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Betteru Education Corp. $BTRU.ca – #Google $GOOG and #KPMG estimates #India’s online education #edtech industry to grow eight-fold to reach $1.96 billion by 2021

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 2:34 PM on Thursday, January 3rd, 2019
SPONSOR:  Betteru Education Corp. Connecting global leading educators to the mass population of India. BetterU Education has ability to reach 100 MILLION potential learners each week. Click here for more information.
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Google and KPMG estimates India’s online education industry to grow eight-fold to reach $1.96 billion by 2021

Growing EdTech Market in India: Key Catalyst

  • India is witnessing demographic dividends, implying more and more people, students and professionals alike are undertaking smart courses in order to improve knowledge base to gain a competitive edge in their careers.
  • This phenomenon has convinced analysts of the immense growth prospects of the burgeoning EdTech industry in India.
  • Reducing internet costs and increasing internet penetration in the country are other notable factors favoring the growth prospects of EdTech industry.
  • In fact, a research report from Google and KPMG estimates India’s online education industry to grow eight-fold to reach $1.96 billion by 2021. Further, the study projects paid users in EdTech to grow six times from 1.6 million in 2016 to 9.6 million in 2021.

By Zacks Equity Research, Zacks.com

Microsoft MSFT has introduced Surface Go tablet in India exclusively through Bengaluru, India-based e-commerce company, Flipkart. Recently, the company commenced shipping of the device, with prices ranging from INR 38,599 to INR 50,999.

The different variants of the new tablet series come with storage capacity of 64 GB and 128 GB, with 4 GB and 8 GB RAM, respectively.

Notably, Surface Go was introduced by Microsoft in a bid to explore the low-priced tablet market to take on Apple’s budget iPads, and Alphabet’s lower-priced Chromebook.

The company had unveiled Surface Go device around Jul 10, 2018 which was made available in early August, with prices ranging from $399 to $549 in the United States.

We believe that availability of Surface Go in India will position the company well to capitalize on the emerging EdTech market. Furthermore, the enhanced security and performance features hold promise in the growing enterprise market in the country.

Microsoft is likely to benefit from the competitive pricing of its Surface Go device. The latest Samsung Galaxy Tab S4 with 64 GB capacity is priced approximately at INR 57,900.

Microsoft Corporation Revenue (TTM)

Microsoft Corporation Revenue (TTM) | Microsoft Corporation Quote

In the words of Country General Manager, Consumer & Devices at Microsoft India, Priyadarshi Mohapatra, “Globally and in India, it’s encouraging to see the rapidly growing Surface community in both consumer and enterprise.”

Enhanced Security & Performance Features Hold Key

The compact Surface Go features a 10-inch screen and weighs 522 grams (or 1.15 pounds), lighter than its prevailing Surface counterparts. Further, the latest series is equipped with Intel’s INTC processor and graphic chips.

Additionally, the device has a decent nine hour battery life and canfunction with optional keyboard, mouse and Surface Pen 2.

Surface Go’s Windows Hello facial recognition option feature for logging-in and Windows 10 S mode, makes it a compelling option.

In a bid to enhance security and performance, users can utilize Microsoft Store appsincluding Microsoft Edge to browse safely.

Enterprises may avail Windows 10 Proto safeguard business infrastructure with robust security features. Windows Autopilot enables users to configure Surface Go from the cloud, in turn simplifying the IT processes a great deal.

Growing EdTech Market in India: Key Catalyst

India is witnessing demographic dividends, implying more and more people, students and professionals alike are undertaking smart courses in order to improve knowledge base to gain a competitive edge in their careers. This phenomenon has convinced analysts of the immense growth prospects of the burgeoning EdTech industry in India.

Reducing internet costs and increasing internet penetration in the country are other notable factors favoring the growth prospects of EdTech industry.

In fact, a research report from Google and KPMG estimates India’s online education industry to grow eight-fold to reach $1.96 billion by 2021. Further, the study projects paid users in EdTech to grow six times from 1.6 million in 2016 to 9.6 million in 2021.

Enemy’s Enemy an Ally?

One important point to note in this latest development is that Microsoft selected Flipkart’s e-commerce platform to launch Surface Go in India. Notably, Amazon AMZN and Flipkart are the two major players in Indian e-commerce market. Additionally, Walmart WMT acquired a 77% stake in Flipkart.

Microsoft Azure directly competes with Amazon’s cloud platform Amazon Web Services (“AWS”) in the cloud market. Walmart which competes with Amazon in the retail and e-commerce market has selected Azure cloud platform.

When we join the loose ends, it makes sense to say that “my enemy’s enemy is my friend.”

Our Take

Microsoft is well poised to benefit from robust adoption of Surface Go on the back of improving EdTech and enterprise scenario in India.

We believe the availability of Surface Go will aid the company in bolstering competitive strength in the direct consumer market, primarily in EdTech market in India.

Notably, Surface revenues increased 14% (same at cc) in first-quarter fiscal 2019 on a year-over-year basis on the back of strong performance of the latest editions – Surface Book 2 and Surface Go.

Moreover, Microsoft Surface series of devices have registered considerable double-digit growth in India in this year, as per Priyadarshi Mohapatra’s statement to IANS. The incremental sales from India will eventually benefit the top line.

