Ex-Google Executive Launches WhatsApp Learning Platform ‘chaabi’ to Transform Blue-Collar Upskilling

chaabi is a disruptive B2B SaaS platform upskilling India's blue-collar industry

With the vision to make upskilling easy & accessible, chaabi launches their WhatsApp Learning Platform—a first-of-its-kind solution set to revolutionize blue-collar workforce training in India. Engineered with AI-Powered Vernacular Content offered in 10+ Indian native languages, the platform elevates training accessibility and completion rates through a dynamic gamification approach. To drive business impact, chaabi's platform distinguishes itself by offering limitless customization options for training creation, real-time data analytics, and intelligent user enrollment.

Recent market analysis has underscored an impressive 73% surge in job openings targeting blue and grey collar workers. This surge serves as a clear indicator of the escalating demand for skilled labour across various sectors. Upon conducting a survey, we found that 92% workers don't receive any vocational training and 87% of the workers were struggling with learning in English and some in Hindi as well which made chaabi build AI-Powered Vernacular Content that trains people in their preferred languages. The incorporation of advanced AI technology facilitates personalized learning journeys, enabling individuals to progress at their own pace while honing skills that align with their career aspirations.

Speaking on the launch, Puneet Dhiman, Founder and CEO of chaabi.ai said, "India's 500 million plus blue-collar workforce is poised for transformation. With WhatsApp, India's most widely used app, as the primary platform we ensure efficient delivery of job-specific training tailored to blue-collar workers. This approach helps in enhancing productivity and employability among this vital segment of our workforce."

With its innovative approach, chaabi aims to reshape the landscape of skill development and employment prospects for millions of blue-collar workers across the nation. By seamlessly integrating the convenience of WhatsApp with the power of AI, chaabi is at the forefront of this transformative journey.

chaabi is a disruptive B2B SaaS platform upskilling India's blue-collar industry. It merges WhatsApp learning with AI-powered Vernacular Content, improving the learning, grasping & retaining capabilities of blue-collar workers. This transformative approach narrows the skill gap and empowers employers, recruiters, or government institutions to deliver targeted training to help build a new Bharat. With an unwavering commitment, chaabi aims to upskill one million individuals by 2026, revolutionizing employability and reshaping the future of the blue-collar workforce in India.

Website: www.chaabi.ai

Social Media: [Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram]

India's 1st Multi-Potential Learning Platform ‘Ulipsu’ Raises $1.5 Mn in 2nd Round Funding from the UK & Middle East Based Angel Investors

The startup has raised a total of Pre-series A 2.5 million USD fund since launch

Bengaluru based Ulipsu, India's first multipotential OTT like learning platform, from Kidvento Education and Research Private Limited, recently raised $1.5 million in funding from angel investors based in the Middle East and the UK. This round of investment comes as an addition to the initial $1 million USD Pre-Series A round funding received in October 2021.

With this, the Pre-Series A round of fundraising has amounted to a total of 2.5 million USD.

Ulipsu Founders- Sumanth Prabhu and Nikhil Bhaskar

The current round of fundraising will be used to improve overall product service, boost consumer engagement through strengthening the technology stack, gamification, and analytics for real-time user data evaluation, scale operations, and increase sales via new consumer acquisition initiatives.

The first round of funding was utilized for content, curriculum research and development, acquiring an initial set of customers, and building the platform.

Screens have become an undeniable part of children, and, therefore, Ulipsu is on a mission to create a healthy relationship by transforming passive screen time into active screen time with age-appropriate, engaging learning content.

The brand offers structured learning opportunities for all children from ages 6 to 16. The vast repertoire of curated ‘bit-sized’ courses covers 10+ skills, from music to art & craft, yoga to life skills, STEM projects to artificial intelligence, and many more, in just one subscription. Ulipsu courses also align with the National Education Policy (NEP) of holistic child development and digital learning inclusion. 

With the brand positioning of ‘Learn what you wish to’, Ulipsu is committed to the idea of democratizing learning, which lets young ones truly explore and learn at their own pace and space. Ulipsu subscriptions are cost effective and don’t require parents to pay separately for each of the courses.

Ulipsu is ever-growing, with new courses uploaded every week that are accessible through a single subscription. Ulipsu plans to have over 300 courses spanning 15+ skills by March 2023 and aims to secure over 300,000 paid subscribers by the middle of 2023.

At the moment, Kidvento employs more than 100 people and generates close to 1 million USD in sales annually.

Expressing his optimism over the new round of funding, Sumanth Prabhu, Co-founder & CEO of Ulipsu said, "Education as a market has been a hotbed of experimentation, and the Indian consumers are leading the market in style with their mature understanding of the product differentiation and value available to them. In that sense, we are at the right place at the right time. Our investors clearly understand this and strongly believe in the possibility of what Ulipsu could be! In 2 years, we will be the world's largest curated platform for skill learning for young minds".

Nikhil Bhaskar, Co-Founder & CTO, said, "We have a competitive advantage in the skill learning market as we truly understand our TG, whether it is the product or the technology. We are delighted that our investors find value in our business proposition. We are currently strengthening our product portfolio with a focus on technology-driven gamified content."

Edtech Startup PrepInsta Launches New OTT Learning Platforms - PrepInsta Prime

PrepInsta, edtech startup for practice coding, aptitude, and new technologies announces new platform PrepInsta Prime which will follow an OTT format enabling learning material and techniques for college students and working professionals.

PrepInsta prime shall offer 150+ courses under a single subscription plan. The array of courses covers popular upskilling programmes including- UpSkilling Courses, Coding Courses, Placement Preparation courses etc., to widen the scope of job opportunities for the aspirant.

The subscription includes upskilling courses like - AI/ Machine Learning, Cyber Security, coding courses in C/C++, Python, DSA, Competitive coding and the platform also provides company-specific micro-courses for brands like Amazon, TCS, Mu Sigma, Capgemini and others 150+ courses. 

PrepInta Courses

“We aim to democratise learning where a learner should get access to quality education at affordable prices with PrepInsta Prime Subscription. Students should not sacrifice learning outcomes and should have access to and explore all skills, technologies and job opportunities in the new digital world,” said Atulya Kaushik, CEO & Co-Founder, PrepInsta.

"We target upskilling around 100K learners by the end of 2022. Additionally, PrepInsta prime shall continue adding new courses in sync with the market demand. By the end of the current calendar year, we plan to have at least 300 courses on its portfolio.", said Manish Agarwal, Chief Marketing Officer, PrepInsta. 

Unlike other platforms where aspirants can only access a single course, and get restricted if they wish to explore, through PrepInsta Prime they may avail all the courses available on the platform. The subscriptions for the students are available at a very nominal price starting from INR 2499 for 3 months to INR 6499 for 48 Months.

About PrepInsta

Founded by Atulya Kaushik & Aashay Mishra, PrepInsta is a free platform for students to practise coding, aptitude, and new technologies. PrepInsta helps students to prepare for placements with the best study material, coding problem set, AI based performance tracker with over 1.5 million + monthly users.

PrepInsta Prime is a new learning OTT platform for college students and working professionals which offers 150+ courses under one subscription offering - UpSkilling Courses, Coding Courses, Placement Preparation courses with Certifications and job opportunities.

