ParentText — Early Years Starter Kit

Overview

ParentText is an automated messaging service that aims to support parents and caregivers of children aged 0 to 17 in low and middle income countries with personalized information on caring for themselves and their child. The content, based on Parenting for Lifelong Health’s (PLH) evidence-based parenting programs, focuses on relationship building, child development, early learning, violence prevention, caregiver mental health and well-being, and positive partner relationships. The chatbot messages have been adapted to local country contexts, translated to multiple languages, and can be delivered either through a chatbot on a commonly used messaging platform (e.g., WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber, Line) or through SMS.

PLH has also developed ParentChat, a tool that promotes playful parenting and violence prevention through online support groups delivered by a facilitator over text messaging platforms (e.g., WhatsApp, Viber, Signal, Telegram). More information on ParentChat can be found here.

Active since 2022

Developer Parenting for Lifelong Health

How it works

ParentText provides parents and caregivers locally adapted messages across 6 key themes or parent goals: relationship building, behavior management, early learning and school engagement, intimate partner violence, violence prevention against children, and caregiver mental health and well-being.

Users can select one of these thematic areas at a time and receive a series of skill-based modules on that theme. Each module consists of daily messages or sections for 3-5 days. The messages are personalized based on the age and gender of the child, and the content of these weekly messages includes a goal, tips, videos, and activities to do at home to practice the skill.

The chatbot prompts parents to schedule time to implement the home activity. The following day after the scheduled time, the chatbot checks-in on how the activity went. If parents report a challenge in completing the activity, the chatbot helps troubleshoot with a tip on how to overcome the challenge.

The modules are also interspersed with interactive quizzes on child development, socio-emotional learning, and child safety and health.

An emoji-based progress tracker helps users keep track of the sections they have completed. Upon completion of all the sections of the weekly module, users receive a badge. They can then move on to the second level in the thematic area or choose a different thematic area to work on. Users receive a trophy when they complete all modules within a thematic area or goal.

The second level of a thematic area allows parents to choose a goal based on the needs of their child. For example within behavior management, all parents would receive similar content (e.g., setting routines) in Level 1. In Level 2, they can choose between different goals (e.g., managing tantrums or sharing or violent behavior) based on their individual needs.

Reminder messages encourage parents to engage with the content. Users can also access on-demand content by browsing the chatbot menu independently.

ParentText has a text sensitivity feature that can recognize high risk keywords (e.g., violence, poisoning) to detect potentially dangerous situations. Once detected, the chatbot provides support by sharing contact details on where to seek help (e.g., police, ambulance). Users are also encouraged to share ParentText to others.

PLH continues to innovate and redesign ParentText’s offerings to support parents. Designs to provide more focused support to male caregivers, caregivers of children with disabilities, and families in migration are underway. Further, testing solutions where parents can receive support through human contact (e.g., referral to hotlines, community WhatsApp groups, in-person onboarding) is currently ongoing in Malaysia, Philippines, South Africa, and Mexico. Plans to incorporate a milestone assessment tool for parents are also in the pipeline.

More details on the user engagement strategies employed by the tool can be found here.

Reach and relevance

Users
1745
As of March 2023.
Country of origin
- Malaysia
Active countries
The tool has been soft launched in Philippines, South Africa, Jamaica, Malaysia and is currently being prepared for launch in Thailand, Mexico, and Sri Lanka.
Language
Dissemination strategy
ParentText utilizes various recruitment strategies including partnerships with schools, health clinics, and grocery stores, as well as program partners and government agencies. Social media and traditional media (e.g., radio, television broadcasts) are also used to spread the word.

Technology and access

ParentText can be accessed either through a basic feature phone or a smartphone and both with or without internet. When signing up, parents have the option to choose their preferred data use – basic, medium, or high. This determines if they will receive only text-based messages or both text-based and multimedia messages (e.g., images, GIFs, videos). ParentText is programmed using RapidPro, an open-source software used to build the workflow logic for mobile-based services, and can be delivered through the most commonly used messaging platform (e.g., Whatsapp, Telegram, Viber) in the country of implementation. In contexts with limited internet connectivity or low smartphone access, messages can also be delivered over SMS.

Connectivity requirements
- Cellular service
- Internet connectivity / mobile data
Device types
- Basic mobile/Feature phone
- Smartphone
Cost model
- Free The tool is available at no charge to the user.

Measurement

Data indicators monitored include user engagement data such as response and completion rates, and enrolment data including number of sign-ups and dropouts. To measure impact of the messages, ParentText has a feature to capture data through weekly assessments. These assessments, structured as reflection check-ins, include short questions for parents to reflect on how they used the message and if they observed any changes.

There are also several research studies ongoing across different countries to examine the feasibility of the tool, effective user engagement strategies, barriers and facilitators to engagement and enrolment, and effect of the tool on improving parenting practices. More details on the studies and forthcoming publications can be accessed here.

Partnerships

Parenting for Lifelong Health partners with UNICEF country offices, local NGOs, and government agencies to support the design, implementation, and dissemination of ParentText. PLH works with IDEMS International on tech development of the tool.

Research partners include the Department of Social Policy at Oxford University, the Centre for Social Science Research at the University of Cape Town, the Department of Psychology at Ateneo de Manila University, and the Faculty of Human Ecology at Universiti Putra Malaysia. Implementing partners include Clowns Without Borders South Africa, the Malaysian Association of Social Workers, and the Philippine Child Protection Network.

ParentText is funded by The LEGO Foundation, Oak Foundation, The Human Safety Net, and UNICEF.

MomConnect

Parent Education Program

Sésamo Chatbot