Source: https://www.nasdaq.com/article/microsoft-msft-debuts-surface-go-in-india-via-flipkart-cm1076740

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Betteru Education Corp. $BTRU.ca – Education A Necessity To Reduce Unemployment #Edtech $ARCL $CPLA $BPI $FC.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 9:52 AM on Thursday, December 27th, 2018
SPONSOR:  Betteru Education Corp.Connecting global leading educators to the mass population of India. BetterU Education has ability to reach 100 MILLION potential learners each week. Click here for more information.
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  • Education in India is a dire need to help reduce unemployment and increase economic activity in the country.
  • The setting up of physical schools is a time taking and expensive process, thereby slowing down the pace of eradicating education gap.

Online learning reduces dropouts as its more engaging, interesting and makes students more familiar with using computers

26 December, 2018 by Rajguru Tandon

A learning crisis in India seems imminent even as educational reforms surge ahead. Provision of schools does not guarantee the availability of necessary facilities in schools. The gap is still wide when compared to the enrolment of children in the school and learning outcome.

Captain Indraani Singh, Founder, and CEO, Literacy India talks about online education in India, technological advancements and Literacy India helping out students with the educational program. 

How can online education transform the Indian education sector?

Education in India is a dire need to help reduce unemployment and increase economic activity in the country. The setting up of physical schools is a time taking and expensive process, thereby slowing down the pace of eradicating education gap. While online education helps to reach more students in the least amount of time and is not expensive either. Therefore, online education can increase the speed of education in our country where digitization is spreading rapidly as well.

Besides, online learning enables students to engage with the subject matter, interact with course videos and learn at their own pace, which also reduces dropouts as its more engaging, interesting and makes students more familiar with using computers. On the other hand, it allows teachers to assign, monitor and evaluate coursework remotely, apart from highlighting the areas of students which need improvement.

How does Literacy India help drop-out students in the transition to education?

Literacy India’s technology-enabled remedial education program Gyantantra Udbhav has helped mainstream thousands of drop-out students. The program essentially enables these drop-out students who do not respond well to the confines of traditional classrooms and experience lack of access to education. The education program combines practical, intellectual and social attributes to create composite learning modules to help students complete school curriculum till Class 5. Embedded with an interactive multimedia interface, the modules are designed with a systematic instructional approach that makes learning fun, even for those who lack basic reading and writing skills. The tool tracks minimum levels of learning based on assessments and outcomes. Once students complete the program, they are eligible to join any other government school. 

How AI is being used in the system?

Gyantantra Udbhav is an interactive multimedia interface, which includes modules designed with a systematic instructional approach that makes learning fun, even for those who lack basic reading and writing skills. The tool tracks minimum levels of learning based on assessments and outcomes. It leverages gaming technology embedded with cartoon characters thereby ensuring effective retention of the information. As such the program is customized to bridge the learning gap which is of common existence among this set of children, who either are out-of-school or in-school children faltering on fundamental concepts. Understandably, technology and innovation with its various verticals such as IoT and AI have the ability to ably support the education mediums and increase efficiency and productivity of those involved like these children. Thus, it is with the integration of such new age technologies like artificial intelligence, machine learning or virtual reality that the learning experience will be more interactive and personalized thereby enhancing and improving access to education and learning.

Can technology improve engagement and result in better learning outcomes?

The most obvious benefit of technology run education is that it is subjective to the learner’s ability and level. Through virtual interactive engagement, it teaches students with different speeds depending on their backgrounds and more importantly different starting points. Also, technological education platform is cost-effective and time-efficient and is flexible to the needs of every single student— be it on-the-go, class of one, on-demand, gamified or crowdsourced.

 How can online education impact India’s education and development landscape?

Education is an important part of a country’s growth and development. It is not only about employment but also empowerment. Education serves as the front-runner in transforming the society, economy, and polity for better. Accompanied with technological advancements, that is online education, is then a game changer for a nation like India, which has an enormous population, with approximately 28 percent of children in the age group 0-14. Gyantantra program has been conceived to meet these very needs of the country, that is mass education and creating awareness about social and economic identity in a world marked by technological innovation. Ultimately, the future of education is to converge into the India’s new economy, which notably is fast on track to digitization. Online learning is then a natural step for the future generations and workforce in order to survive future technological disruptions.

Source: http://www.businessworld.in/article/Education-A-Necessity-To-Reduce-Unemployment-/26-12-2018-165553/

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Betteru Education Corp. $BTRU.ca – #Naspers To Invest Almost $1bn In #Indian Online Businesses #Edtech

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 10:17 AM on Friday, December 21st, 2018
SPONSOR:  Betteru Education Corp.Connecting global leading educators to the mass population of India. BetterU Education has ability to reach 100 MILLION potential learners each week. Click here for more information.
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Naspers To Invest Almost $1bn In Indian Online Businesses

  • A day after it said it would lead a $540 million investment in education startup BYJU’S, Naspers announced it was making a $660 million investment in Swiggy, India’s largest food delivery platform
  • It is leading a nearly $1 billion Series H round in Swiggy, along with existing investors DST Global, Meituan Dianping and Coatue Management, and new investors Tencent, Hillhouse Capital and Wellington Management.