Website - https://prepinstaprime.com/

Prime trailer - https://youtu.be/VIJZDU6XjVk

Online Extra-curricular Learning Platform Spark Studio Selected in GSV Cup Top 20 Most Innovative Startups Globally

Spark Studio To Compete Live at ASU+GSV 13.0 for $1 Million in Prizes in World’s Largest Pitch Competition For EdTech Startups

Spark Studio, a live online non-academic learning platform, has been selected to the Top 20, the acclaimed list of finalists in The GSV Cup — the world’s largest pitch competition for EdTech startups at the 13th Annual ASU+GSV Summit. Companies selected to The Top 20 represent the top pre-seed and seed stage startups in digital learning across the “Pre-K to Gray” space across the world. Spark Studio will present in San Diego this April at the ASU+GSV Summit, the annual education technology event hosted by Arizona State University and GSV Ventures, and compete for up to $1M in cash and prizes.

Spark Studio was selected from an initial applicant pool of 750+ global companies, which was further narrowed to The Elite 200 semifinalists. More than 175 judges from leading venture capital firms and strategic partners in digital learning like Accel, General Atlantic, Reach Capital, and Owl Ventures, among others, used rigorous criteria to determine the Top 20 most promising companies to compete on Stage X at ASU+GSV.

“We’re humbled and super excited to be in the GSV Cup Top 20. As we constantly think deeply about building a future-tech learning experience that is delightful and of the highest quality for kids, it feels awesome to be recognized as innovative by the fantastic jury that has a ringside view of the bleeding edge of global Ed Tech.”, said Anushree Goenka, CEO and Co-founder of Spark Studio.

“In the next two months, a lot more of our vision will come to market. We’re excited to see our users take on the ‘invisible learning’ experiences, which essentially feel like play for kids and lead to real, measurable learning outcomes”, said Kaustubh Khade, CPO and Cofounder, Spark Studio.

“GSV is so proud to recognize an epic group of global edtech founders as our final 20,” said Deborah Quazzo, Managing Partner of GSV Ventures and Co-founder of ASU+GSV Summit. “These companies have been rigorously evaluated by a judging panel exceeding 90 top venture investors. Congratulations to all!”

The Top 20 companies serve learners from Pre-K to Gray, with companies well-distributed across the following categories: Early Childhood, K-12, Higher Education, Adult Consumer Learning, and Adult Enterprise Learning.

The GSV Cup is powered by Google Cloud, HubSpot for Startups, HolonIQ, and GSV Ventures.

See Spark Studio and the rest of the companies selected to the GSV Cup at

https://www.asugsvsummit.com/gsv-cup-elite-200

ABOUT Spark Studio

Spark Studio Founders

Spark Studio is building the digital-first future of non-academic learning for the world, at the intersection of learning and gaming for kids. We offer learning in music, communication skills and art.

Spark Studio was founded by alumni of IIT Delhi, IIM-Ahmedabad, IISC, each with over a decade of experience across India’s top unicorns and decacorns - BYJU’S, Swiggy, Lead School, DailyHunt, Zynga,etc.

Spark Studio is backed by YCombinator, Better Capital, Harvard Management Company and a host of prominent Indian angels.

ABOUT GSV VENTURES

GSV Ventures is a female-led, multi-stage venture capital firm focused on the $7+ trillion education sector. The fund is currently investing out of GSV Ventures Fund III and backs innovative entrepreneurs around the world in the "Pre-K to Gray" Arc of Learning. GSV manages over $675 million in global EdTech investments. Portfolio holdings include Andela, Class Technologies, ClassDojo, Coursera, Course Hero, Degreed, Guild, MasterClass, Outlier, Photomath, Quizizz, Lead School, Brightchamps, and ClassPlus, among others.

Ex-Googler Launches India’s Largest Edtech Marketplace, Helps Professionals Make Upskilling Decision from 12K+ Top Global Courses and Programmes

Business Wire India

Ex-Google and Bay-Area engineers have launched India’s largest professional learning marketplace www.careervira.com with over 12K+ professional courses and 65+ learning partners. If you are a tech professional looking for a Data Science or Cloud Computing course or a non-tech professional looking for Finance and Management courses, you can search and compare courses from world-class learning partners such as EdX, Udacity, Coursera, Emeritus, Futurelearn, and many more on www.careervira.com
 
Vijay Singh, founder of Careervira, explains, “Our platform is simply an ‘Amazon of learning’. If you are a professional looking to upskill, make a learning decision for a job or a career change or to get that promotion, simply explore our platform and make faster & better upskilling decisions. We provide quality upskilling & professional learning choices from Indian and international partners for bootcamps, executive education, certifications, and online degrees.”
 
Careervira.com helps professionals make better learning decisions with their proprietary analytics and recommendation engine ‘CV Take’ (CVT), providing information on course credibility, pedagogy, hands-on training, career impact, and pricing. CVT is live with 1,000 pre-analyzed courses on careervira.com.
 
Shreya, a Data Science engineer, elaborates, “I have been using www.careervira.com to make my learning decisions. Earlier, I couldn't decide between a Data Science or Data Analytics course, now I can explore all the topics and subtopics of data science on careervira.com, check which learning partners have the best course options, if the certifications offered are industry-recognised, and what are the placement options. Once I have made a selection, I can enquire about the course. Careervira team promptly offers professional assistance to address all my queries. I can make seamless upskilling decisions on one platform now.”
 
Careervira.com provides 70+ key decision-making inputs to search and compare from amongst top global courses to zero down on your decision-making by learning partner, skills, course, price, and learn type.

IIT Roorkee inks MoU with Online Learning Platform Eckovation to Offer Online Executive Programs

In an endeavour to upskill the workforce, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee has inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with online learning platform-Eckovation to undertake collaboration on providing a platform for launching executive courses. The MoU was signed between Prof. Manish Shrikhande, Dean, Sponsored Research and Industrial Consultancy, IIT Roorkee and Akshat Goel, Founder &Chief Technical Officer, Eckovation. IIT Roorkee has also launched two online courses- ‘Advanced Certification Program in Cybersecurity’ and ‘Professional Certification in Supply Chain Management & Analytics’, an initiative of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering and Department of Management Studies respectively as well as an E-learning centre at IIT Roorkee on Eckovation.

The MoU entitles both organizations to undertake collaboration in research development and consultancy work, facilitate the exchange of academic and research materials and joint publications, cooperate in projects, research activities of mutual interest, and participate seminars, colloquia, and other types of academic discussions.

The courses will be a mix of theoretical concepts and practical applications such as Project Work and a 3-day immersion module at Noida or Roorkee campuses of the institution. The candidates will be awarded a certificate upon completion of the course along with placement assistance by Eckovation.

“The MoU with Eckovation is a step forward towards our efforts to enable learners to upskill themselves as per the needs of the industry. COVID-19 has prompted a reassessment of the existing global supply chain. The course is designed to help mitigate risks and address uncertainties” said Prof. Ajit K Chaturvedi, Director, IIT Roorkee.

The courses will be of around six month’s duration. They will be taught by the faculty and industry experts through an online mode on an e-learning platform- Eckovation. There is also a provision of a scholarship of INR 50,000 based on the candidate’s academic record and relevant work experience. Attractive bank financing options are available (facilitated by Eckovation with leading banks) to enable accessibility of the course for a higher number of learners.

“Online education has emerged as a panacea to sustain the momentum of academics amid the COVID-19 crisis. It has disrupted the education landscape due to its convenience, on-the go-access, and versatility. The collaboration with IIT Roorkee will help us leverage its technical expertise and competent faculty and facilitate knowledge sharing worldwide to prepare the futuristic workforce” said Akshat Goel, Founder &Chief Technical Officer, Eckovation


IIT Roorkee is already offering a host of courses such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Data Science on Cloudxlab. It has recently signed an MoU with Coursera to offer online courses from next year onwards.


