Contxto – Edtechs Colombian Platzi and Peruvian Crehana report a surge in users due to coronavirus (Covid-19) in Mexico.
Platzi states to have grown 40 percent in its user base. Similarly, Crehana also saw a 40 percent increase during February and March. It may have maintained this level or even increased during April.
Great news for both, really. But that doesn’t mean these startups are having a free-for-all bonanza of users and no work.
As they say, “no sleep for the wicked.”
Related article: A review of Platzi and Crehana, when education meets tech
Quite the contrary.
Edtechs Platzi and Crehana have their work cut out
Despite what one might think, developing content for remote learning platforms isn’t just recording something on a camera or phone, then uploading it.
It’s actually a very capital-intensive process that requires proper planning and execution.
For starters, it calls for the right software, video and sound equipment to produce high-tier visuals and audio. Planning is also necessary as people are paying for the class so “improvising” and beating around the bush are no nos. Likewise editing can be time-consuming, as our Contxto Podcast Host, César Miramontes can attest.
Platzi for example, reported that due to the surge in users, the team had to create more online classes. Ergo, they had to complete the aforementioned production process, but with an additional component: doing it all at a distance.
That means the Platzi’s teachers don’t have access to the studio with the usual equipment to record their content. Moreover, in Colombia for example, the videos they record are then stored on hardrives and transported from teachers to editors via couriers.
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Crehana for its part was releasing free courses every day during all of April to engage users and encourage them to stay home.
Platzi and Crehana know they’re at a critical point in which they must find a way to retain users, once social-isolation eases. They’re also considering how to make the most of this momentum for the future.
For that the Colombian startup, working with educational institutions is worth exploring. Meanwhile, Crehana believes that developing the interactive features of remote learning is the way to go.
Who has the definitive vision on the future of edtech? Neither. They’re both right in their approach.
Each is working to develop how edtech works and help users learn, but from different angles.
Related articles: Tech and startups from Peru!
-ML
