DanielOnline shopping, online classes, online meetings, online courses, and much more. The whole world went online since the coronavirus outbreak in 2020. The pandemic may have limited our potential in one way, but it has also pushed us to new innovations. One of the things that became really popular during the pandemic is online education.
Edutech startups saw a boom in 2021 and three of them namely Eruditus, upGrad, and Vedantu turned unicorn. Though upGrad was founded 7 years ago which shows that the demand for online courses was there in India long before the pandemic but the it really gave a boost to the industry.
Last year, Caltech, California was added to the list of university partners of upGrad, which shows that even international universities are taking note of India’s growing demand for online education. Currently, upGrad offers two courses of six months each, in partnership with Caltech.
According to a recent study, it was seen that more and more students were going for technological courses as there was an increase in demand for candidates having knowledge about AI, online storage, etc. UpGrade data shows that in 2021, machine learning, AI, and data sciences courses were the most popular among students.
The pandemic is shaping the future of online education, whether we are ready for it or not. Many innovations, AI, and other technologies are already being incorporated into the field of education. And as the world enters into the third year of lockdowns and isolations, there is a whole generation of students for whom online education is the only form of higher education that they have experienced.
Whether it should be called a reform or not, that is to be debated as the developments are too young for any conclusions. But we can definitely say that this is the first major change in the format of the education system around the globe since the world war.
What will be more interesting to see is how more universities like Caltech acknowledge this change in the education industry and prepare themselves for the demand. Additionally, the role of the government to incorporate new technological innovations into their educational programs will also dictate the terms.