About Eckovation - https://www.eckovation.com/

Eckovation is a product of the desire of its co-founders to generate meaningful impact in society. It started with a Civil Society initiative named 'Saras' which they started during their college days. The objective was to provide quality education to children of poor families. This experience exposed them to the problem of scale, the fact that one teacher can meaningfully teach not more than 40-50 students at a time but the availability of quality teachers at ground level was extremely limited. If only, there was a way to leapfrog this problem. If only, one teacher could teach thousands of students. Being the problem solvers that they are, their response was, well, why not? This led to a technology-based quest that has now taken the shape of Eckovation.

Ranveer Singh Launches Online Education App: Eduauraa

• Founded and led by CEO Akanksha Chaturvedi, Eduauraa aims to democratize the online education sector in India.
• Eduauraa has brought on Ranveer Singh as the brand ambassador in a bid to empower over 310 million students in India
• Eduauraa is now available on Android, iOS, ZEE5 and web browsers

 Eduauraa, is a premium digital learning platform created with a vision to utilize world-class technology and make quality education available in every corner of India at an affordable price. Eduauraa's educational content accurately follows the syllabus for each of their 9 boards in both, Hindi and English, not only for video lectures but also Value Added Services (VAS) content like e-books, test papers, MCQ's, mind maps and past papers.

Through a strategic partnership with ZEE5, India's Entertainment Super-app, customers can enjoy all of this, in addition to 1.25 lac hours of bespoke premium entertainment content across genres and languages, starting at just INR 999 per year. This association will redefine education and entertainment with a reach of 75 million households countrywide.

In India, 85% of people earn below 8 lakhs a year, yet private school expenses of a single child have risen from INR 55,000 in 2005 to INR 1,25,000 in 2015. Limited access to good education in India has led to a surge in tuition culture, with tuitions accounting for 15% of the total expenditure on private education and about 11-12% of the average family income is dedicated to tuitions. These factors contribute towards making education a privilege and not a right. However, Eduauraa aims to close this gap by providing the best quality education at affordable rates for students of class 6 to 10 in 4 subjects - Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Biology.

The Indian youth ranked second last among the 73 countries that participated in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Eduauraa aspires to change this statistic by giving access to the superior learning tools within their app to every child so they can easily understand and absorb concepts. A team of teachers from India's top 10 schools, Subject Matter Experts, visualizers, animators, editors and directors help create an engaging learning experience so every child now gets a level playing field. 

Ranveer Singh Brand Ambassador & Akanksha Chaturvedi, Founder & CEO of Eduauraa

Ranveer Singh, Brand Ambassador of Eduauraa, commented, "When Akanksha told me about Eduauraa and their vision to democratize education, it resonated with me. Eduauraa will allow every child in this country to create their own destiny and shine. The right education for every child in India will help them shatter glass ceilings and fulfil their aspirations. I am excited to be part of this journey and I wish Eduauraa all the very best in their mission."

Akanksha Chaturvedi, Founder and CEO of Eduauraa commented, "India currently ranks 112th out of 188 countries on the global education index. This is a ranking that speaks volumes about the accessibility of quality education in our country. My aim with Eduauraa is to be instrumental in changing our current global education ranking. With the onset of digitalisation in our country, we saw a sizable shift in pricing of services or products but even after learning modified to E-learning, the pricing element was the key problem. When I started analysing this, one question that I kept asking was if OTT platforms can provide accessible entertainment at INR 999/- a year why can't education do the same? And today with Eduauraa, we have democratised education and E-learning in India. We are also extremely excited to have Ranveer Singh as our brand ambassador. His vibrant personality resonates with our young and passionate brand ethos."

Primary features of Eduauraa:

Customized to syllabus for ICSE + CBSE + 7 state boards - Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu to Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

• Convenient user interface with a built-in navigation system, aided by a voice search feature
• Content design- Video lectures with 2D/3D & alpha animations, images and real-life examples
• Value added services- Mind-maps for diagrammatic representation and revision, MCQ's, e-books, passed papers, objective & subjective test papers
• Eduauraa Proficiency Quotient to analyze a student's progress
• Eduauraa Assistant for easy study scheduling

EPQ for self- evaluation in the app:

Eduauraa uses technology for  evaluation analytics so students are provided with detailed insights into learner's progress during the course:

• Adaptive tests
  • The difficulty of the test is determined by the students' performance such that it will get harder or easier following a correct or incorrect answer respectively.
• Knowledge tests
  • Eduauraa's AI uses answers to assess user knowledge levels on a specific topic, allowing for active and engaging participation

Eduauraa offers 3 levels of subscription packages:

• Base video pack subscription - INR 999/- per year (introductory offer)
  • Includes annual subscription to Eduauraa and Zee5 premium
  • 6000+ hours of video content made by India's top teachers (download enabled)
  • 2D/3D & alpha animations in each video
  • Eduauraa Assistant
• VAS pack subscription- INR 1999/- per year
  • Includes all Value-Added Services materials like- e-books, test papers, mind maps and past papers
  • Eduauraa Proficiency Quotient (EPQ)
  • Eduauraa Assistant
• All inclusive subscription - INR 2499/ - per year (introductory offer)
  • All access to Eduauraa content + Zee5 premium + VAS services

The app also offers a free guest user version, enabling access to limited sample content for an unlimited time span. Eduauraa's immersive learning experience is built so that every student in India has access to the best education at any time.

Download the Eduauraa app here now:

Play Store: bit.ly/34Mkghx 
App Store: apple.co/316KCIN

Website- https://eduauraa.com/ 

79% Students Use Smartphones to Study Online: 'India Lockdown Learning' Report by Vidyasaarathi

• 59% are using WhatsApp and Zoom calls for their classes; while 30% are using their institution’s online platform
• 75% students still prefer physical classrooms over online learning; biggest challenge being poor network connection

Majority of students (79%) use smartphones to study online reveals ‘India Lockdown Learning’ report by Vidyasaarathi. The report goes on to state that only 17% of students attend their online classes using laptops and computers and rest 4% students attend it through mediums like tablets. Vidyasaarathi is one of the largest scholarship management portals in India - promoted by NSDL e-Governance.

Vidyasaarathi’s ‘India Lockdown Learning’ report is basis a nationwide survey conducted by collecting data from over 10,000 students across 400 cities to understand the transformation happening in the educational eco-system.  The survey helps us to take note of how students are adopting e-learning which is becoming the norm and the challenges they face in the transition. The survey is holistic in capturing all the essential data for us to discern the pros and cons of the new normal.

The report that provides unique insights and perspectives on the e-learning scenario in India further finds that WhatsApp and Zoom Calls to be the most preferred medium of 59% students for conducting online classes; followed by 30% of students using their school’s or college’s online platform to attend online classes.  

While online classes are part of the new normal, 75% of the students still prefer physical classrooms over online learning. Poor internet connection was highlighted by 57% of students as their biggest challenge for e-learning. 31% of students finding it difficult to focus and 12% finding it difficult to get doubts clarified while studying online.

Interestingly, over 60% of the students spend around 1-4 hours on e-Learning; followed by 31% spending 4-8 hours and 8% spending 8-12 hours studying online. This shows that despite the challenges, the students’ willingness to learn and the commitment of teachers towards online education.

Moreover, among the total number of students who are utilizing online classes, 62% of them are using it for curricular and 38% for extra-curricular activities. Amongst the extra-curricular activities 39% are taking online courses on art & craft. This indicates a shift from the traditional learning methods.

