Every course created on FayEDU is built on the Fay Institute Learning Framework (FILF) — a research-validated approach to course design developed with and for African educators.
FILF — the Fay Institute Learning Framework — is a practical guide for designing courses that actually help people learn. It was built by studying how educators across Kenya really teach: in primary schools, secondary schools, universities, NGOs, and vocational training centres.
Most course design frameworks were built for Western classrooms with reliable internet, stable power, and learners who have time. FILF was built for the reality of African education: mixed connectivity, diverse learner backgrounds, time-poor educators, and a strong oral learning tradition.
The result is a 6-phase framework that guides educators to build courses that are clear, well-paced, assessable, and genuinely useful to their learners.
The pilot study recruited educators across six sectors — primary, secondary, higher education, NGO, corporate, and vocational training. The consistent finding: African educators are deeply capable but existing instructional design models were built for different contexts entirely. FILF was designed from the ground up for how African educators actually work.
Every course on FayEDU is guided by these phases
Understand who your learners are, what they already know, and what gaps they need to fill. Good courses start with real learner needs — not assumptions.
Define what learners will be able to DO after the course — not just what they will know. Outcomes drive every design decision that follows.
Structure content so learners build knowledge progressively. Start with the familiar, connect to the new, and layer complexity gradually across units.
Use multiple content formats — text, video, audio, image, and interactive quiz. Learners absorb differently. Multiple formats reduce dropout and improve completion.
Test knowledge at unit level — not just at the end. Quizzes, assignments, and discussion forums give learners feedback loops that reinforce learning.
Courses are never finished. FILF builds in review cycles based on learner performance data, completion rates, and educator feedback — so courses get better over time.
When you generate a lesson with AI, FayEDU structures it according to FILF — clear outcomes, scaffolded content, built-in assessment.
Before publishing, every course is scored on 5 FILF-aligned dimensions. A minimum score of 55/100 is required to publish — protecting learner quality.
FayEDU collects anonymised learning data to measure FILF effectiveness across diverse African learner populations — feeding back into the research.
FILF is open research. Both papers are freely available to read and cite.
Faith Mundia (2026). A pilot study with 9 Kenyan educators across primary, secondary, higher education, NGO, corporate, and vocational sectors. Identifies four core educator needs that shaped FayEDU's Course Studio design.
Faith Mundia (2026). The full FILF framework paper — synthesising ADDIE, SAM, Bloom's Taxonomy, and UDL into a practical course design guide for African educators. Published under Fay Institute of eLearning affiliation.
FayEDU guides you through FILF automatically — no instructional design degree required.