The rise of online learning during COVID-19
What is EdTech?
The acronym "EdTech" is a mash-up of two words: "education" and "technology." It refers to technologies (either hardware or software) aimed at improving educational results. Start-ups are now using apps like augmented reality, animations, robotics, and others to make the curriculum more immersive and approachable. EdTech encompasses digital displays, multimedia lectures, and MOOCs. Ed-tech start-ups use technologies to make education more available to all.
What effect do online learning start-ups have in India?
Learners today are mindful of the increasing need for skills that they may apply. Employers search for applicants who can apply their skills. Online learning start-ups are using virtual reality, artificial reality, and mixed reality to help students better understand subjects. These innovations not only make studying more fun, but they also make complicated topics easier for students to comprehend. A 3D digital representation of the human body, for example, may assist students in further understanding the organs. They also help students make smarter career choices, understand the practical side of things, and bind them to better opportunities. The top online learning start-ups in India were established to improve and simplify education for students.
During Covid-19, online learning growth accelerates.
The number of Indian students studying online has risen significantly since March 2020. Because of the lockout and fear of Covid-19, schools, universities, and educational establishments have gone online. Any Edu-tech sites have seen their user base of both paying and free unique users in the K12 and post K-12 categories more than double in the last 10 months. The number of students studying online is reportedly 90 million, and this figure is projected to increase higher in the future according to Gartner.
According to an Economic Times survey, the online education sector for grades 1-12 is projected to expand 6.3 times in the next year, generating a $1.7 billion market. The demand for post-K-12 education is predicted to rise 3.7 times to $1.8 billion. The COVID-19 crisis has been a big catalyst in changing the learning environment not just for students and educators, but also for investors and online learning start-ups. According to the Economic Times, the year preceding the pandemic saw fast development and acceptance of educational technologies, with global EdTech investments exceeding €15.87 billion in 2019. Since COVID-19, there has been substantial growth in the use of language applications, video conferencing applications, and online learning technologies.
What has changed since the outbreak of the Pandemic?
The pandemic has benefited educational technology start-ups. With schools and colleges closing soon and teenagers and young adults relegated to their homes, digital literacy has grown into a "must-have" rather than a "good to have." Companies saw a 100 percent surge in active consumers after the pandemic, according to statistics from the Economics Times. E.g., since the blockade, Indian ed-tech has gained over 7 million new users. Furthermore, consumers are reviving their interest in the industry. During the economic turmoil created by COVID-19, 14 ed-tech start-ups in India have closed around in the last few months, with a $400M round leading the pack. Upskilling apps will see increased demand because of recent layoffs around the world and the need for new talents in the post-COVID world.
Online learning firms, including those in the B2C space, have been swift to reach out to schools to ease the latter's transition to digital education while also setting the foundation for a potential B2B vertical. Furthermore, schools and universities have been swift to embrace digital technologies, with many in India and the United States already offering online courses.
With colleges and colleges seeing the opportunities of emerging media first-hand and ed-tech firms collaborating with institutions, it is possible that as the world reopens, the future of information distribution and assessment will be a hybrid model.
Reasons behind the dramatic transition to online learning
When students have been relegated to their homes in recent months, digital education has arisen as the only way for them to continue studying. Furthermore, although a full-scale return to schools does not seem to be possible this academic year, it will continue to promote online learning as the primary means of teaching, especially at the primary and secondary levels. The utility of online education as a tool for school teaching is still being studied. Even though classrooms may reopen, online supplemental and remedial learning will continue to expand.
The EdTech site recently reached a million subscribers. It rose by 100% in the first nine months of the fiscal year and plans to generate Rs 2,500 crore in revenue in FY21-22. The app plans to cross 2 million users over the next 18 months, according to the Economic Times.
The advantages of these e-learning apps
EdTech, or the EdTech market, not only offers a modern conceptual technology for teaching youth, but it also assists them in their career advancement. By using innovative learning approaches such as gamification and participatory learning modules, e-learning applications are increasing student performance.
E-learning applications ensure the child's supervision and success by including a rundown of the child's abilities and shortcomings. Physical assessments do not allow for such thorough and in-depth research, but with these technical items, parents and teachers will stay up to date on their child's success in each subject.
- Encourages self-learning: The gamification process encourages students to do self-learning. And also helps them prepare for and participate in challenging tests to advance their careers, as well as empowers them to assume control of their schooling and order to recognize their educational success. According to the Economic Times, nearly 27 million users took their first Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) in 2017, taking the overall number of online learners to approximately 81 million at over 800 universities.
- Increases Attentiveness and Efficiency: Gamified learning strategies help students concentrate more on their syllabus by offering an engaging and immersive learning medium. Students are encouraged to be more effective and attentive to their learning experience because of this.
- Gives Students Instant Feedback: The gamified learning format gives students immediate feedback after and game-cum-lesson. This enables them to understand their success and enhance learning participation through dashboards with real-time feedback systems, assisting teachers and parents in making educated decisions.
- Encourages Students to Fail and Try Again: Gamifying the learning experience allows students to fail and try again without fear of harmful outcomes. It gives students ample chances to attempt new ideas without fear of failure, encouraging them to perfect their intellectual clarity.
- Allows students to see real-world applications: As students can apply ideas in real-world contexts, learning becomes more engaging and successful. Gamification of education encourages students to see the real-world implications and advantages of the subject. They can see first-hand how their game choices end in penalties or incentives.
The Future: Physical vs Online
Covid-19 has changed the educational world. And major colleges are embracing e-learning, saving money on additional physical facilities. Education is now becoming more available and inexpensive because of this. After the pandemic, EdTech start-ups have helped more than 100 universities and colleges to duplicate their classes online.
Overall, EdTech systems will not only continue to expand in both K12 and post-K12 segments, pulling in more students from metros and non-metros online but will also help students get better jobs by upskilling and assist physical institutions in taking part in their curriculum, as needed, online.