Majority of the students who took the survey were in the age groups of 12 to 28 years where 62% were males. The respondents are in their undergraduate and postgraduate courses. They come from middle class families, with around 90% students belonging to families with annual incomes below INR 7 lakh

Students are also well aware of the benefits of online classes. Majority of them cited that the biggest advantage of e-learning is the accessibility of the course content any time. Students also highlighted ease of use and convenient doubt clarification to be the other motivators for online education.

Indian students are new to the e-learning culture. Online classes in this pandemic situation has been a challenge for educators and for students as well. This survey highlights the need for good IT infrastructure so that the challenges of digital learning do not weigh it down.

Vidyasaarathi is among the three education financing portals developed by NSDL e-Governance Infrastructure which assists students in their education financing process– Vidyasaarathi (education scholarships), Vidya Lakshmi (education loans), and Vidya Kaushal (skill development loans).

About Vidyasaarathi:

Vidyasaarathi is a scholarship portal developed by NSDL e-Governance Infrastructure Ltd., which bridges the gap between students seeking financial assistance and companies with CSR funds wanting to contribute to the education space. Corporates can choose to create their own schemes and criteria to give scholarships to the deserving students. The schemes are designed in association with Tata Institute of Social Sciences. So far, over 30 corporates have associated with Vidyasaarathi to design and provide scholarship schemes to students, the portal is becoming popular amongst students.

IIT Roorkee Ties with Online Learning Platform Coursera to Offer Online courses

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee has partnered with Coursera, a leading online learning platform, to launch new online programs and certifications for a global audience. IIT Roorkee plans to launch high demand programs like Advanced Certification in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) and Certification in Data Science, with a goal to expand its online program portfolio on Coursera as part of a commitment to make the coveted institution accessible to learners around the world.

The Advanced Certification in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning program will enable learners from around the world to learn AI/ML skills from India's top technology institute. It is a six months program and is a unique combination of expert lectures, hands-on labs, tutorials, team projects, and workshops ensuring fast-track learning along with building knowledge on coding and mathematics necessary for building expertise in AI/ML besides equipping with classical ML techniques and algorithms, programming with TensorFlow for easy model building, robust ML production and powerful experimentation among others. 

Certification in Data Science program is designed to equip professionals with competencies in the core focus areas of Data Science, Machine Learning, Critical Thinking, Data Collection, Data Visualisation, and Data Management. The course will develop programming skills in Python and SQL relevant, help learners understand the algorithms used in data analytics, and build knowledge about the selected machine learning algorithms such as linear models, kNN, SVM, Trees, Random forest, and neural networks and much more. The program requires no prior knowledge of coding in Python, R, or SQL.

With this partnership, IIT Roorkee joins the ranks of 170 top universities, including Yale, University of Michigan, Stanford, and Imperial College of London — that offer programs on Coursera. Coursera’s 67 million learners across 190 countries will now be able to access IIT Roorkee’s highly sought-after and job-relevant programs.

“Coursera is a leading online learning platform. We are delighted to partner with Coursera to help fulfill the goal of inclusive education of the New Education Policy. Further, this partnership will help us reach out to a global audience of students and professionals aspiring for quality teaching in these sought after areas,” said Prof. Ajit K. Chaturvedi, Director, IIT Roorkee.

“IIT Roorkee is one of India’s top and oldest engineering schools, and millions aspire to learn from this illustrious institution,” said Jeff Maggioncalda, CEO of Coursera. This partnership makes the institution accessible to a global audience. Now anyone anywhere can take the institute's high-quality programs to learn skills of the future."

IIT Roorkee will launch both these programs on Coursera in early 2021.

About Coursera

Coursera was founded by Daphne Koller and Andrew Ng with a vision of providing life-transforming learning experiences to anyone, anywhere. It is now a leading online learning platform for higher education, where 67 million learners from around the world come to learn skills of the future. More than 200 of the world’s top universities and industry educators partner with Coursera to offer projects, courses, Specializations, certificates, and degree programs. 2,500 companies trust the company’s enterprise platform Coursera for Business to transform their talent. Coursera for Government equips government employees and citizens with in-demand skills to build a competitive workforce. Coursera for Campus empowers any university to offer high-quality, job-relevant online education to students, alumni, faculty, and staff. Coursera is backed by leading investors that include Kleiner Perkins, New Enterprise Associates, Learn Capital, and SEEK Group.

About IIT Roorkee

IIT Roorkee is an institute of national importance imparting higher education in engineering, sciences, management, architecture and planning, and humanities and social sciences. Since its establishment in 1847, the Institute has played a vital role in providing technical human resources and know-how to the country.

Lingokids Partners with Dream Centres in India to Address Digital Divide

Lingokids, a curriculum-based English learning app for children between two and eight years old, has partnered with the Dream Centres in India, an educational institution that offers, quality, affordable education to underprivileged children. Featuring content from the Oxford University Press, Lingokids is present in more than 190 countries and has over 20 million subscribers worldwide.

There has been a dramatic impact on education by COVID-19, given that millions of students (90% of total students worldwide) have been forced to study from home due to school closures. Technology and education have merged even more than before the pandemic due to worldwide stay at home mandates, but only a handful of private schools have been able to adopt online teaching methods. The low-income private and government school counterparts, on the other hand, have completely shut down, as they lack access to e-learning solutions.

Mr. Cristobal Viedma, Founder and CEO of Lingokids

According to UNESCO, 1.9 billion learners in 150 countries, particularly students in pre-primary to upper-secondary courses (over 830 million), have been affected. This has forced parents, teachers, and students to use and adapt to e-learning tools. Centuries-old teaching models are now driven by technology and there is an urgent need to tackle the digital divide with inclusive learning solutions, especially for the most vulnerable and marginalized groups. Lingokids has collaborated with NGOs and foundations around the world and has donated over 30,000 licenses of the app to schools and NGOs to help address the digital divide. In India, Lingokids has donated over 600 licenses to the Dream Centres schools, enabling students to continue their learning during the lockdown.

Commenting on this initiative, Cristobal Viedma, Founder and CEO of Lingokids, explains, "The pandemic has changed the future of education and this new normal is here to stay. We need to adapt and ensure that these challenges are turned into opportunities and that we leverage technology to make education more accessible and inclusive for all. E-learning will be able to democratize and personalize education for every student at the same level, thereby eliminating the digital gap. Our association with the Dream Centres is an effort to contribute to the cause of education and to work towards a world of equal opportunity for everyone."

Naomi Hendricks, Co-founder of the Dream Centres

Naomi Hendricks Co-founder of the Dream Centres said, "Lingokids has been an invaluable APP that has enabled us to leverage technology, making early learning fun and accessible to the hundreds of marginalized children we serve. During this Pandemic, we have pivoted our children to digital learning by the licenses that have been so generously given by Lingokids. We live and learn in community, this has, therefore, enabled many siblings and neighbors of our children, to also enjoy digital learning via a single license. 'One by Two' has been adapted to 'One by Four.' Education is a tool that lifts people out of poverty and digital equality is an important factor in building a more equitable world for the next generation."

Lingokids' playlearning™ method is simple: the more kids enjoy playing, the more they'll learn. It enables children to expand their vocabulary, improve their writing skills, and get involved in a safe game-based learning experience. The app offers engaging content and games that teach words, colors, numbers, animals, fruits, and everyday language, while exposing young kids to 21st-century skills and topics, such as creativity, caring for the environment, critical thinking, collaboration, and empathy. Lingokids' online platform also offers weekly plans, blog posts, videos, and several tiers of programming that include a parent community.

