Last updated 9 months ago
There’s no Cardano-based platform where teachers can freely offer free or paid courses in ADA, limiting global access, decentralization, and opportunities for educators and learners.
A Cardano powered platform where educators create free or paid courses in ADA, and students join multiple schools, enabling global, decentralized, and borderless learning opportunities.
This is the total amount allocated to SkillChain – Learn & Teach with Cardano.
Please provide your proposal title
SkillChain – Learn & Teach with Cardano
Enter the amount of funding you are requesting in ADA
90000
Please specify how many months you expect your project to last
12
Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated
No
Original Language
en
What is the problem you want to solve?
There’s no Cardano-based platform where teachers can freely offer free or paid courses in ADA, limiting global access, decentralization, and opportunities for educators and learners.
Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?
No
Describe any dependencies or write 'No dependencies'
no dependencies
Will your project's outputs be fully open source?
No
License and Additional Information
To ensure secure handling of ADA payments and prevent potential exploits, critical backend components and smart contracts will remain proprietary, while documentation and non-sensitive code may be shared for transparency and community guidance
Please choose the most relevant theme and tag related to the outcomes of your proposal.
Education
Describe what makes your idea innovative compared to what has been previously funded (whether by you or others).
SkillChain stands out from previous Catalyst-funded educational initiatives by combining decentralized education with direct ADA-based microtransactions between students and instructors, without requiring intermediaries or centralized payment processors. While past projects have explored blockchain-based learning, most have been limited to offering pre-set courses or building specific educational content.
Describe what your prototype or MVP will demonstrate, and where it can be accessed.
The SkillChain-Learn & Teach with Cardano prototype will be a fully functional web-based platform that showcases the main characteristics of the finished product. Users will be able to access the main dashboard, create basic profiles, and register as instructors or students. Teachers will be able to create their own "schools," add text, video, and downloadable materials to their courses, and choose between free enrollment and ADA payment. Students will be able to browse available schools, enroll in them, and make test payments using a Cardano testnet wallet integration.
Describe realistic measures of success, ideally with on-chain metrics.
Success will be measured by the total amount of ADA transactions, the total number of instructors, the total number of students enrolled, and the total number of courses accessible through the platform.
Please describe your proposed solution and how it addresses the problem
On Cardano, we will create the decentralized, blockchain-powered learning marketplace SkillChain – Learn & Teach with Cardano. Teachers can design their own "schools" or courses on the platform, which can be free or require ADA payments. Instructors have total autonomy over pricing, course design, and content delivery, allowing education to be accessible to a worldwide audience.
Bypassing centralized middlemen, students can browse several schools, enroll in one or more courses at once, and safely pay instructors using ADA. Instructors will be able to offer top-notch learning experiences thanks to the platform's interactive features, which will include video lessons, PDFs, and quizzes.
Additionally, the platform has dashboards for students and instructors. While students can keep track of their courses, accomplishments, and lessons completed, instructors can keep tabs on student progress, manage course content, and track enrollments. Ratings, reviews, and certificates are examples of optional features that can encourage excellent instruction and foster community trust.
All payments and course enrollments are secure, transparent, and verifiable thanks to Cardano's blockchain. At launch, the platform supports both English and Amharic; based on user feedback, future expansions are planned. The lack of decentralized, international, and ADA-integrated educational resources is directly addressed by this solution, which boosts Cardano adoption and offers useful on-chain functionality while empowering teachers and students everywhere.
Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community
What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?
The project is currently led solely by me, the founder, who provides the vision, coordination, and overall direction for the platform. While I do not yet have extensive blockchain development expertise, the Catalyst funding will allow me to hire highly skilled blockchain developers, smart contract engineers, and UI/UX designers to complete the technical aspects of the project. Roles and responsibilities will be clearly defined, and structured workflows will ensure accountability, transparency, and consistent progress tracking throughout the project lifecycle.
