ETNO GROUP PROJECT

Program & Batch:

PGDM 2014-16

Term:

IV

Course Name:

Emerging Technologies and New Opportunities (ETNO)

Name of the faculty:

Dr. Surinder Batra

Topic/ Title :
Original
or Revised Write-up:

Original

Group Number:

Group1

Contact No. and email of Group

Coordinator:

9818835205
ft14anushkagulati@imt.ac.in
Sl.

Group Members:

Roll No.

Name

Contents
1

Executive Summary (1-2 pages max.)

Sector

Your Specific Organization

Name, Products/ Services offered/ Markets/ Customers/ Competition

Key Business Challenges faced by your Organization

Current technologies in use in the Sector

Proposed emerging technologies, Innovations, business applications, expected impact

for your specific organization/ rationale for the same

Discussions

Conclusions

Detailed References: Source of all information/ figures etc. in the body of the Report
to be linked with a reference; paper/ book references to be complete in terms of title,
publisher, year of publication, page no; website reference up to the final link including
the date last accessed

Total number of Pages Not exceeding 15 pages; single space

Note:
The report will be subject to anti-plagiarism check. High rate of plagiarism will result in
penalty including rejection of the report.

Executive Summary
The 4 trends as key drivers of technology adoptions for the period 2015 to 2020:
The abundance of resources and relationships made easily accessible via the Internet

is increasingly challenging us to revisit our roles as educators in sense-making, coaching,

and credentialing.
People expect to be able to work, learn, and study whenever and wherever they want
to.

The technologies we use are increasingly cloud-based, and our notions of IT support
are decentralized.
The work of students is increasingly seen as collaborative by nature, and there is more
cross campus collaboration between departments.

As well as trends they also report on key challenges:

The role of the academy and the way we prepare students for their future lives

is changing.
New scholarly forms of authoring, publishing, and researching continue to emerge but

appropriate metrics for evaluating them increasingly and far too often lag behind.
Digital media literacy continues its rise in importance as a key skill in every discipline

and profession.
Institutions increasingly focus more narrowly on key goals, as a result of shrinking
budgets in the present economic climate.

On their near term for the next twelve months are mobile computing and open content.
They predict that in the next two to three years out, we will begin to see widespread
adoptions of electronic books and simple augmented reality.
In the longer term future, set at four to five years away for widespread adoption are gesturebased computing and visual data analysis.

Education Sector in India:

The education sector in India is an emerging market. It is a lucrative business opportunity
which entrepreneurs are grabbing with both hands. They are exploring the new emerging
technologies in the education sector. The government of India has also taken several
measures to promote good quality education in India for everyone (Right to education Act).
The education market in India is currently 5.9 trillion and is assumed to grow at a fast pace
by 2020. India is expected to become worlds largest tertiary-age population and second
3

largest graduate talent. Due to such great opportunities, this sector has received great funding
including investment from foreign companies.
Year-wise growth of students enrolment in India
20.3 million students were enrolled in India during FY12.

Evolution in Education Sector India

The pedagogy has evolved a lot in the recent years. From the basic black board chalk style of
teaching has evolved to purely customized computer based teaching. The main reason behind
this evolution is the way students respond to interactive learning. It was observed that
through online interactive games the grasping was faster and better. Thus, there was evolution
in the education sector and several new technologies were introduced.
Just a decade ago, teachers used chalkboards, then progressed to white boards and now they
are using smart boards. Smart boards are advanced boards which allow teachers to teach and
share information with students in a multiplicity of ways. Computers audio-visual capabilities
from PowerPoint presentations and other animation software are used to present information
in an interactive manner which invites greater interest from the students. Use of projectors,
screens and addressing systems (speakers and microphones) allow teachers to teach a large
number of students. Studies show that these teaching aids increase concentration levels of
students and have led to improvements in student class attendance. Using computers give
students practice on core content and skills while the teacher can work with others, conduct
assessments, or perform other tasks. It allows teachers' to effectively organize and present
lessons. Multimedia presentations can make the material more meaningful and engaging.
Studies completed in "computer intensive" settings found increases in cooperative and
higher order learning, students writing skills, problem solving, and using technology. In
addition, positive attitudes toward technology as a learning tool by parents, students and
teachers are also improved.

COMPANY EDUCOMP

About Educomp

Educomp was founded in 1994 by Mr. Shantanu Prakash.

