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Over the past decade the field of education has experienced great changes. And we are now talking not only about large-scale reforms and new teaching methods, but also about the digitalization of the whole process. Transfer of education into online is the visionary change that has simplified learning and further personalized it.
Is e-learning software our future?
The answer to this question is definitely yes. Confirmation of this is the growing popularity of online education. For example, at the beginning of 2020, according to similarweb, the site of the popular educational platform Duolingo was visited by more than 49 million users. In addition, according to data from the eLearning Industry, online education now reduces the time of professional training for employees by 20-40%.
Today, e-learning in Europe is rapidly growing its popularity. For example, according to the same data from statista about 62% of the Italian population hopes that all these changes in education because of with COVID-19 will push universities to digitalize the process in the future.
And about 79% of people in Asia agree that e-learning will help improve the educational system as a whole.
This proves that today online education is quite capable of replacing its traditional equivalent. Now many online courses and universities, like Coursera or Minerva, already have their first students graduated, and turned those young people into professionists. In Canada, over the previous year, the number of people who choose e-learning has exceeded an impressive 365,000. In Britain, about 27% of men and 24% of women study online for this academic year.
The popularity of e-learning is also growing because it removes certain risks that exist within traditional educational methods. For instance:
Health risks
This is especially important in the today's reality. Online education can minimize live contact with other students and teachers, helping it’s users stay safe.
Risk of getting an irrelevant knowledge
About 60% of students go to online colleges because this is a shortcut to a diploma. Many companies opt for e-learning because it speeds up the training of their employees. With offline, there is always the risk that the knowledge gained by an employee will cease to be relevant in the process of training.
Financial risks
E-learning is more economical. It costs less for a student or company, because it does not include additional costs, and in combination with speed it becomes an attractive option for both students and professional trainees.
Now e-learning software already has a fairly large demand. But this is not a one day business. If with the end of pandemic the demand for toilet paper, antiseptics and masks collapses, the need for training and education is unlikely to disappear.
Now that we all have to remain self-isolated, people are trying to convert this time of problems and losses into acquisitions. We advise you to do the same - look for the best business opportunities to fit a changes market.
E-learning software development
If you agree that the field of online education is the best niche to develop your business in 2020, let's talk about what software you can create in the world of online education.
.1 E-learning app
This is one of the most popular types of e-learning software among those who simply want to discover something new. Applications are most often used to create any courses in a broad field like, maybe, language courses.
For example, the famous and previously mentioned Duolingo, which helps the user to independently learn the desired language.
But, the application does not have to contain courses only. If your key goal is to quickly distribute the app to the market and make a profit, the best option for you would be additional educational applications.
They do not give the user any specific knowledge, but help to master the necessary material. For example, Photomath, which can solve mathematical problems in photography, or the omnipotent from Google Translate.
.2 Learning Management System (LMS)
A comprehensive solution for managing the entire learning process. This is e-learning software that includes, in addition to all the necessary materials, a tracking system and a rating system. This IT-product is most often chosen by online universities or schools. LMS software allows to conduct online classes, track ratings, generate reports and store massive amounts of data.
For online classes there should be a text or video chat, and a convenient library for storing data. Also, such programs often use a discussion board or forum, as well as a curriculum.
.3 Auxiliary software
If your choice falls on additional applications, their use may not be limited to education alone. In early 2020, the whole world switched to remote education, but not all courses available to us use special e-learning software. Now is a great time to develop something potentially suitable for education, but with a wider target audience.
For example, using Skype or Zoom for online lessons at school, or a new feature in Google Translate, which helps the user to expand the vocabulary in the desired language. By creating something like this, you can provide your own product a long life outside the educational market segment.
New York schools are now talking about banning the use of Zoom for online classes. Maybe this is sound time to develop your own e-learning software?
The education sector has enormous potential. Creation of the e-learning software is a good idea for a startup not only today, but also in a long run.
Trends in e-learning software development
To create a competitive IT solution in the field of education, it is necessary to understand the vector of its growth. The field of e-learning has its own trends, and we will show you the most significant ones.
VR: this technology began to be widely used for a couple of years in gaming and entertainment industry. The same thing can happen to e-learning. Virtual reality at online universities can help create a complete sense of users presence, with all the benefits of remote learning.
Adaptive learning: the development of flexible and responsive e-learning software that fits into the needs of a student, is definitely the future of education. E-learning like this will be a unique experience for each user, will allow you to prioritize and schedule in accordance with their needs.
Educational games: now it is especially popular, it’s not difficult at all to find children's educational games and puzzles in the app stores. Obviously, over time, this trend will only progress. But if you choose to follow this path, pay attention or don’t be surprised if your children soon tell you that they had learned to read with some CandyCrush.
AI: artificial intelligence is not perceived as our inevitable technological future. Having studied the market, we can conclude that sooner or later we will have electronic teachers based on AI, or artificial intelligence, creating unique classrooms for each student on an e-learning platform. Maybe one day an artificial intelligence will check our tests, automate these mechanical tasks and allow to redirect the efforts of live teachers to more creative direction.
Why choose custom e-learning software?
The field of online education is rapidly growing. There are already competitive ready-made solutions on the market that you have to deal with. Yes, even now there are those who follow the trends, creating their own virtual reality or working on the first full-fledged educational projects using AI.
But this is not a race, it is not about who will be the first.
It’s more about who will get the most unique and competitive software product that will surpass others on quality. You need something personalized and convenient for the user in order to occupy a successful niche in a rapidly growing market.
Of course, the development of custom software will require a lot of money, but ordering it from offshore companies you get the opportunity to cut the bill without losing the quality. Besides, starting the work now, in times of crisis, you increase your chances of getting a finished product earlier than others.
Use quarantine time for the benefit of your business. And stay home!
