EDTECH NEWS ARCHIVE - Week of June 25, 2018
June 25, 2018
MarcoPolo Learning, a UK-based edtech firm, is now seeking £1 million through its equity crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs. Founded in 2012, MarcoPolo Learning describes itself as a rapidly growing online children’s educational technology and media company.
The company reported that its products, which are for early learning to children aged 3-7, make learning fun, exciting and inspiring for young children by letting the world be their classroom. MarcoPolo Learning offers literacy and maths within a PhD-designed comprehensive STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Maths) curriculum.
June 19, 2018
There isn’t a New York Times bestseller list for online courses, but perhaps there should be. After all, so-called MOOCs, or massive open online courses, were meant to open education to as many learners as possible, and in many ways they are more like books (digital ones, packed with videos and interactive quizzes) than courses.
June 19, 2018
In Greek, ‘Eupheus’ means active seeking of knowledge, a “readiness of will, to learning.” True to its name, edtech startup Eupheus Learning aims to create students who seek knowledge actively, spurred by an excitement and interest in the relevant topic.
“What we are curating as thoughts and solutions in Eupheus Learning are products that enhance both discovery as well as engage learners through various methods and technology,” says Sarvesh Shrivastava, one of the founders of Eupheus Learning.
June 19, 2018
Sometimes, there are so many funding rounds we don’t know what to do with them. It’s a good problem to have if you’re in the business of writing about such things. But for the sake of you, the reader, here are some of the biggest deals we’ve come across this morning.
VIPKID
Based out of Beijing, VIPKID is an online language school that is attracting massive sums of money. According to TechCrunch, the firm has raised $500 million at a valuation of $3 billion. In total known funds, the tutoring startup has raised an eye-watering $825M.
EDTECH NEWS ARCHIVE - Week of June 18, 2018
June 18, 2018
Bengaluru-based edtech startup Unacademy may soon raise $25-30 Mn in a Pre Series A funding round led by Sequoia Capital India and other investors.
According to a news report, the latest funding round may value the company at around $100 Mn. The report further added that the funding would be used to fuel its expansion into areas like K-12 and competitive exams like JEE.
June 18, 2018
Jeff Maggioncalda was recently named CEO of Coursera. I have interviewed both founders of the company, Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller, so I was curious about Maggioncalda’s perspective on the company, education technology and the massive open online courses more generally, and his own background as an entrepreneur.
June 15, 2018
A group of educators trying to get a handle on what’s coming next in technology are working to build a new type of organization to track edtech trends.
The effort isn’t backed by any college, major philanthropy or membership organization. Rather it’s a loose group of volunteers with a website and a notion that a digital collaboration might fill a gap and offer new kinds of insights.
June 14, 2018
Education technology accelerator programs are often studded with robotic kits or educational games. But the latest cohort at Michelson Runway, a startup accelerator geared towards higher-ed companies, highlights a broader approach to innovation in education. Among the offerings on display at its demo day on June 13 were a structured gap year program, a tool for pronouncing names correctly and financial lending based on academic merit.
June 12, 2018
Students may feel relief as they hand in an exam, but the moment marks the beginning of stress and anxiety for instructors and teaching assistants, who may need to grade hundreds of tests in a short time.
Arjun Singh knows the feeling well. While earning a PhD in computer science from the University of California, Berkeley, Singh was one of a handful of teaching assistants tasked with grading—by hand—hundreds of computer science exams throughout a semester. The trained programmer knew there had to be a more efficient way. And so he began building a prototype for an automated online grading tool that today has grown into his company, Gradescope.
EDTECH NEWS ARCHIVE - Week of June 11, 2018
June 08, 2018
“Medical school rules!” said no one ever.
At least that’s how it seemed for Jamie Fitch and Dr. Dustyn Williams, the co-founders of an Austin startup named OnlineMedEd, who met during med school at Tulane University.
“Med school is really hard,” said Williams. “Unlike many other things that are difficult, complex and conceptually very challenging, med school is that plus voluminous.”
June 05, 2018
Today, teachers have an endless choice of potential edtech products to choose from to meet their classroom needs. And, with ISTE coming up this month in Chicago, edtech startups should be prepared to answer many questions from educators and school administrators.
Here are some tips and ideas along with critical questions edtech startups should be able to answer regarding their products and services.
June 05, 2018
In the education technology business, Larry Berger is considered—if not the smartest guy in the room, then certainly one of the wiser ones. With more than 20 years in the industry, Larry has seen the ups and downs, twists and turns.