It provides information technology enabled solutions (ITES) to students, parents and
schools.
It serves the K-12 segment in India as well as in other countries like US, Singapore,
China and Sri Lanka.
27 offices worldwide including an office in Canada, 20 in India, two in Singapore,
one in Sri Lanka, and three in the United States.In addition, the Company operates
through its various subsidiaries including authorGEN, Threebrix eServices,
Learning.com, AsknLearn Pte Ltd, Singapore and via its associates such as Savvica
in Canada.
Educomp Group reaches out to over 21,000 schools and 10.99mn learners and
educators across the world

It has a diverse product portfolio and these are some of the product offerings :
Smartclass
o Digital modules and lessons
o 2D/2D animations, graphics, audio and video
o Explained difficult topics with graphics and clarity
o Resulted in greater student-teacher interaction and class participation
Roots to Wings
o Provides children with a culturally sound environment, values, love and
protection
o Developed for 2-5 year olds
o High quality learning standards
Mathguru
o Innovative math help program
o Provides solution to student problems in an easy to understand manner
o Uses a pen and virtual notebook
5

 WizIQ
o SaaS based online education platform
o Connects educators and learners for live and self paced courses
o Comprehensive Learning Management System, Virtual Classroom and
Marketplace
o Uses advanced technologies of Microsoft.net, SQL Server
Raffles Millenium Minter
o Design training Institute offering world class courses in creative arts, design,
lifestyle and business management
o Aiming to introduce courses in tourism and hospitality management
o Addresses the needs of private schools, government schools, pre schools,
professional and higher education
Learning hour
o Largest provider of tutoring services in India
o Used by thousands of students in the Middle East
o Offers complete suite of assistant services to students across the world
o Main services are : Academic assistance, Test preparation, Application
assistance
Learning hub
o Provides career counselling and admission guidance
o Offers application assistance and complete guidance to admission in Top
schools in streams such as Engineering and Management
Magikeys
o Allows millions of Government school students to surf the web, email, chat
and write documents in their mother tongue
o Provides a user-friendly, Indian language, Online Word Processor, with virtual
keyboard
o Powerful tool to improve typing capabilities in Indian languages
The Millenium School
o Using the most advanced audio, visual and kinaesthetic learning techniques,
MLS makes education effortless and effective
o Uses Smartclass learning technology
o The Millennium Schools are known for their academic excellence, sports
facilities and co-curricular activities
Educomp offers services in B2B, Retail and Consulting
B2B Division ( products are- Smart Class, ICT, Professional Development Product)
Retail and Consulting (products are Mathguru, ETEN, Millenium Schools,TMS,
Vidhya Prabhat schools, learninghour.com, learnhub, RTW and Euro Kids)
Some of its B2B Products are :

 SMART CLASS
o Aimed at private schools

o Used sources such as graphics,3d images and video clips along with traditional
chalk board method of teaching. This helped in visualizing things better with
the help of graphical representation
o Smartclass Rolling Digiboard system was used to convert classes into smart
classrooms. The system was connected to the pc in the classroom which in
turn was connected to the knowledge center of the school.
o Teachers used pc in the classroom to access content from the knowledge
center
o Smart Assessment System was used to frame mcqs. Hand held remote device
was used to answer them
o BOOT Model
Instructional And Computing Technology
o Served government schools through ICT which was renamed as Edureach in
2008
o It is the second largest business segment of Educomp which contributed
22.7% of sales and 10.3% of gross margins for 2008-09
o Content was developed in regional language and those topics were selected
which could be best explained using multimedia
o BOOT Model
Professional Development
o Offered training to private and government schools for using ITeS
o Trained over 1.4 mn teachers by the end of 2008-09
o Partnered with cos like Wipro and Microsoft and with NGOS for executing
teacher training program across India
o This sector contributed 5.7% of sales and 7.12% of gross profit margin of
educomp for 2008-09
7

Some of its Retail and Consulting division Products are :

RTW AND EURO KIDS

TMS,VIDHYA PRABHAT
LEARNING HOUR
MATHGURU
LEARN HUB
ETEN

Strategies used at EDUCOMP:

EDUCOMP recognized scope and opportunity for providing IT Enabled learning

solutions in Indian schools in mid 90s. Initially it concentrated on increasing
awareness of computers among students and teachers.
EDUCOMP has two subsidiaries

EDUINFRA
EDUMANAGE

EDUCOMP deployed a trained program administrator at every school that

implemented Smart class
Smart Assessment System (SAS) was available for teachers so that they could frame
multiple choice questions to assess students
BOOT MODEL ( Build Own Operate Transfer )
It focused on acquisitions, acquired equity stakes in global companies like
Learning.com, Ask n learn pte ltd,to expand its smart class product globally.
8

 For govt. schools , they adopted PPP strategy and also provided content in regional
languages..
They partnered with WIPRO & MICROSOFT and many NGOS for executing its
teacher training program.
It followed franchising route to expand preschools.
It handled issue of lack of good faculties at smaller locations by VSAT enabled
learning centers.