To learn more about how Lingokids utilizes technology, safety, and activities to promote the development of 21st-century skills, please visit www.lingokids.com.

About Lingokids

Lingokids is the English learning app for children between two and eight years old. It is currently present in more than 190 countries, with 20 million families using the platform. Lingokids collaborates with NGOs and foundations around the world, such as UNICEF in Latin America, UNHCR and Cruz Roja in Spain, Pies Descalzos in Colombia (driven by Shakira), and the Queen Rania Foundation in Jordan, to break down language barriers and promote equal opportunities for all children. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Lingokids donated over 30,000 licenses of the app to schools and NGOs. It has also collaborated with companies such as the Spanish Ministry of Education, Vodafone, Iberia, and Amazon Prime Video. The company has raised $10 million in funds to date from Holtzbrinck Ventures, JME Venture Capital, Sabadell Ventures, BigSur, Reach Capital, All Iron Ventures, Athos, Dave McClures 500 startups, K-Funds founding partners, SHO-zemi Innovation Ventures (a branch of Japans leading network of tutoring schools, SHO-zemi), Incuvest of Singapore, and business angels like Gwynne Shotwell, President and COO of SpaceX. Lingokids received an award for the startup with the greatest social impact in education at the South Summit's enlightED in 2018.

For more information, please visit: www.lingokids.com.

Flinto Raises $7.2 Mn in Pre-Series B Funding; Launches Flintoclass@HOME Bringing Preschool Education to Doorstep

Flinto Learning Solutions, the market leader in Early Childhood Education in India, has raised $7.2 million in Pre-Series B funding, led by Lightbox Ventures. Flinto will be using this fresh flow of capital to support its rapid growth in the early learning space and to expand its newly-launched preschool solution during the COVID-19 pandemic -- Flintoclass@HOME. This innovative preschool model is set to become a game-changer amid the turbulent COVID-19 environment as it delivers hybrid preschool education to the doorstep, allowing children to learn from the safety of their homes. 

Founded in September 2013 by 3 fathers - Arunprasad Durairaj, Vijay Babu Gandhi and Shreenidhi Srirangam, Flinto is built on a mission to change the way children across the world learn and play. 

Backed by a state-of-the-art innovation & research centre on child development, and a passion to impact the lives of future citizens, Flinto has over the years created a remarkable difference by addressing the key touchpoints of a child’s life -- home and school.

Flintobox, the flagship product that came out of Flinto’s innovation & research centre, has won the hearts of 1 million families across India, providing ample understanding into the engagement & development of children across various age groups.

Based on the immense insights from Flintobox was born Flintoclass ‘Preschool In A Box’, powering children with high-quality learning tools and driving passionate entrepreneurs with a robust business model to grow successful preschools. In the last 1.5 years, Flintoclass successfully spread its wings to more than 700 preschools across 8 countries. 

Today, the uncertainties of COVID-19 and the closure of schools across the globe have brought with it a new era of digital learning replacing classrooms. Research, however, shows that this could be detrimental to children below the age of 6. 

Says CEO & Co-founder of Flinto Learning Solutions - Arunprasad Durairaj, “We don’t want COVID-19 to come in the way of a child’s learning. For children below 6 years of age, monotonous online classes can’t be a substitute for the multi-sensory experiences that they deserve. We wanted to ensure that children continue receiving structured hands-on learning without compromising on their safety. With our expertise in early childhood education over the past 7 years and an already successful preschool model, we came up with Flintoclass@HOME -- a blended preschool learning experience. Every month, parents receive at their doorstep an easy-to-use preschool kit with daily hands-on activities for children, along with pre-recorded interactive sessions with our educators.  

In less than a month, we have 3000 enrollments and it is very promising. We will be using the funds to create, expand and distribute this product across the world so that no child’s learning stops due to COVID-19.” 

Prashant Mehta, Partner at Lightbox explains, "By kindergarten, 90% of a child’s brain capacity develops, yet only 10-15% of the funding is allocated towards early learning, globally. The resources for early learning are sparse, and a curriculum with a child-centred pedagogy is rare. At Flinto, we see an opportunity to build a global leader in addressing the unique needs of early learning by co-creating products with children, parents and educators.  We are excited to see that Flinto is becoming more relevant especially during the COVID-19 crisis when the primary place of learning and development is turning out to be home."  

About Flinto Learning Solutions:-

At the heart of Flinto is the Flinto Early Learning Research Foundation, India’s first R&D centre focussing on early childhood development for 2-12 year olds. Extensive research in early learning has yielded three successful products in the last seven years: Flintobox - An extra-curricular innovation focussing on the development of 16 key fundamental skills through unstructured play. Flintoclass - A revolutionary preschool system that ensures high-quality early learning experiences irrespective of whether the class is under a tree or in a state-of-the-art preschool. Flintoclass@HOME - A preschool system that delivers structured early learning to the doorstep and focuses on making a child school-ready from the safety and comfort of home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Genpact Partners AI-led Platform EdCast to Launch Free E-Learning Platform for Professionals

Genpact , an American professional services firm, has partnered with New York-based EdCast, a US-based AI-powered knowledge cloud services company, to launch Adapt and Rise, a role-based online learning platform that leverages Genpact's expertise honed from delivering real-world change for hundreds of clients.

With this e-learning platform, Genpact aims to enable professional resilience and accelerate adoption of the most critical professional skills and competencies required to succeed in the digital age -- At No Cost.



The platform leverages an in-house learning solution created by Genpact, earlier in November 2018, called 'Genome', which is a dedicated platform  created by Genpact to skill its sales workforce. The platform includes courses on professional skills, change management, conflict resolution.

Adapt and Rise is available in both desktop/web and mobile app forms. To access the web version, visit https://adaptandrise.edcast.com/ or the Chrome Web Store and enter "adaptandrise. To download & access its apps, download EdCast from either the App Store, Google Play.

Based on work done by MIT's Center for Collective Intelligence, Genome harnesses the collective intelligence of Genpact's more than 90,000 employees. Using Genpact's experts to curate knowledge for its distributed workforce, Genome encourages the flow of information and easier learning. Adapt and Rise takes this tested foundation and is now offering it to the public.

By opening to the public parts of its highly successful continuous learning platform, Genome, Genpact is helping to accelerate the professional learning process for everyone.

With the quickening pace of change, professionals need to constantly improve their skills to distinguish themselves and provide maximum value in a hyper-competitive job market. Skills that were once seen as nice to have are now critical to succeeding as part of the adaptive workforce required in the digital economy.

With Genome, Genpact is continuously preparing internally for the future of work by enabling its talent to acquire new skills and evolve quickly as industries and technologies change.

"In this time of unprecedented global change, it is incumbent on those who have resources to provide access to those who need them," said Tiger Tyagarajan, chief executive officer of Genpact.

"We believe it is important to share the insights honed from our business and technology expertise to help people reach their professional potential and maximize their ability to drive meaningful impact in the world," Tyagarajan said.

Genpact, in partnership with EdCast, provider of an award-winning Learning Experience Platform (LXP) used by Global 2000 companies and large government organizations, is making content available globally to enable people at all levels to amplify their capabilities. Participants can learn and master a wide variety of essential skills relevant to many key roles at the heart of digital transformation.

Expert curators have rigorously curated 1,500 pieces of the most relevant publicly available content that will help professionals upskill in 13 vital roles: Business Analyst, Digital Program Manager, Finance and Accounting Professional, Human Resources Professional, Infrastructure and Logistics Professional, Process Operations (Individual), Process Operations (Team Leader), Process Operations (Organization Leader), Procurement Professional, Project Manager, Risk and Compliance Professional, Sales and Marketing Operations Support, and Tech Support Engineer.