Toby Shapshak Contributor Enterprise & Cloud

Naspers is the most valuable listed company in Africa.Naspers

It’s been a busy week for Naspers, the largest public company in Africa, as it announced its listing on a secondary exchange in South Africa and nearly $1 billion in two significant online investments in India.

A day after it said it would lead a $540 million investment in education startup BYJU’S, Naspers announced it was making a $660 million investment in Swiggy, India’s largest food delivery platform. It is leading a nearly $1 billion Series H round in Swiggy, along with existing investors DST Global, Meituan Dianping and Coatue Management, and new investors Tencent, Hillhouse Capital and Wellington Management.

The BYJU’S investment – which includes a “significant portion” by the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) – aims to grows the learning app, which has seen over 30 million students use it. It has over 2 million cumulative annual paid subscriptions, with an average engagement of 64 minutes per student daily.

Although it began as a newspaper business over 100 years ago, Naspers has diversified into pay television, ecommerce and owns a third of Tencent, the Chinese messaging and gaming giant. It is the largest emerging markets media and internet company in the world.

It has a large portfolio of investments in India, including online classifieds business OLX, leading online travel company MakeMyTrip, and payments company, PayU.

“Indian online consumers will be a significant driver of online growth in the world, and in addition to food and education,” Naspers said. “The quality of the best Indian entrepreneurs and their ability to build innovative businesses that address the unique needs of the Indian consumer offer unparalleled growth opportunities.”

In May, Naspers offloaded its stake in Flipkart, India’s largest ecommerce retailer, to Walmart.

Naspers is the largest listed company on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), and was the first company in Africa to reach the magical R1 trillion figure. It is headquartered in Cape Town.

The secondary listing on 27 December on the A2X Markets exchange, which does not carry additional costs for companies listed in South Africa, is because A2X offers cheaper transaction fees and is more tech-savvy.

“A2X is one of a growing number of new exchanges that are leveraging technology in an effort to reduce trading costs and increase market transparency,” said Naspers CEO Bob van Dijk. “As one of the world’s leading technology investors we understand the value of technology and are pleased to support these efforts by also listing on A2X. We believe our shareholders will appreciate the added choice of trading venues.”

Earlier this year Naspers sold a 2% stake in Tencent for nearly $10 billion – to invest in more ecommerce ventures it said at the time – and announced in September it would spin off its MultiChoice satellite television unit into a separate company, to be called MultiChoice Africa. MultiChoice’s DStv is the largest satellite pay-television operator in Africa, using a network of satellites to deliver its signal across the continent.

Three years ago Naspers launched its own Showmax streaming service, which now operates in 36 countries in Africa and operates a pure-play streaming service in Poland.

I write about how innovation is better in Africa. I define innovation as solving problems, like the real problems we have in Africa. And solving those problems, solves them for the rest of the world. Africa isn’t just mobile-first, it’s mobile-only. I spoke about this at TED…

Shapshak is editor-in-chief and publisher of Stuff magazine. Based in Johannesburg, his TED talk on innovation in Africa has had more than 1.4m views.

Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tobyshapshak/2018/12/21/naspers-to-invest-almost-1bn-in-indian-online-businesses/#49783b5a1f2d

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Good Life Networks $GOOD.ca Vital takeouts from the world’s largest programmatic advertising conference $TTD $RUBI $AT.ca $TRMR $FUEL

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 2:00 PM on Friday, December 7th, 2018

Sponsor: Good Life Networks: Video advertising is the future! Company’s A.I. makes 80,000 calculations / second, targeting 750 million users to deliver higher prices and volume. The company achieved a record $9.7 Million in revenue for 2017 and recently announced entering the video game industry with programmatic technology. Click here for more information

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  • In 2018, more than $47 billion in the US was spent on programmatic display advertising with Facebook and Google taking a large chunk of the pie. By 2020, that figure will climb to nearly $69 billion.

Posted By: Ashleigh Footiton:November 28, 2018

After an intense two days spent at the world’s largest conference on programmatic advertising, Programmatic I/O, it was fascinating to see how US online publishers are utilising data and selling inventory programmatically.

In 2018, more than $47 billion in the US was spent on programmatic display advertising with Facebook and Google taking a large chunk of the pie. By 2020, that figure will climb to nearly $69 billion.

In the United States, there are an average of 14.5 programmatic tech partners per publisher, whereas in South Africa, we have an average of just three. This is not a bad situation to be in as our ecosystem is less fragmented and we have more control over our inventory. But it does highlight that programmatic is still in its infancy here.  

One of the US speakers, Taylor Schreiner at Adobe, said, “Organisations are transforming to take advantage of programmatic. Brands are now more hands-on. They have a better understanding of the metrics they are facing, and they’re more specific in their directives to agencies. We’re seeing more clients who now have people in the organisation who are in a position to think about reach across channels.”

First party data, which is essential for publishers, was another big theme that came through. It is a priority as it gives a competitive advantage in fighting against the duopoly that is Google and Facebook, who account for around 50% of programmatic revenue in the US. Their amazing audience intelligence, reach and measurement capabilities which advertisers are not going to pass up keeps them on top.

