Mohammad Imran Khan Mewati teaches grades 6‑12 at a rural school in India. Most of his students come from low‑income families and the school lacks resources; the biggest challenge is absenteeism. “If a student is not coming into your class, how are you going to teach?” Mewati asks, which led him to use smartphones and MIT Open Learning’s free materials to reach learners outside the classroom.
A self‑taught app developer, Mewati leverages MIT Open Learning’s OpenCourseWare and the AI‑powered MIT Learn platform. He downloads lectures, notes, and videos for offline use, then adapts them into Hindi‑language digital resources. The most impactful courses for him were Introduction to CS and Programming Using Python, Introduction to C and C++, Introduction to Programming Using Java, and Introduction to Computational Thinking. These courses helped him blend mathematical problem‑solving with computer‑science concepts to build educational apps.
The school is 15 miles from Alwar, Rajasthan. While students rarely have desktops or laptops, most households own at least one smartphone. Mewati creates WhatsApp class groups to share resources instantly. In the early 2010s, he built a simple HTML page with iconic moon‑landing images and Hindi captions; students performed better after using it, confirming his belief that “technology is the equalizer.”
Through crowdfunding, he secured 15 refurbished computers for a lab and teachers now rotate mobile hotspots to provide internet access. His mobile apps cover math‑skill games, syllabi, reading lists, class notes, and exam preparation for government jobs. One app delivers Hindi maternal‑health information—an otherwise taboo topic—allowing users to access honest content privately.
Mewati shares his apps and MIT Open Learning resources with a network of over 1,000 teachers across India, connecting through the National Teacher Awards and the Global Teacher Prize in Dubai. By promoting open‑source materials, he continuously expands learning opportunities for his students. “I come from a rural area, my parents are uneducated, yet I became a Fulbright Scholar and reached the Global Teacher Prize stage,” he says. “It’s because I kept learning with technology and MIT’s free courses.” He urges anyone curious to grab and share these resources so humanity can flourish.
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