Key Business Challenges faced by Educomp

Educomp Solution was termed as one of the best stock listed in Education Sector. Once
termed as a blue chip has lost 90% of its market cap in the last two and a half years. Things
have been bleak internally as well during the last two years, with even employee salaries

being held up at both Educomp and IndiaCan, its joint venture with Pearson Plc.

Educomps troubles seem two-fold:

1. It diversified too much in search of quick growths, in areas that were not quite its core
strengths (even if it all fell under the umbrella of education), could not manage the
capital requirements, did some financial engineering to continue to make it look good,
but ultimately could not avoid getting noticed by share market, investors and
sensational journalism.
2. Its original idea of smart classes was not taking it too far. From the anecdotal
evidence schools were not adopting it and from the accounting evidence, they were
not paying in time, if at all.
Once you get past all the marketing jazz and buzzwords, what was Educomps offering?
Multimedia content for school syllabus. Delivered over CDs. This is one of those concepts
that sound right at a high level. Everybody in the world is wary of only theoretical
knowledge spouted at the kids. What we need to show kids is how stuff actually work. What
better way than animation, audio, video, right? Possibly! But did someone do a field test to
see which concepts are best explained through animations? What kind of animations manage
to work better than a teacher explaining it in the class or the good-old textbook? Was there
10

any measurable evidence of better learning outcomes? And given what matters the most to
Indian parents, did the kids performance in exams improve? Beyond the ads, did jumping
mathematical formula, instead of the one written on a boring board, really make kids more
excited about going to the schools? Did teachers think that their lives became easier, or did
they find it difficult to finish the syllabus while multimedia content took its own time to play
and kids still sneered at everything in the classes?
All said and done Smart Classes are not about technology. The only technology
involved is the use of multimedia content creation tools. The rest, and the most, of it is
content play. And who is creating the content? Are these education researchers, who have an
insight into how children learn? Or are these thousands of animation diploma-holders, who
are going through the same boring textbooks and putting some graphics and sound around
the same old content?
Content is not about technology. It is, unfortunately, tougher than technology. If it has to
work, it cannot be created trivially. Investors and journalists like to jump on the sales number.
Those numbers can create initial euphoria. But if you are not monitoring how effective your
actual offering is for the users, sooner or later the euphoria will die down. Accounting tricks
and clever financial engineering is not going to make up for the basics faltering. The return in
financial markets are governed by the value created in the market for real goods and services.
It does not matter how complex we make the financial system, there is no evading the basics
in the long run!
Educomp bet on usurping the educational content, did not do a great job of it despite creating
some sales & marketing success, and instead of taking feedback and improving on its core
idea, made some bad (in the hindsight, at least) diversification decisions. They are in a soup.
They might be able to come out of it, or they might sink.
Proposed Emerging Technologies in Education Sector
It is believed that we are moving from Web 1 where the web connects information web 1 to
social software connecting people with Web 2 and to the semantic web connecting knowledge
with Web 3. It is predicted that the metaweb will connect intelligence in what can be named
as Web x.
The technologies which will enable this include

distributed cloud computing

extended smart mobile technology
collaborative, intelligent filtering
3D visualisation and interaction
11

In this vision learning content is not as important as knowing where or who to connect to to
find it. Such a move is facilitated by the growing trend towards federated repositories of
Open Educational Resources (OERs), which can be freely reused and re-purposed.
A further trend, in part based on these emergent technologies, is the possible move away from
Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) towards Personal Learning Environments
(PLEs). PLEs are made-up of a collection of loosely coupled tools, including Web 2.0
technologies, used for working, learning, reflection and collaboration with others. PLEs can
be seen as the spaces in which people interact and communicate and whose ultimate result is
learning and the development of collective know-how (Attwell, 2010). A PLE can use social
software for informal learning which is learner driven, problem-based and motivated by
interest not as a process triggered by a single learning provider, but as a continuing activity.
Ceri Facer (2009) says The developments in remote interactions and in disaggregation of
content from institution; the rise of the personal cloud; the diagnostic potential of genetic
and neuro-science; the ageing population; all of these, when combined with different social,
political and cultural values lead to very different pedagogies, curriculum, institutional
arrangements and cultural dispositions towards learners.
1. Mobile Learning (12 Months or Less)
Before the current year's over, the sector is estimated to comprise of more than 7 billion
accounts (likening to around 3.4 billion clients, or one in every two individuals on the
planet); portable activity on the Internet is relied upon to surpass desktop movement; and
versatile clients will have downloaded 70 billion applications crosswise over cell phones and
tablets are the second-most downloaded in iTunes of all classes, surpassing both diversion
and business applications in ubiquity.
Science: Year four understudies at St. Leonard's College, a grade school in Australia, are
utilizing tablets stacked with math applications and e-reading material to get to data, get
direction, record estimations, and behavior research.
Music: Students at Institut International de Lancy in Switzerland utilize their tablets to make
music in the school's first iPad Orchestra. The iPads have given chances to understudies with
almost no preparation to make their own particular music with comrades.
Narrating: Ringwood North Primary School in Australia took part in "The Epic Citadel
Challenge," wherein understudies and instructors worked together to compose a
computerized story in view of the Epic Citadel environment and transform it into an
application open through iOS cell phones.