Relationships are key in this fragmented industry. The display ad tech Lumascape highlighted this fact. There are many touch points available when it comes to making a deal and publishers need to ensure they are talking to all parties involved. There is no such thing as ‘set it and forget it’. Secondly, CPM rates are lost to tech costs and the publisher comes out with only a fraction of what the seller initially spends.

The issue of viewability

The issue of viewability came across a lot throughout the two day conference. A viewable ad is defined as 50% of the pixels of a regular creative or 30% of the pixels of a large size creative, are on an in-focus browser tab on the viewable space of the browser page for a minimum of one continuous second. (This description was even questioned a few times by brands.) As far as many brands were concerned, 100% viewability has to be a non-negotiable and advertisers/buyers should not pay for a non-viewable ad.

Artificial Intelligence was also strong presence with a few interesting developments on the cards. We can’t escape the fact that AI is and will be an essential part of our lives. The Nest Cam Indoor security camera, for instance, learns who the regular members of your household are. If a stranger or visitor is in your home, Nest reports back to you immediately via your connected device. The Ricoh whiteboard is another great AI example – once you’ve made your notes on it you can email the contents to anyone around the world, with full translation capabilities. All of these things will add to the wonder that is big data which ultimately will assist advertisers to better target consumers.

And then there’s brand safety

It was evident that there’s a need for deeper conversations on brand safety between publishers, agencies and brands who all need to understand and explain what brand safety means to each of them. Some brands mentioned that they won’t pay if creative appears in a negative environment. However, they would consider an environment that has a positive spin next to controversial content. Unfortunately, safety tools are screening out these environments if the story contains blacklisted key words. Private market places need to be of more help. 

Ad fraud and fake news is rife in the US industry, and ad fraud specifically, but on a lesser scale, here in South Africa. Publishers are fighting hard against these practices and buyers are turning to technology to assist with eliminating and reducing their ad spend on these practices that deceive.

There are many types of ad fraud but in general challenges in programmatic include invalid traffic (IVT), domain spoofing, page level scripting, ad injection, and poor user experience. Low-quality human traffic is another issue, through paid media channels (including click bait) traffic is pushed to transit hubs by fake authors and instantaneously bounce off these sites, purely to serve ads and receive ad revenue. These are all things that advertisers and publishers need to be cognisant of. Publishers need to adopt ads.txt as a non-negotiable and advertisers need to be selective when buying inventory across the open market.

I learned that a dollar in does not equal a dollar out when it comes to programmatic and intermediaries are more prevalent than thought. But most importantly, relationships are more important now than ever before. Successful partnerships between publishers, agencies and clients are open and honest about what works for them.

The conference gave invaluable insights into the world of programmatic and even though we have some catching up to do, it’s an exciting time in our industry.

Ashleigh Footit is head of techops, programmatic and performance at SPARK Media. She was responsible for establishing the programmatic division for the group in 2015 and have been one of the key drivers in the implementation, management and success of Caxton’s Supply Side and Data Management Platform.

Source: https://themediaonline.co.za/2018/11/vital-takeouts-from-the-worlds-largest-programmatic-advertising-conference/


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Betteru Education Corp. $BTRU.ca – Is online learning making education easier? $ARCL $CPLA $BPI $FC.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 9:49 AM on Friday, December 7th, 2018
SPONSOR:  Betteru Education Corp.Connecting global leading educators to the mass population of India. BetterU Education has ability to reach 100 MILLION potential learners each week.

Online Education for India

Online education has become popular among working professionals and students in higher education. These categories of online learners find immense benefit in the autonomy, and flexibility, that these courses offer.

Online courses can be planned into their schedule, which may include full-time employment, internships and caring for a family. It can also help them take out quiet time to study.

Online learning in an education system

Distance learning has been around for a long time, even before technology made it extremely accessible. Traditional schooling is now seeing an increased proliferation of virtual training materials and online courses. Even in a world of tried and tested schooling systems and curricula, the most successful schools are the ones who adapt to the changing times, as well as to the expectations of students, parents and the society.

If online education is here to stay, then what are its implications for traditional learning? Instead of focusing on pros and cons, the conversation we should be having today is about leveraging online learning to make our education system more conductive to learning.

Setting goals, tracking progress and meeting deadlines

Online courses involve setting our own goals, tracking progress and meeting deadlines

Online courses call for a greater amount of motivation and self-discipline than a classroom-based course. A classroom has one or more instructors and peers, who can hold a student accountable for their course-work. In contrast, online courses involve setting our own goals, tracking progress and meeting deadlines.

One does not learn in isolation, so online courses do offer discussion forums, email, and one-on-one support. Technology also adds on to the visual experience by incorporating animations, that can be used interactively for effective teaching, and communication.

The classroom advantage

A school provides structure, support, and a system of rewards and penalties to groom its students. Classroom education has the benefit of face-to-face interactions with peers, which are typically moderated by a teacher.

It provides children, especially those in their early developmental years, with a stable environment for social interactions, helping them develop skills like boundary setting, empathy, and cooperation. This also allows plenty of room for spontaneity, unlike a virtual learning setup.