Each role-based channel features approximately 100 hours of bite-sized learning content, including videos, articles, blogs, podcasts, and more. The content is categorized into 14 skills that are common across roles, including Artificial Intelligence Basics, Change Management, Customer Experience, Design Thinking, Digital Business Strategy, People Leadership, and Storytelling. These skills have become core to career advancement across roles and career stages.

The content is presented in the context of thematic journeys, each with up to four levels of proficiency. The learning order is neither prescriptive nor linear; the learner can self-identify a starting point and engage with the content in any order.

"EdCast helps global workforces meet their upskilling and reskilling needs to become future-ready," said Karl Mehta, chief and founder of EdCast.

"This is why we launched the Future of Work Alliance that is squarely focused on bringing this vision to fruition. We are very proud to partner with Genpact on the Adapt and Rise platform to bring personalized, role-based learning that is seamlessly integrated with tools that most people regularly use, including Microsoft Teams, Slack, Workplace by Facebook, Google, ServiceNow, Salesforce, and others."

Genpact is democratizing learning at a moment of historically high unemployment and when economic pressures will likely impact company budgets that were earmarked for learning and development. The company aims to enable professional resilience in a hyper-competitive job market by making available learning for all on the most critical modern skills and competencies that organizations require to succeed in the digital age.

"Whether it's a graduating student, a transitioning worker, or a working professional, we at Genpact believe that everyone should have the opportunity to learn from our experience accumulated through thousands of engagements with hundreds of clients," said Gianni Giacomelli, chief innovation leader at Genpact. "Our collective knowledge allows us to determine what people should know and learn, and serve them the right knowledge to ignite insights, boost skills, and amplify talent. We are leveraging the collective intelligence enabled by the Genome platform to make the most contemporary real-world learnings available to millions of people at no cost."

Source - PRNewswire

upGrad Doubles Classes, Courses and Capacity to Deal with the Surge in Demand for Online Learning

The edtech major recorded 72% growth in learners onboarded in April – aims to double its revenue by June 2020 

Edtech major upGrad, India’s largest higher education provider just moved their start dates for all their 40 courses to start every month instead of quarterly, to take on the surge in demand from working professionals. This has more than doubled their course capacity, and each class now has a peak of 1000 learners at a given time. 

“The larger the class in online, the more active the peer-to-peer learning and so it’s the inverse of offline learning,” says Ronnie Screwvala, Co-founder and Executive Chairman, upGrad. 

"Last month we reached 5, 00,000 learners for our online programs, which is no mean feat in itself. Now take into consideration that our average ARPU is INR 2.5 lakhs. Yet, we are only at the very start of addressing a market of over 100 million working professionals and graduates." continues Screwvala. 

This quarter, upGrad’s revenues will cross an annual run rate of INR 500 Cr with the launch of their Live Learning platform free of cost to multiple colleges and universities, to replicate their classrooms online and address their students during the Covid-19 period seamlessly. The company also separately recorded 10,000 enrollments for their 350 hours of free courses initiated during this period.

Founded in early 2015, upGrad offers online programs for working professionals. In a short span of around 5 years, upGrad on-boarded over 53K paid learners and impacted more than 500K individuals globally, making it India’s largest online higher-education company, basis gross revenue generated from the Indian market in FY18-19. 

upGrad provides programs in the areas of Data Science, Technology, Management and MBA to college students, working-class and enterprises. These programs are designed and delivered in collaboration with top-notch universities like IIT Madras, IIIT-B, BITS Pilani, MICA, NMIMS Global Access, Duke CE, Deakin University, Liverpool John Moores University and others. To further enhance the learning experience, a comprehensive ecosystem has been built which includes one-on-one mentoring, peer-to- peer learning, industry networking and most importantly expert career guidance providing learners' holistic support to elevate their careers to the next level. 

The company has been awarded the title of ‘Best Tech for Education’ by IAMAI in 2019. The company received the ‘Best Education Brands’ award by Economic Times, Most Innovative Companies in India' by Fast Company in 2017 and has made it to LinkedIn’s ‘Top 25 Startups’ two years in a row in 2018 and 2019. 

Career Point Launches New Learning App 'eCareerPoint'

Learning for entrance examinations like Engineering, Medical and K12 competitive examinations goes online and available 24X7

Career Point, Kota based leading medical & IIT entrance examinations coaching institute, has announced the launch of ‘eCareerPoint’, an online learning App, to keep the mind of students ticking during the lockdown.

The App offers courses on engineering, medical entrance and K12 competitive examinations. The classes of new academic session 2020-21 for NEET, JEE which commenced from April 15 is also available on this new App. 

The advanced technologies used in developing this application, make this App very dynamic and versatile at the same time very effective, simple and user friendly. The App features Live Interactive Classes, Online Test Series, Doubt Removal, Video Lectures, Live Seminars and eBooks etc.  

Pramod Maheshwari, Managing Director & CEO, Career Point Limited said, “With the launch of new ‘eCareerPoint App’, we are aiming for reaching out to large number of students, who can benefit from Career Point’s legacy and expertise in making more than 1,70, 000 students selected for reputed Engineering and Medical colleges in the country.

From virtual classes by Kota’s experienced and renowned faculty members through video calls and access to study material, e-books and mock tests, we are going extra mile to make online learning easy and interactive like class room sessions.”

The students will certainly be key beneficiary of eCareerPoint with its multiple student centric features. The wide range of explanation videos, important questions, quizzes, interactive discussions etc will create an engaging learning experience, Pramod Maheshwari further added.

About Career Point

Career Point Limited (NSE: CAREERP; BSE: 533260) caters to the needs of a student throughout the life cycle of a student (K.G. to PhD.) with diversified verticals including Pre-school, School Education, Test-Prep, e-Learning, Higher Education and Vocational Education. In the Informal Education system, Career Point has established a strong niche in test preparation and school curriculum tutoring through a nationwide extensive network of Company operated branches; Franchisee centers; Technology enabled solutions; Online courses; School integrated programs; and Distance learning solutions. In the Formal Education stream, the company has a strong presence by managing and offering various services to K-12 Schools, Colleges and Universities in multiple geographies.

DAMS Manages with eLearning During COVID-19 Lockdown with LIVE Classes, Video Library on eMedicoz app

Delhi Academy of Medical Science (DAMS) pioneer in Medical PG entrance preparation with 250 plus centres across the country was the first in their sector to respond to the crisis of lockdown. DAMS team immediately understood the gravity of the situation and started online LIVE classes on eMedicoz app for their students during this hour of pandemic and country lockdown situation. Some of the LIVE classes were attended by 15K concurrent users who are doctors and medical students and is a record in itself. Students are able to chat and ask doubts to the teachers in the LIVE class.

eMedicoz app (available in both android & iOS) with 2.5 Lac plus users is a rich resource for medical students and offers an entire ecosystem of access to students. DAMS students on the app get an access to an elaborate video library, Question bank and Test series with video solutions. There are daily quizzes conducted in app to keep students engaged during these tough times. There are many unique tools like Talking Books (DAMS Comprehensive Review Series) where teachers help student navigate through the study material. LIVE classes are being conducted batch wise for both DAMS Medical and Dental students, preparing for various examinations including NEETPG, NEXT, MCI screening, NEETMDS, USMLE.

