or philanthropic funding.

Alternatively, if you think you can make an impact as either a tutor, teacher or mentor, please get in touch.

And if you can help us tell more people about the program, please share this post. Who knows, you may just spark someone to create their own tech-for-good initiative?

Improving educational outcomes for anyone makes a difference, opens employment opportunities and may just lead to the next big technological breakthrough. We shouldn’t deny any child – or Australia – those benefits.