Lenovo, the global technology leader, in collaboration with eVidyaloka, a not-for-profit organization, today announced the SmarterEdplatform opening for student registrations. This new, free online platform is designed to encourage Indian youth to participate in digital remodeling of the education system, by matching learners with volunteer educators in one-on-one online learning sessions.
According to government estimates, India faces a shortage of one million teachers, with a decreasing student-to-teacher ratio. Challenges to education have been exacerbated by restrictions due to COVID-19, especially for those from poorer backgrounds or in remote areas.
The Lenovo SmarterEd platform allows students from classes V to XII to choose their teachers, select the subject they would like to learn, and take out time to learn as per their convenience. It has links to NCERT and State syllabus ebooks for the learners, and also offers a chat engine for seamless student-teacher communication. This platform supports multiple languages, including English, Hindi, Malayalam, Tamil, Kannada, and Telugu.
Within a fortnight of its launch, the platform has already accounted for over 1000 volunteer teachers who have registered and committed their time.
Using smarter technology, teachers and students are matched using an algorithm that takes into account their respective teaching and learning styles. SmarterEd is secure, extremely accessible, enriching, and is a relevant medium of education fit for the present-day scenario, where schools across the country have been forced to suspend classes.
Rahul Agarwal – CEO and Managing Director, Lenovo India said, “Technology has the power to solve problems, create opportunities and transform the way we all live, learn, and work. SmarterEd is secure, extremely accessible, enriching, and is a relevant medium of education fit for the present-day scenario, where schools across the country have been forced to suspend classes. With this platform, we want to empower all segments of society with quality education.”
Brinda Poornapragna, CEO-eVidyaloka said, “Our mission is to connect passionate and talented volunteers with rural and semi-urban students, to empower India through standards of schooling. We are glad to collaborate with Lenovo India to create this voluntary knowledge-sharing platform – SmarterEd, and which can help facilitate seamless online learning experiences.” Volunteers and other interested individuals can log on to the SmarterEd site, and watch the film for more details.