DAMS has emerged as a leader in both physical as well eLearning in Medical and dental PG entrance exams, in a unique position where DAMS has physical face to face classrooms, VSAT based video conferencing classrooms and App based learning on eMedicoz.

Students are enjoying the DAMS Digital experience on eMedicoz and many responded by posting their photos while studying on the app in Instagram stories and other social media. Rising to occasion teachers despite their own limitation because of lockdown, conducted live doubt solving sessions on DAMS facebook group, posted quizzes to keep students engaged.

DAMS has also taken initiative to post free lectures on its Youtube Channel for benefit of all medical students and there are thousands of free medical education videos available to any medical student on eMedicoz app.

DAMS Manages with eLearning During COVID-19 Lockdown with LIVE Classes

The highly qualified faculty members at DAMS are well connected with students across the country through eMedicoz "DAMS Live-Initiative", the live teaching module which disseminates teaching via virtual classrooms, wherein students can also clarify their doubts live sitting miles away.

Dr. Sumer Sethi Director and Founder of DAMS said, Even in times of lockdown, learning never stops at DAMS and students continue prepare for the examinations without any interruption. We all need to manage the learning of our students during this pandemic lockdown with innovation. Our goal remains giving an edge to our students. As an organization we care about all our team members and we have initiated work from home for our team members across the country. We have even opened an online registration desk for new students wanting to join us and finding it difficult during lockdown."

Delhi Academy of Medical Sciences (DAMS) a well-established name in the field of PG Medical Entrance Education for over 21 years now, under the leadership of Dr. Sumer Sethi, Radiologist and pervious topper in AIPG/AIIMS. DAMS is recognized for its impeccable foresight, enviable expertise and innate acumen. DAMS is known as the most specialized institution of its type in the country, performing consistently at high levels and has delivered top results in last two decades. With eMedicoz initiative crossing 2.5 lac downloads and LIVE lectures on app, DAMS has now emerged as leader in both physical and digital test prep sector for NEETPG.

Australian E-Learning Platform Matific Forays into India

• Aims to address the gap in teaching Maths to primary students during the lockdown with Matific Galaxy.


• Aligned with school curriculums of ICSE, CBSE boards with the most updated content.


• Award-winning e-learning platform offering annual plans for just INR 210 per month, with a 7 day free trial for students.


• Matific solutions are proven to help improve student’s math test scores by 34%.


• Matific Galaxy has hundreds of adaptive and intuitive maths activities that focus on core maths skills

Matific, an online Maths resource for kids from primary to Grade 6, has ventured into the burgeoning ed-tech market in India, especially in light of the ongoing COVID-19 health crisis. To address the gap in teaching Maths, Matific has launched its award-winning solution Matific Galaxy, for the India home market at an affordable price. The solution has been designed by mathematics professors and curriculum experts for parents looking for the most updated and engaging solutions that are aligned to their child’s school curriculums.

Matific Galaxy features hundreds of engaging maths activities aligned with school curriculums of ICSE, CBSE boards. Matific’s home product aims to provide a solution to conventional home-schooling and ensure that kids are well prepared for the future and up to pace until the lockdown period ends. This top-rated app features hundreds of fun maths games covering maths skills from kindergarten through sixth grade. Matific’s evidence-based content has been proven to help improve students' math results by 34%. The program provides parents with access to a dashboard where they can keep track of their child’s mathematics achievements and progress.

“Given the current environment, schools institutions are going online around the world as they send students home with no timeline for return. Matific’s solutions enable students to continue their learning process. Matific Galaxy is an award-winning unique platform offering online gamified Maths resources and engaging activities that promote conceptual understanding and problem-solving skills for kids from Nursery to Grade 6.”

“Matific Galaxy is backed by extensive research and designed by senior mathematics professors and curriculum experts, making it the most comprehensive online mathematics resource.

We want to ensure that all students in all areas of India have the opportunity to continue learning during this time. This means ensuring that the price is not an issue.” said Vibha Mahajan, VP, Matific India.

Matific Galaxy is offering an annual plan for just INR 210 per month, which is a practical choice considering its high-quality content and costly solutions in the education space. Matific also offers a 7-day free trial for students. Apart from offering the most advanced and relevant content at the most affordable price, Matific Galaxy works in offline mode as well, taking out the significant overheads of data consumption.

Matific has several games and stimulating maths activities, each of which is equally gripping so that kids end up playing for hours, and learning maths in a process of self-guided discovery. Playful interactions, colourful characters, and gamification help ease math anxiety and boost math confidence amongst students.

Matific is present in over 45 countries with adaptability in 26 languages across the world and has proven to help improve student’s math test scores by 34%. Used by thousands of teachers worldwide, Matific provides relief to parents and enjoyable experience to children during a time of uncertainty. Every day over thousands of teachers and students log in for online teaching and learning.

Available both on Google Play and App Store, Matific Galaxy program can be accessed on desktop, tablets and mobile devices.

About Matific:

Matific is part of a global educational technology company whose founders include top Australian businessman Leon Kamenev, who has launched several high-profile online companies including Menulog and HotelClub. Matific aims to make maths fun and engaging for all students. The Matific Galaxy App was launched in May 2018 to introduce a new, fun, and simple way of approaching maths that simultaneously helps young students develop a lifelong appreciation for the subject and its applications. The Matific resource, which is currently in 45 countries and translated into 26 languages, has been getting excellent results worldwide.

COVID-19: Facebook launches Online Resource for Educators, Partners UNESCO

Social media giant Facebook on Monday said it has launched an online resource guide on how to collaborate and continue the learning process using Facebook products, tools and programs amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Titled 'Supporting Education Communities: An Online Learning Resources Guide', the online resource will guide education communities on how to collaborate and continue the learning process using Facebook products, tools and programs like Facebook Pages, Facebook Groups, Facebook Live, Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram, a statement said.

The guide, which will also provide information related to COVID-19 from authentic sources, is currently available in English, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati and Kannada, it added.

In its first phase, Facebook has partnered with UNESCO who will support in ensuring the guide reaches learners, educational institutions and teachers across India besides supporting with the updation and curation of the guide with relevant learning resources, the statement said.

"In these difficult times, it is even more important for people to stay connected and have access to credible information about COVID-19. Through our online learning resource guide, we want to equip teachers, parents and relevant government officials with ample resources and tools to help them stay connected and collaborate digitally to facilitate remote learning," Manish Chopra, director and head of partnerships at Facebook India, said.

Eric Falt, director and UNESCO representative, UNESCO New Delhi Cluster Office for Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka said the COVID-19 outbreak has caused not only a health crisis but also a learning crisis.

"More than 90 per cent of the world's learners are affected by the school and university closures. In line with the global efforts, UNESCO New Delhi will focus on mobilising the national and state-level actors and resources in order to develop an effective and unified response avoiding overlaps for maximum impact," Falt said.

Further, the on-ground needs will be matched with context-appropriate solutions to provide education remotely, leveraging hi-tech, low-tech and no-tech approaches with a special focus on ensuring access for women learners, he said.

"Technology will be the key enabler for all such efforts. The partnership between UNESCO New Delhi and Facebook will therefore play an important role in providing an online platform for all stakeholders to come together and act in tandem to end the learning disruption," Falt added.

Facebook had also launched the Coronavirus Information Centre last week that provides the latest news and updates from MyGov Corona Hub, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) and global health organisations, as well as helpful content about social distancing and preventing the spread of COVID-19. PTI SR

T.I.M.E. Institute announces Online Courses amid Nationwide Lockdown

India's leading test-prep institute announces online courses amid nationwide lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The spread-out has impacted every aspect of life, including the preparation for entrance exams.