Online education in the context of schooling

As students’ progress to higher classes, they seek more autonomy and intellectual freedom. Online learning can help them pursue highly individualized learning programmes, possibly even college-level courses. These, combined with hands-on exercises, real-world exploration, and thorough assessments, can be highly beneficial to their learning progress.

Here’s what the Managing Director of Trio World Academy said:

“They can explore their options, by trying out introductory topics from different fields, before committing to a specialization. Online learning platforms can help these students become more independent learners before they make their way into college,” said Naveen K M.

“I believe that we must not hold students back from picking any online course, but instead act as their guide as they navigate through it,” he added.

Teachers and parents should act as anchors and mentors

Teachers and parents should be anchors and mentors

Mobile apps that provide enhanced learning opportunities for school children have become mainstream. Since mobile phones have already found their way into their hands, these apps are being used to supplement classroom learning.

Teachers and parents need to act as anchors and mentors, curating the kind of educational content students are exposed to, during the tricky phase of finding the right career to pursue.

Programmes to support families wishing home-school

Virtual public schools, that offer a full scale K12 education, have already sprung up in some parts of the world. They even offer a combination of the traditional system with online education. There are programmes that provide support to families that wish to home-school their children, in the form of online course material.

These programmes bring parents and teachers into the fold, by involving them into their child’s education from the get-go. However, their effectiveness in the long term needs to be studied.

Online programmes for weaker communities

Online programmes for weaker sections

Online learning programmes will also open up opportunities for children from weaker socio-economic communities, who possess a limited access to learning resources i.e. teachers, textbooks and infrastructure.

It will connect them to a global network of online learners, exposing them to new perspectives. The ideas that they receive, will not be limited by the number of heads in one classroom.

Read: How to judge the quality of any online course before you join one

Online education for educators

Online education can also be designed to be accommodating of a variety of learning styles among students.

“As educators, it is likely that we will have to put in additional efforts to incorporate online learning programmes into the curriculum, in the most suitable manner,” said the managing director.

Online training programmes are helping teachers/educators advance their skills in curriculum implementation, policy, education systems and leadership, both independently and with the support of their institutions.

It lets them collaborate with their peers, and learn new instructional skills, that are relevant to their career. These programmes can help them develop new skills and capabilities in their students, with the help of technology and interdisciplinary approaches.

Education for future

As the overlap of the traditional and online educational worlds is becoming more and more inevitable, we owe it to our students to make their education relevant to their future, through our own ingenuity, passion and careful planning.

-Authored article by Naveen K M, Managing Director, Trio World Academy

Source:https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/featurephilia/story/online-learning-education-system-1401364-2018-12-03

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Mapping the growth of digital learning in #India #edtech $BTRU.ca $ARCL $CPLA $BPI $FC.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 10:58 AM on Monday, November 12th, 2018

In a country as diverse as India, along with overcoming the infrastructure barrier, there needs to be a focus on overcoming the barriers of language and content.

 

  • The education divide in India with respect to quality and accessibility has existed for far too long
  • Indian education system has remained more or less the same, since last 150 years.
  • It is difficult for the existing physical infrastructure to meet the learning needs of the burgeoning population of our country which will touch 1.5B by 2030 and 1.7B by 2050 (equal to the population of China and USA combined)

Roman Saini

The education divide in India with respect to quality and accessibility has existed for far too long. The Indian education system has remained more or less the same, since last 150 years. It is difficult for the existing physical infrastructure to meet the learning needs of the burgeoning population of our country which will touch 1.5B by 2030 and 1.7B by 2050 (equal to the population of China and USA combined). Digital is gaining acceptance across numerous sectors and it is only right that the education sector too reaps benefits of this digital transformation.

In a country as diverse as India, along with overcoming the infrastructure barrier, there needs to be a focus on overcoming the barriers of language and content. It is impossible to have great teachers in each and every village/district in India. Similarly, the best teachers should not be restricted to certain institutes of the world. This is where e-learning comes in. It can level the playing field for all students. Students, in both rural and urban areas, can get access to the best learning resources, learn at their own pace and in the comfort of their own homes. Another key advantage with e-learning is that it is much easier to design courses with the latest online reference material than publishing crores of books. With the significant rise in internet penetration and the drop in the prices of smartphones in India, access to online learning resources will soon become ubiquitous.

Today, whether it is finding a new word on Google, or watching a photography video, without realising it, we are already using the internet to constantly learn. A major chunk of learning is already happening on the internet, with the government’s push we can expect it to grow to exponential levels.

The launch of the second phase of the Digital India campaign with a renewed focus on education is a welcome step towards the faster development of the education sector. Online education is also receiving its due importance in the New Education Policy drafted by the Kasturirangan Committee. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) under the government’s SWAYAM initiative have the tremendous potential to make higher education accessible to India’s youth, that forms more than 50% of our population.

The government’s push for e-learning reinforces the efforts of online education providers to empower both learners and educators, create more engaging learning experiences and foster personal development. With the push, students will also realise that the accessibility to great teachers can take their learning to the next level.