The project will follow a phased approach, beginning with a testnet prototype that demonstrates core features such as instructor and student registration, course creation, enrollment, and secure ADA payments. This prototype will be rigorously tested, and feedback from early users will validate usability, technical reliability, and transaction integrity. The platform is designed to scale, supporting multiple instructors, courses, and languages (English and Amharic initially) without performance issues. Critical components, including smart contracts handling ADA, will be professionally audited to ensure security, while non-sensitive elements such as UI templates and documentation will be released under the MIT License to promote transparency and encourage community contributions.
Progress and feasibility will be continuously monitored through measurable outputs, including functional prototypes, testnet deployment logs, and user feedback metrics. By combining careful planning, phased validation, skilled personnel, and transparent practices, the project is well-positioned to deliver a secure, reliable, and scalable educational platform that demonstrates practical Cardano utility while building trust with the community.
Milestone Title
Project Kick-off & Team Setup
Milestone Outputs
Acceptance Criteria
Evidence of Completion
Delivery Month
2
Cost
20000
Progress
30 %
Milestone Title
Prototype Development & Testing
Milestone Outputs
Acceptance Criteria
Evidence of Completion
Delivery Month
8
Cost
40000
Progress
70 %
Milestone Title
Full Platform Launch & Community Onboarding
Milestone Outputs
Acceptance Criteria
Evidence of Completion
Delivery Month
2
Cost
30000
Progress
100 %
Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources
Developer Payments – 64,000 ADA (64%)
Salaries and fees for blockchain developers, smart contract engineers, and UI/UX designers. This covers all technical aspects of the platform, including building registration systems, course creation tools, ADA payment integration, dashboards, and testing.
Project Management & Oversight – 10,000 ADA (10%)
Planning, milestone tracking, internal meetings, coordination, and reporting to ensure the project remains on schedule and meets quality standards.
Content Creation & Educational Materials – 12,000 ADA (12%)
Designing course templates, interactive content such as videos, PDFs, quizzes, and producing tutorials and guides for instructors and students.
Testing & Quality Assurance – 8,000 ADA (8%)
Functional testing, user testing, and ensuring security and reliability of the platform before mainnet deployment.
Marketing & Community Outreach – 6,000 ADA (6%)
Promotional campaigns, onboarding instructors and students, and producing outreach materials to ensure adoption of the platform.
The largest portion of the budget is allocated to highly skilled developers to guarantee a secure, scalable, and high-quality platform. Additional funds cover project management, content creation, testing, and community outreach, ensuring usability, accessibility, and broad adoption. Each ADA spent is tied to measurable outputs that expand Cardano adoption, increase on-chain activity, and demonstrate real-world utility.
How does the cost of the project represent value for the Cardano ecosystem?
The requested funding of 100,000 ADA represents significant value for the Cardano ecosystem by directly addressing the need for decentralized, blockchain-based educational platforms. Every ADA is strategically allocated to ensure measurable outputs and long-term impact. The majority of the funds are directed toward hiring skilled developers to build a secure, scalable, and fully functional platform, which is essential for practical demonstration of Cardano’s capabilities.
Additional funding is allocated to content creation, testing, quality assurance, project management, and community outreach. This ensures that the platform is not only technically sound but also user-friendly, engaging, and widely adopted. By integrating ADA payments, the platform increases on-chain activity, encourages wallet usage, and exposes new users to Cardano’s ecosystem.
The project also provides open-source non-sensitive components, such as UI templates and documentation under the MIT License, promoting transparency, community participation, and reusable resources for future projects. By combining tangible technical deliverables with measurable adoption metrics, SkillChain maximizes the value of each ADA spent, strengthening Cardano’s reputation as a practical, secure, and globally impactful blockchain.
Terms and Conditions:
Yes
primary coordinator. I am responsible for the overall vision, planning, and management of the platform. While I am the only active member at this stage, Catalyst funding will allow me to hire capable professionals, including blockchain developers, smart contract engineers, and UI/UX designers. These team members will execute the technical implementation, develop the platform’s core functionalities, and ensure high-quality, secure delivery.
The team structure will be clearly defined, with roles, responsibilities, and workflows established to maintain accountability, transparency, and progress tracking throughout the project lifecycle. This approach ensures the project can meet its milestones effectively while building a reliable and scalable educational platform on Cardano.