The idea behind these Online Classrooms are to sit, click and learn from the comfort and safety of the aspirant’s home. The spread-out has impacted the preparation for entrance exams and hence India’s largest test-prep institute took up the call in this difficult situation with actionable solutions for their aspirants.

As soon as the lockdown was implemented, T.I.M.E. announced its online classes for various courses, and within three days, launched online classes for different courses –CLAT + IPM, BBA and CAT etc.

Mr. Sai Kumar Swamy, Centre Director, T.I.M.E. Delhi shares his concerns, “We value the health of our future aspirants & T.I.M.E. experts given the current circumstances and are happy to announce our online classes. This mode has brought us great success and are being highly appreciated by thousands of enrolled students who are using them to learn and prepare for various entrance exams and stay ahead of the competition!”

“T.I.M.E. Online Classes are designed to help you prepare in the best way to crack the toughest of entrance exams as the online Classes cover every aspect of entrance test preparation – Basics, Exercises, and Discussions”, he further added.

About T.I.M.E.

Triumphant Institute of Management Education (T.I.M.E.) is India’s leading test-prep institute with a pan-India presence and is headquartered in Hyderabad. From its entrepreneurial roots in 1992, T.I.M.E. today has 251 centers and has trained over 22 Lakh students for various courses since inception.

T.I.M.E. has grown into a specialist, multi-location and multi-program training provider run on corporate lines. T.I.M.E. today offers a wide range of programs not only for national and state-level entrance exams like the GATE, CAT, GMAT, GRE, Bank PO, and other competitive exams.

For more information: http://www.time4education.com/

To know more please visit:https://www.time4education.com/cc_enrollments/crashcourse1.aspx?c=ALL

upGrad Partners with Agora.io to Build a Live Learning Platform

The edtech major announces access to the company’s ‘Live Platform’ to all colleges, universities, NGOs and Government bodies free of cost 

upGrad, one of the largest providers of online higher education in India has teamed up with Agora.io, the leading voice, video and live streaming platform, to launch upGrad Live platform, which is built to replicate a real-time classroom learning experience for upGrad learners by providing greater interactivity, real-time doubt resolution, in-class concept check & session analytics to gauge live session performances.

The edtech major upGrad has created some of India’s most advanced online programs to help thousands of professionals achieve their career goals in the areas of data, technology and management. Having partnered with several leading national & International institutions like IIT Madras, IIIT-B, Deakin Business School, Duke CE etc., upGrad brings specialised curated content, engaging sessions, and a plethora of highly qualified faculty including top industry specialists and experts. 

"At upGrad we have taken a strong shift to Learning Experience 2.0 which will be largely driven by the core objective of delivering Personalisation and Outcomes for our learners. Building a live platform was a step in enhancing the learning experience. We had evaluated several possible solutions but chose Agora.io because it is reliable and delivers high-quality content despite network, mobile and geographical challenges. A huge deciding factor in choosing Agora was their dedicated local team that continuously stays on top of their game, striving to ensure the very best of services rendered," said Mayank Kumar, Co-Founder & MD, upGrad. 

"Our partnership with upGrad is an exciting opportunity to collaborate with an innovative and ever-evolving company that is focused on providing an immersive and engaging platform for professionals to keep themselves updated as they advance in their respective careers," said Tony Wang, Co-founder, Agora.io. "Providing innovative, real time engagement solutions in a demanding and fast-growing environment remains a priority as we expand in the region."

As the nation fights a global pandemic amidst a lockdown, upGrad has announced free access of the platform to all colleges, universities, NGOs and Government bodies. The Live platform seeks to diminish the adverse effects of the disruption and allow the offline institutes to conduct live lectures seamlessly.

Founded in early 2015, upGrad offers online programs for working professionals. In a short span of around 5 years, upGrad on-boarded over 21.5K paid learners and impacted more than 370K individuals globally, making it India’s largest online higher-education company, basis gross revenue generated from the Indian market in FY18-19.

upGrad provides programs in the areas of Data Science, Technology, Management and MBA to college students, working-class and enterprises. These programs are designed and delivered in collaboration with top-notch universities like IIT Madras, IIIT-B, BITS Pilani, MICA, NMIMS Global Access, Duke CE, Deakin University, Liverpool John Moores University and others.

To further enhance the learning experience, a comprehensive ecosystem has been built which includes one-on-one mentoring, peer-to-peer learning, industry networking and most importantly expert career guidance providing learners holistic support to elevate their careers to the next level.

The company has been awarded the title of ‘Best Tech for Education’ by IAMAI in 2019. The company received the ‘Best Education Brands’ award by Economic Times and has made it to LinkedIn’s ‘Top 25 Startups’ two years in a row in 2018 and 2019.

Link: www.upgrad.com/

About Agora.io

Agora.io helps apps increase user engagement and retention with a developer platform for live, interactive audio, video, and messaging features at planetary scale. With a dedicated network and device-optimized SDKs, Agora is the only real-time engagement platform designed to cross borders and reach users on low-bandwidth networks and on lower-powered devices.

THE GATE ACADEMY, Bangalore, Announces Free Access to its Video Lectures for GATE Aspirants, Engineering Students across India

Students across India are suffering due to the stoppage of the congregation in colleges, schools & coaching centers because of the current pandemic.

Normally, engineering semester exams start in April-May and currently, students do not have access to their classrooms and with GATE exam nearing, students are unable to attend classroom coaching as social distancing is self-enforced.

As a relief to their Registered Classroom Course, THE GATE ACADEMY, has extended access to its LIVE Online Course, 'homeGATE', free of cost to its students.

However, most of the coaching institutes, across India, including the bigger and older ones, are not equipped with such hi-tech online courses. Feeling responsible for the students of all such institutes, THE GATE ACADEMY has decided to extend similar facilities by providing access to their Video Lectures, completely FREE of cost, across segments, till the end of April 2020.

2nd, 4th and 6th Semester Students, across India, will be able to choose and enroll for the relevant pre-recorded Video Lectures or 'Subject-Packs' from THE GATE ACADEMY's website. Though these lectures are recorded keeping the GATE exam in mind, they will be helpful for engineering students preparing for semester exams as well, as the syllabus of the GATE exam has a complete overlap with the engineering syllabus, especially the first 3 years.

These subject-wise GATE lectures will also help GATE 21 & 22 aspirants whose studies have come to a halt amid the current covid-19 health crisis.

For GATE aspirants from Hindi speaking regions, THE GATE ACADEMY has announced free access to its LIVE Online Program in Hindi, homeGATE-Hindi.

Students, as per their requirement, can easily enroll for either of these courses by visiting, www.thegateacademy.com

Once enrolled, students can access these video lectures on their laptops / PCs. They can also download, "TGA" App from Google Play store on their smartphones and prepare well from these video lectures, anytime anywhere.

For more details, one can also speak to their Academic Counselors on 080-40611000 or email at info@thegateacademy.com

To access academic lectures, please visit: https://www.youtube.com/user/TheGateAcademy

About THE GATE ACADEMY:

THE GATE ACADEMY (also known as 'GATE ACADEMY' amongst students) is a premier GATE coaching institute with 50+ centers across the country.

In 2016, THE GATE ACADEMY was awarded the fastest growing GATE institute in India.

THE GATE ACADEMY is also empanelled with NPIU (National Project Implementation Unit) to provide GATE training under TEQIP-III, implemented as a World Bank assisted project to improve the quality of technical education in the country.