2. Tablet Computing (12 Months or Less)

It is so natural for understudies to convey tablets from class to class, utilizing them to
flawlessly get to reading material and other course material as required, that schools and
12

colleges are reexamining the requirement for PC labs or even individual laptops. An
understudy's decision of applications makes it simple to construct a customized learning
environment, with all the assets and apparatuses they require on a solitary gadget. With their
developing number of gimmicks, tablets offer footing to other instructive innovations from
encouraging the ongoing information mining expected to bolster learning investigation to
offering a plenty of diversion based learning applications.
Craftsmanship: At Plymouth University in the UK, understudies working with a delineation
application called Brushes to create drawings that can be played back as feature. This action
is empowering reflection and examination on the drawing process and empowering
understudies to complexity strategies and highlight and rectify any negative behavior
patterns.
Science: Students at Redlands College in Australia are utilizing tablets to gather and offer
information on indigenous rocks; topography majors at the College of Wooster in Ohio are
utilizing them to take and clarify photographs of Icelandic territory; and educators at Yale
University are offering pictures from their advanced magnifying instruments to understudies'
iPads through versatile applications so they can comment and catch pictures for future
utilization.
Journalism: Professor Messner at Virginia Commonwealth University secured iPads for his
understudies so they could make mixed media news stories from happenings on grounds and
in the encompassing group. The understudies took in the significance of social networking in
news coverage and discovered the iPad helpful for get-together news and sources.
Unique Needs: Vanderbilt University graduate understudies are planning an Android
application that empowers outwardly impeded understudies to learn math. Utilizing haptic
innovation incorporated into new touchscreen gadgets, the vibrations and sound criticism
help understudies feel and hear shapes and charts.
3. MOOCs (12 Months or Less)
Various regarded thought pioneers accept that the current MOOC model has strayed
altogether from the introductory reason sketched out by George Siemens and Stephen
Downes in 2008, underlining address over integration, however in any case, teachers over the
globe are doing some stunning things with MOOCs. The trust is that they will in the end
strike a harmony between mechanizing the appraisal procedure while conveying customized,
real learning open doors.
Music: This spring, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and the Purdue
University Department of Music and Arts Technology started offering their first MOOC,
"Music for the Listener" that can be changed over into credit. The learning environment is
being conveyed through Course Networking, with full interpretation characteristics, rich
media, and informal communication instruments.
Physical science: A MOOC called "Milestones in Physics," spearheaded by a MIT graduate
and conveyed through Udacity, takes understudies on a virtual visit through Italy, the

13

Netherlands, and England while clarifying the fundamental ideas of physical science at the
locales of essential revelations in world history.
Writing: Ohio State University has banded together with Coursera to make a course that
captivates members as authors, analysts, and editors in a progression of intelligent perusing,
organization, and exploration exercises with assignments intended to help them get to be
more productive shoppers and makers of alphabetic, visual, and multimodal writings.
4. Open Content (2-3 Years)
While open content has been accessible for quite a while, the point has gotten expanded
consideration lately. The utilization of open content advances an aptitude set that is
discriminating in keeping up coin in any territory of studythe capacity to discover, assess,
and put new data to utilize. The same can't be said for some course readings, which can be
unwieldy, moderate to redesign, and especially unreasonable for K-12 schools. More
instructors are taking advantage of the abundance of substance inside open stores and
acclimating themselves with the Creative Commons convention.