Going forward, the e-learning space will witness new developments with respect to unconventional methods of learning. Availability of unique courses across categories will encourage students to expand the breadth of the content they consume. Gamification will ensure that the learning process is more interactive and fulfilling. Students will be able to set goals, measure their progress and celebrate their learning achievements. Live online interaction between the students and educators can offer personalised learning that will benefit students in remote areas as well as overcrowded schools. The role of AI and technology in all of this will be huge. AI Bots can act as Study Assistants, that will accompany you along your learning journey. It will know your strengths and weakness inside out and will even recommend what you should read on a given day to maximise your learning outcomes.

The future of e-learning in India is promising. Location, language and financial resources will no longer be a barrier to a great education.

Source: https://www.hindustantimes.com/education/mapping-the-growth-of-digital-learning-in-india/story-7xNIM3M9yZTwurCt80d6cP.html

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Online Education Vs Traditional Degrees: Students Armed With #AI / ML Skills Have An Edge Over The Others #edtech $BTRU.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 10:41 AM on Thursday, November 8th, 2018

  • In the last few years, India has witnessed rapid changes in the educational technology landscape
  • The spurt of jobs in emerging technologies
  • Artificial intelligence and machine learning has spurred the growth of EdTech companies which are at the forefront of providing cutting-edge skills to young college professionals and undergraduates keen to upskill and re-learn

Bharat Adibhatla

In the last few years, India has witnessed rapid changes in the educational technology landscape. The spurt of jobs in emerging technologies — artificial intelligence and machine learning has spurred the growth of EdTech companies which are at the forefront of providing cutting-edge skills to young college professionals and undergraduates keen to upskill and re-learn. In addition to this, India is also implementing a strategic approach to skills development, aimed for the digital era. There is an increased emphasis on strengthening core competencies in 21st-century skills, digital skills and robotics

So, where does this leave the standard University education which is increasingly being challenged with the rise of MOOCs from EdTech platform? Besides, enterprises have taken it upon themselves to bridge the skill-gap with industry-created programs targeted at programmers and graduates to level up keeping in view the current industry’s demands.

In the face of this ever-changing digital transformation in India, is University education playing catch-up and churning out job-ready students who can compete on the global stage. Currently, India needs to implement skills development plan in a wide range of industry-demand topics such as artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, big data, robotics, material sciences, semiconductors, smart cities/societies, digital competencies, open source learning and intellectual property rights, et al.

In this article, we list down how traditional University education differs from online schools which focus on imparting the digital skills of the future.

Outdated Curriculum

It is not just that the curricula isn’t keeping up with the skills required for the students to be job-ready, many institutes in India are still dependent on the old school, theory-based syllabus. This is one of the key reasons why the freshers’ status quo is a poor match given how certain job types and industries will soon be made redundant by automation.

Budding Technologies

At this moment we are at the pinnacle of technology, we are modelling, building and inventing things which are leaving the past generations spellbound. Technologies such as data analytics, machine learning, user experience designs and artificial intelligence, which were in the sci-fi relm a few decades ago, have actually become a part of our life. But they have not become a part of our education system yet.

Lack of Mentorship

In an earlier article, we spoke about the need for mentorship and its role in shaping life and career of a new data scientist or a budding AI expert. In contrast, traditional university education focuses on merit, grades and bookish knowledge. More modern methods of education, on the other hand, focus on reasoning, questioning and analysing skills — which are much needed in the current scenario.

Transform, Don’t Reform

When there is change, there is only a slim chance where everyone can emerge as a winner. Many jobs in the IT sector are becoming obsolete and so are numerous technologies. On the brighter side, scores of career options are being created in the fields of big data, machine learning, artificial learning and other new tech, and the demand for people with the knowledge of these technologies is only increasing.

Students Lean Towards Byte-Sized Learning Models And Upskilling

For most learners, it is now possible to download smartphone apps that turn complicated subjects into games or squeeze zettabyte-sized lessons in everything from rhymes to coding into ten-minute talks or even quantify various non-curriculum activities as work-related training. Applications and programmes such as Coursera, Udemy, Lynda, Alison, Bright storm, Howcast, Code Academy, TED, Big think, Open education Consortium and Edx, among others, are the leading platforms for online learning.

These websites and programmes give a scope for a wide range of subjects, technologies and career options for the people who are having the zeal to learn through digital mode. While these technologies are effective tools to acquire specific skills, there’s another pressing and universal issue: The future is digital, and anyone whose skills are outmoded, will be left behind. In a survey conducted by Deloitte US, the results showcased that 75 percent of school-going children wanted to learn outside the classroom. They preferred smartphones, tablets and personal computers to learn, rather than traditional methods.

Enterprises Forge Partnerships With Edtech Companies

Large global organisations are already struggling with the lack of talented employees with the right types of skills to keep up with the competition. At the same time, digitisation is affecting traditional teaching system in ways so rapid and profound that it could be described as an extinction event. Daphne Koller, one of the founders of Coursera, stressed this point in one of her TED talk. She highlighted how Coursera gave chance to millions around the world a platform to learn technologies from their home and brought a great success in their lives and transformed their careers. These drastic changes in the educational system are hollowing out the middle class and creating a need that cannot be filled by our current systems of learning. Instead, we must work together to address them at a systemic level.