In 2000 he co-founded Wireless Generation, which pioneered the use of data, digital diagnostics and assessments to support students. It was bought in 2010 by News Corporation, which invested more than $1 billion into the company and rebranded it as Amplify. News Corp’s commitment proved to be a short-lived, however. The media giant sold Amplify to private investors five years later.
June 05, 2018
Making an app that works across different mobile platforms was once unthinkable for novice programmers. But Thunkable, a company with roots in MIT, is rolling out a new platform where even kids can build games and safety apps across different devices.
Today, the San Francisco startup is launching a cross-platform app builder, dubbed “Thunkable X,” that offers a drag-and-drop interface for users to build and deploy apps natively on both Android and iOS devices. Users can also upload these apps directly to Apple’s and Google’s app stores.
June 01, 2018
Its stock’s been soaring, and earnings are beating expectations. It posted $92.3 million in revenue in the first quarter of 2018—up 42 percent from the same period last year.
Still, 2U wants more cash. And that it got—$331 million, to be exact. That’s how much the Landham, Maryland-based company raised through its latest public offering of common stock this week.
EDTECH NEWS ARCHIVE - Week of June 4, 2018
June 04, 2018
Around 20 educational institutions have partnered with Ripple (XRP) on its newly unveiled University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI) that is centered on supporting and accelerating academic research, technical development and innovation in blockchain, cryptocurrency and digital payments.
The collaboration, which involves top universities around the world, attests to the fact that blockchain technology can bring revolution to education. It will expose the education community to many a number of use cases in the blockchain industry that can heighten research within the space.
June 04, 2018
PRWeb
Educational and computing technologies reseller, Eduporium, announced the launch of a new monthly grant opportunity for teachers Monday. The program is open to all educators, including classroom teachers, administrators, technology directors, librarians, and makerspace leaders. Replacing the company’s previous grant program, this new version will offer educators the opportunity to apply for a $500 grant every month.
June 04, 2018
On Monday, the Educational Testing Service (ETS) and LearnLaunch Accelerator announced they would collaborate to offer support and resources for edtech startups. The non-profit organization that has administered the SATs, GREs and TOEFLs among other widely used tests, will essentially lend its clout and deep pockets to the ongoing work of LearnLaunch.
May 31, 2018
After a series of bootcamp closures last year, including Dev Bootcamp and the Iron Yard, some insist that the coding bootcamp industry is in a downturn phase.
But one continuing-education provider, Trilogy Education, is taking a different approach by offering short-term coding and other tech-skills training programs directly to universities. And they’re growing.
May 30, 2018
REAL TIME CASES, a Herndon, Va.-based provider of online business case study content for higher-ed institutions, has raised $3.5 million from SWaN Ed LLC. Founded in 2014, Real Time Cases counts more than 200 videos in its library for classes that range from undergraduate to master’s degree levels. The company plans to expand beyond its nearly-20 staff and has now raised $7 million, reports Washington Business Journal.
May 30, 2018
STUDY THIS: SelfStudy, a San Francisco-based startup that provides an AI-powered adaptive platform for professional societies and publishers, has raised $3 million in a seed round led by the International Anesthesiology Research Society (IARS).
May 30, 2018
GUARDIANS OF THE FUND: GoGuardian, a Los Angeles-based provider of device management and internet filtering software for Chromebooks used in K-12 schools, has raised money as part of a strategic investment from Sumeru Equity Partners. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Sumeru is now a majority shareholder of the company. Three of Sumeru’s team members will be joining GoGuardian’s board of directors.
May 28, 2018
Lighthouse Labs, a business accelerator in Richmond that provides mentoring to local startup companies, is planning to expand its next program, offering a special emphasis on startups that are focused on education technology and innovation.
The nonprofit is accepting applications until June 15 for its fall cohort that starts in August.
May 30, 2018
Usually, when a hot startup gets acquired by an even hotter one, the industry cheers. But reactions to this month’s announcement that MissonU has been bought by WeWork have been lukewarm, if not entirely absent. Few, if any, of MissionU’s financial backers publicly celebrated the transaction on Twitter or elsewhere.
May 29, 2018
Learnosity, a Dublin-based education technology start-up, has secured a new partner after Australian company 3P Learning sold its 40 per cent interest in the Irish company to Battery Ventures.
3P Learning, a listed company on the Australian Securities Exchange, sold its stake in Learnosity for AUS25 million (16.3 million) after previously valuing its shareholding at AUS46.6 million (€30.3 million).