Why the COVID have been a game-changer for EdTech?

• by Mustapha Bouarfa
• Feb 15, 2024 (last modified Feb 15, 2024)

The Covid-19 pandemic has revolutionised multiple aspects of our lives, especially education, with the omnipresence of online courses offering countless pros and showing the need for educational technology (EdTech) in this particular sector. In this article, we will dive into the main factors that have changed EdTech during Covid and highlight how it has improved the education process. 

The key factors impacting EdTech during Covid

A sudden urging need for EdTech in 2020  

Even though educational technologies existed long before the lockdown, from broadcasting educational radio programs to television programs, it was only in 2020 with the pandemic quickly spreading all over the world that we witnessed a rapidly growing need for EdTech and a shift to remote learning in order to adapt to the situation and ensure continuity of education, which led to increasing demand for EdTech solutions such as online collaboration tools, digital textbooks and learning platforms. 

Additionally, educators and learners alike technology more accustomed to integrating technology into the teaching and learning process, paving the way for this tech-based learning model even as the pandemic recedes.

The importance of digital skills

Covid-19 has shown us that digital skills are crucial in today’s increasingly digital world. The sudden shift to remote learning and even work opportunities required basic skills in this domain in a more efficient and effective way. These skills were needed in order to harness the full potential of EdTech and ensure a useful and productive learning experience. 

Accessibility in education 

Based on a rapid survey response in late April 2020 by the US Census Bureau, in partnership with five other statistical agencies, approximately 4.4 million US households don’t have regular access to computers.

Since the pandemic impacted different social classes and categories, remote learning and using tech solutions for learning purposes has highlighted disparities regarding accessibility in education, as it has shown that the learning experience, even online, has to be more inclusive. 

Increased investment in EdTech solutions

Even though investment in EdTech was already on the rise before lockdown, venture capital funding for EdTech startups reached record levels during the pandemic as investors recognized the growth potential of companies offering remote learning tools, virtual classrooms and other digital learning solutions.

For example, Global EdTech company started the last decade with $500m of Venture Capital invested in 2010 and finished 32x higher at $16.1B in 2020, nearly 2x the previous investment record in 2018.

Thanks to Covid, the learning Tech solutions will never be the same 

The pandemic has indeed reshaped the way we see and use educational technologies as it improved the education process in many ways : 

It accelerated the digital transformation

Covid-19 has pushed different institutions to rapidly embrace technology and to integrate digital tools and platforms into teaching and learning processes, which gives us an education aligned with the ongoing changes that the world is witnessing. 

It expanded acces to education 

EdTech has broken down geographical and language barriers with online learning platforms and resources, offering the ability to access quality education without the need to attend traditional classrooms. The educational content is also accessible at all time and anywhere.

It offers cost-efficiency 

The cost of learning online is, in most cases, way lower than that of traditional education as it saves us the expensive materials like textbooks and transportation.

It ensures interactivity and personalised learning

Education technology presents a personalised learning experience by having tools that analyse the student’s learning patterns and preferences and deliver tailored content in order to meet the student’s needs. It also allows one to choose from several learning resources that enable interactivity, such as virtual simulations and game based learning platforms that enhance the student’s engagement and lead to a better retention of information.

Conclusion

Covid-19 has changed the strategies of multiple fields, especially the education sector which was forced to adapt and embrace technology in ways that were previously unimaginable, operating a huge shift in how both teaching and learning are approached globally as it pushed us to rely considerably on EdTech to ensure the continuity of education even in the contexte of a crisis. 

When integrating EdTech into the education process during the pandemic, it completely transformed traditional teaching and learning paradigms and gave us the opportunity to discover new innovative ways that we not only adopted back then, but are still, to this day using.

Investors have also noticed this important shift and decided to help develop digital learning solutions to adapt to the new remote learning landscape.

Education technologies like FQPS Academy also made education more inclusive, more engaging and more effective, it continues improving and expanding in our everyday life. 

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