5. Games and Gamification (2-3 Years)

Game play has traversed the realm of recreation and infiltrated commerce, productivity, and
education, proving to be a useful training and motivation tool. Referred to as Game-Based
Learning in previous NMC Horizon reports, this field of practice has expanded far beyond
integrating digital and online games into the curriculum. The updated category title reflects
the perspective that while games are effective tools for scaffolding concepts and simulating
real world experiences, it should also include the larger canvas of gamer culture and game
design.
Architecture: SimArchitect is a simulation game and social connection site for architects
developed by IBM Center for Advanced Learning. Players are issued a request for proposal
by a fictitious client and must respond, conducting meetings with the client and team and then
proposing a solution. IBM created a performance scorecard that evaluates the players
communication, architectural methods, and more.
History: The Historical Williamsburg Living Narrative project at the University of Florida is
an effort to create an interactive fictional game in which the geography, culture, and
characters of Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia will be brought to life. Functional maps show
the early architecture of the buildings, and interactive scenarios with characters like George
Washington and Patrick Henry allow students to participate in discussions of the times.
Nursing: The University of Minnesotas School of Nursing has partnered with the Minnesota
Hospital Association and the technology firm, VitalSims, to develop web-based interactive
games that engage nursing students with real-life scenarios. With initial versions of the game
already completed, health care educators are expecting to launch these digital learning tools
later in 2013.

14

6. Virtual and Remote Laboratories (4-5 Years)

Virtual and remote laboratories reflect the current trend in K-12 education toward more
though technology is four to five years away from mainstream use in schools, the benefits of
implementation are already clear. Virtual and remote labs offer flexibility, as students can run
experiments as many times as they like, both in and out of school. Because these labs are
designed to allow for easy repetition of experiments, students feel less pressure to execute
perfectly the first time. In the controlled environments of these labs, students are safe, even if
they make an error.
Chemistry: Dr. David Yaron, Associate Professor Chemistry at Carnegie Mellon University,
developed a project of the National Science Digital Library, to create flexible interactive
learning environments in which high school students can approach chemistry more like
practicing scientists.
Mathematics: High School students in America are using Geometers Sketchpad to
understand how theorems are developed. The software is accessed through North Carolina
State Universitys virtual computing lab, a cloud-based learning environment with an
interactive online community where teachers share tips on the software used as well as the
projects undertaken.

7. Wearable Technology (4-5 Years)

Perhaps the least educationally applicable but most complex technology of the NMC report is
wearable technology. Googles Project Glass is one of the most talked-about current
examples. One of the most promising potential outcomes of wearable technology in higher
education is productivity: tools that could automatically send information via text, e-mail, and
social networks on behalf of the userbased on voice commands, gestures, and other
indicators that would help students and educators communicate with one another, keep
track of updates, and better organize notifications.
Chemistry: A team from the Centre for Sensor Web Technologies at Dublin City University
is building a wearable sensor that detects hazardous gases and immediately alerts the user of
these conditions.
Geology: Wearable cameras like Memoto, a tiny GPS-enabled camera that clips to a users
shirt collar or button and takes two five-megapixel shots per minute, could benefit geologists
or archaeologists in the field, capturing hundreds of photographs or data about a users
surroundings on an offsite dig which can later be accessed via e-mail or social media.
Neuroscience: A new brain-sensing headband called Muse displays a users brain activity
directly onto their smartphone or tablet, in effect making it possible to control actions with
ones thoughts and to collect data about the brains reaction to various stimuli.
Conclusion

15

Technologies are rapidly evolving and although there is evidence to suggest education lags
behind in its adoption of new technologies for teaching and learning emerging technologies
will inevitably impact on education.
This raises a whole series of issues, including how we can train teachers for the emerging
technologies they will use in the future rather than those technologies presently in common
use. Emergent technologies also have implications for future infrastructure requirements and
may be expected to impact on institutional organisation. Given the fast changing evolution of
technologies there is difficulty in predicting future trends and developments within the
education sector.
acer (ibid) suggests that the coming two decades may see a significant shift away from the
equation of learning with educational institutions that emerged with industrialisation,
toward a more mixed, diverse and complex learning landscape which sees formal and
informal learning taking place across a wide range of different sites and institutions.
For Educomp:
Quality education is becoming free online check out websites like Khan Academy which are
widely used in various parts of the world. Khan Academy is free to use with quality content.
Though these kind of websites are not a big threat to companies like Educomp now but in
future they can be.
The road ahead: Educomp has been getting big on the acquisition route to growth. It
acquired education startup Studyplaces.com for $1.29 million early this year, Takshila
Management Services Ltd. (a company specializing in setting up high quality schools in Tier
II & Tier III cities), Euro Kids international Pvt. Ltd ( pre-school for kids), A-Plus Education
Solutions Pvt. Ltd. (tutoring & test preparation) and Learning.com (test prep). Latest in the
acquisition list is stake in the leading engineering test preparation player Vidya Mandir
Classes (P) Ltd (VMC) for close to Rs 34 crore.

16

17