For the last 3 decades, India has been a land of engineers, with budding technical colleges and demand for the service sector. In total india has around 6,300 technical institutions which are approved by AICTE. But the question that most employers till face is: Are these engineers prepared for future challenges?

MOOCs allow the ease of customising education

The biggest advantage of online learning is that it gives us choices to pick a course that interests or impress us. Rather than confining to only one or two, this makes one to use their capabilities of understanding and decision making.

Source: https://www.analyticsindiamag.com/online-education-vs-traditional-university-degrees-ai-ml/

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UpGrad acquires job skilling startup Acadview #India #edtech $BTRU.ca $ARCL $CPLA $BPI $FC.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 2:22 PM on Wednesday, October 31st, 2018

UpGrad, promoted by entrepreneur Ronnie Screwvala, aims to extend its online learning platform to the undergraduate level through the Acadview acquisition

  • Acadview marks Upgrad’s second acquisition in two years
  • Recent transaction marks Upgrad’s second acquisition in two years. It is looking to capture a large chunk of the $20 billion education market in India
Ronnie Screvwala. Acadview marks Upgrad’s second acquisition in two years. It is looking to capture a large chunk of the $20 billion education market in India. Photo: Abhijit Bhatlekar/Mint

New Delhi: Online education startup UpGrad has acquired job skilling platform Acadview Software Pvt. Ltd for an undisclosed sum, UpGrad said in a statement on Monday. UpGrad, promoted by entrepreneur Ronnie Screwvala, aims to extend its online learning platform to the undergraduate level through the acquisition.

Founded in early 2015, Acadview seeks to upskill graduates with in-demand technologies through live online courses and industry projects, enabling better employment opportunities. It claims to have trained more than 3,000 students in 2017.

“UpGrad’s highly engaging online learning solution along with Acadview’s solid presence within the college space in India will allow us to deploy learning solution for college students at a massive scale,” said Screwvala and Mayank Kumar, co-founders at UpGrad, in a joint statement.

Gurugram-based Acadview had raised an undisclosed amount of funding from angel investors in India and the Silicon Valley. It has also partnered with over 80 universities and colleges in north India.

“Equipping students with engaging content, personalized coaching, hands-on experience with real world projects and guidance from subject matter experts in the industry can bring a step change in the quality of workforce available to employers.We believe in UpGrad’s vision, and feel that we have found a perfect cultural fit for our mission,” said Himanshu Batra, founder and chief executive at Acadview.

The recent transaction marks Upgrad’s second acquisition in two years. It is looking to capture a large chunk of the $20 billion education market in India.

Founded by Screwvala, Kumar, Phalgun Kompalli and Ravijot Chugh, UpGrad offers online courses in entrepreneurship, digital marketing and data analytics, among others, for working professionals.

UpGrad competes with foreign online education start-ups, including Coursera and Udacity, and home-grown ventures such as EduReka and Simplilearn.

Mint reported in October 2017 that UpGrad is also looking at to enter foreign markets in West Asia and South East Asia, and had committed ₹300 crore to fund the expansion. The corpus is three times the amount it had invested in the Indian market.

Source: https://www.livemint.com/Companies/If8GzLkcRMUwA5W0D0r1CL/UpGrad-acquires-job-skilling-startup-Acadview.html

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betterU Education Corporation $BTRU.ca provides update on US$100M Equity Investment Amendment $ARCL $CPLA $BPI $FC.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 2:28 PM on Tuesday, October 30th, 2018

Betteru large

  • Announced that it has received an update from GDS Holdings Ltd indicating that they have completed the Amendment as described in a new release issued by the Company on September 26th, 2018
  • According to a written update provided to betterU on October 28th, 2018 by Mr. Kenny Ho, CFO and Chairman of TUC Co. Ltd.,
  • Mr. Ho indicated that he arrived in Tokyo, Japan to review the amendments on Wednesday, October 17th and that they completed the required documents on Friday, October 19th.

OTTAWA, Oct. 30, 2018 — betterU Education Corp. (TSX VENTURE: BTRU, Frankfurt: 5OG) (the “Company”) announces that it has received an update from GDS Holdings Ltd indicating that they have completed the Amendment as described in a new release issued by the Company on September 26th, 2018.

According to a written update provided to betterU on October 28th, 2018 by Mr. Kenny Ho, CFO and Chairman of TUC Co. Ltd., (“TUC”) Mr. Ho indicated that he arrived in Tokyo, Japan to review the amendments on Wednesday, October 17th and that they completed the required documents on Friday, October 19th.  Mr. Ho further indicated in writing to betterU that he has decided to remain in Tokyo until the funds have been released. Mr. Ho expects there will be no further delays yet has not provided betterU with definitive timelines for the release of funds. While Mr. Ho also indicated that he expects the funds to be released shortly, betterU is reluctant to commit to any dates having experienced many previous delays. “While we remain confident in this opportunity, the ongoing delays and missed timelines provided by TUC have proven to be difficult in managing market expectations. Our focus has been and continues to be on the development and growth of betterU,” said Brad Loiselle, President/CEO of betterU.

As previously announced on October 15th, 2018, betterU entered into an agreement with AIP Asset Management Inc., (AIP) for an investment of $2.5 million to support ongoing operations and growth until the TUC funding is received. AIP and betterU are currently working through all the definitive agreements in connection with this.

NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS NEWS RELEASE.

About betterU

betterU, a global education to employment platform, aims to provide access to quality education from around the world to foster growth and opportunity to those who want to better their lives. The company plans to bridge the prevailing gap in the education and job industry and enhance the lives of its prospective learners by developing an integrated education-to-employment ecosystem. betterU’s offerings can be categorized into several broad functions: to compliment school programs with flexible KG-12 programs preparing children for next stage of education, to provide access to global educational opportunities from leading educators, to foster an exceptional educational environment by providing befitting skills that lead to a better career, to bridge the gap between one’s existing education and prospective job requirement by training them and lastly, to connect the end user to various job opportunities.

www.betterU.ca and www.betterU.in

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This press release may contain forward-looking statements and information, which may involve risks and uncertainties. The results or events predicted in these statements may differ materially from actual results or events. Factors that might cause a difference include, but are not limited to, competitive developments, risks associated with betterU’s growth, the state of the financial markets, regulatory risks and other factors. There can be no assurance or guarantees that any statements of forward-looking information contained in this release will prove to be accurate. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. These and all subsequent written and oral statements containing forward-looking information are based on the estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. Unless otherwise required by applicable securities laws, betterU disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise. Readers should not place undue reliance on any statements of forward-looking information that speak only as of the date of this release. Further information on betterU’s public filings, including their most recent audited consolidated financial statements, are available at www.sedar.com.

For further information, please visit  https://ir.betteru.ca/investor-overview/press-releases/

On behalf of the Board of Director,

better Education Corp.
Brad Loiselle, CEO
For further information:
Investor Relations
1-613-695-4100 Ext. 233
Email: [email protected]

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#Edtech Startup #Eupheus Learning Raises Investment From Sixth Sense Ventures #India $BTRU.ca $ARCL $CPLA $BPI $FC.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 10:17 AM on Tuesday, October 30th, 2018

Edtech Market In India

  • According to a report by the India Didactics Association, the online education industry in India is projected to grow almost eight times to hit $1.96 Bn by 2021.
  • The industry is currently valued at $100 Bn.
  • Report also stated that the number of paid users in the segment is expected to grow six-fold to reach 9.6 Bn by 2021.

Mumbai-based venture capital firm Sixth Sense Ventures has reportedly invested an undisclosed amount in Delhi-based edtech startup Eupheus Learning.

According to reports, the venture capital firm had also invested in the startup earlier this year, in March. With this, Sixth Sense Ventures, which focuses on early-stage consumer-focused companies, has become the owner of an about 44% stake in the startup.

Including this investment, Sixth Sense’s total investment in Eupheus is at present pegged to be between $2.04 Mn and $2.45 Mn (INR 15 Cr–INR 18 Cr).

The startup is also aiming to expand over 4000 schools across India by March 2019.

Eupheus: Bridging The Classroom-Home Learning Gap

Eupheus Learning was founded in 2017 by Sarvesh Shrivastava, Rohit Dhar, Ved Prakash Khatri, and Amit Kapoor.

The company aims to close the gap between classroom and home learning by offering  technology-led solutions in the Pre-K to Class XII market.

According to reports, Eupheus has already partnered with publishers and edtech firms to provide differentiated tech-enabled solutions to more than 1,500 ICSE and CBSE board schools in India. Some of the schools it has been working with include the Narayana Group of Educational Institutions, the GD Goenka Group, and the Delhi Public School Society, among others.

While speaking with ET, Sixth Sense Ventures’ founder Nikhil Vora said that the startup is also planning to introduce global programmes in schools across boards and classes as it seeks to partner with  the board which administers the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) examination.

The platform had also raised an undisclosed amount of funding in March from Sixth Sense with an aim to expand its presence to south India.

Edtech Market In India

According to a report by the India Didactics Association, the online education industry in India is projected to grow almost eight times to hit $1.96 Bn by 2021. The industry is currently valued at $100 Bn.

The report also stated that the number of paid users in the segment is expected to grow six-fold to reach 9.6 Bn by 2021.

Edtech companies use technology to solve problems with the help of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and big data. With the projected growth in this segment, several edtech startups have come up and are trying to make their presence felt in the space.

What makes Eupheus Learning different is the audience that it caters to. While most other such startups offer technical courses, Eupheus focuses on school students.

However, it is not the only player catering to the K-12 learning space. There are others such as LogicRoots, BYJU’s, IMAX Program, and Vedantu as well.

In March,  BYJU’S was announced as the 13th Indian startup to join the unicorn club. Further, BYJU’s was reportedly in talks with SoftBank and other investors to raise a funding of $200-250 Mn for global expansion.

As a part of its expansion plans, it also acquired maths learning startup, Math Adventures for an undisclosed amount, this year.

With an increasing number of startups developing technology-enabled offerings and looking to scale up their presence in India, one can expect positive growth in the edtech market in the coming years.

Source: https://inc42.com/buzz/eupheus-learning-raises-investment-from-sixth-sense-ventures/

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