This issue is sponsored by |
The deluge of venture capital flooding the edtech industry naturally raises the question: Are investors really expecting to see a big return on all their dollars?
If last week offered any indication, the answer is a resounding yes. In the span of two days, news broke of three transactions for U.S. edtech companies totaling over $1 billion. Word on the street is that more deals are underway.
“There’s no doubt that our market is challenging and difficult,” said Todd Brekhus, chief product officer of Renaissance Learning. “There are winners and losers, those who succeed and those who struggle.”
“But when you stay close to the teachers and students,” added Brekhus, who has been running and acquiring edtech companies for much of the past two decades, “sometimes good things happen.” Like Renaissance’s $650 million acquisition of Nearpod—one of the biggest U.S. K-12 deals in recent memory. |
📰 THE HEADLINES
A GROWING GUILD: Employee training programs are usually among the first to be cut during typical economic downturns. But the current crisis is anything but, and some companies are doubling down on developing internal talent. A new partnership between 2U and Guild Education aims to expand online learning opportunities for adult learners, as the pandemic has made upskilling and reskilling a priority for employers and workers alike.
LEAVING YALE: Dena Simmons, a prominent researcher of social-emotional learning, resigned from Yale University’s Center for Emotional Intelligence last month due to what she calls a pattern of behavior by some colleagues that left her feeling “tokenized, undermined and bullied.” She’s starting a new organization called LiberatED that aims to put racial justice at the center of its SEL work.
CONNECTIONS AND CONCERNS: Remote work will be an “uber trend” in higher education, according to the latest report from EDUCAUSE, a higher-ed industry association. No wonder, then, that cybersecurity and privacy have become top priorities for colleges and universities. Are the biggest risks, though, coming from one’s home? EdSurge columnist Frank Catalo connects the dots in his latest edtech reports recap.
Sponsored by Free Math
IT'S ABOUT THE JOURNEY: “Math is moving away from ‘kill and drill.’ It’s now about students explaining the process and making connections that apply to real life,” says high school math teacher Krystina Wood. Using a new tool that allows her to see student progress in real time and provide timely feedback, communication in class has dramatically improved, which means that “students make fewer mistakes and learn the process.”
|
💰 KA’CHING!
NEARPOD’S BIG PAYDAY: Most private transactions don’t disclose dollars. That makes Renaissance Learning’s $650 million acquisition of Nearpod—a figure first reported by EdSurge—one of the biggest deals in years between two U.S. K-12 companies. It’s just the latest blockbuster acquisition in what has become a busy trading season for the edtech industry. And we’re hearing there are more deals on the way.
HOBSONS SPLIT AND SOLD: Hobsons, a provider of college planning, readiness and enrollment tools since 1974, will be broken up and sold. PowerSchool will be acquiring its college and career-planning tools, Naviance and Intersect; EAB will purchase the student engagement service, Starfish. These two are expected to net Hobson’s owner $410 million.
CODECADEMY COMEBACK: Long before coding bootcamps were a thing, there were startups like Codecademy building web-based tools to teach programming. Now, a decade after it launched, the New York-based company continues to grow, selling to colleges and companies and—perhaps most importantly—achieving profitability. That long, steady growth has been rewarded with a $40 million investment led by Owl Ventures.
Other Deals
-
Kahoot, the Norweigian provider of a game-based learning platform, has acquired Whiteboard.fi, a Finnish developer of digital whiteboard tools for teachers and students, in a deal worth up to $12 million.
-
Photomath, a San Francisco-based developer of a math problem-solving app, has raised $23 million in a Series B round led by Menlo Ventures, and joined by GSV Ventures, Learn Capital, Cherubic Ventures and Goodwater Capital.
-
Praxis Labs, a New York-based provider of virtual-reality DEI educational programs for workplaces, has raised $3.2 million in a seed round led by SoftBank’s OB Opportunity Fund, and joined by Norwest Venture Partners, Emerson Collective, Ulu Ventures, Precursor Ventures and Firework VC.
|
The following is a message from our sponsor |
Register for ISTELive 21!
ISTELive 21 is where you’ll get the strategies you need to move from surviving disruption to reimagining learning! Join a global corps of educators to discover fresh approaches and share cutting-edge ideas, all focused on ensuring your students are prepared to meet the challenges of the moment. Register now for best rates. |
🎧 ON THE PODCAST
CHEATING AND CHEGGING: Over the past year the pandemic has dramatically altered college teaching. One side-effect seems to be a rise in exam cheating, thanks to homework-help websites including Chegg. The company has taken steps to respond, but critics say more changes are needed. Others say professors need to change their testing strategies.
|
🏃 MOVERS AND SHAKERS
Tarika Barrett will become CEO of Girls Who Code, a New York-based nonprofit that provides technology education programs for girls. She takes over from founder Reshma Saujani, who is stepping down on April 2.
Keith Elliott has been appointed chief technology officer of Encantos, a Culver City, Calif.-based provider of consumer-focused digital educational products.
Mark Friedman is now chief marketing officer of Frontline Education, a Malvern, Penn.-based provider of K-12 administrative software.
Charles Linsmeier has been promoted to executive vice president and general manager of Macmillan Learning, a New York City-based education publisher.
Dave Renke is senior vice president of global business development and partnerships at Age of Learning, the Glendale, Calif.-based developer of the ABCmouse line of educational programs.
Chad Stevens is now chief strategy officer at ParentSquare, a Santa Barbara, Calif.-based developer of K-12 communication tools. He was previously the K-12 lead at AWS. |
🗨️ JOIN THE CONVERSATION
Forward Facing: How do we propel education systems toward a future of learning that enables all students to grow? A panel of state leaders and edtech founders will take on that question in this webinar on moving from crisis management to sustained change—and how technology can help. Sign up today.
Events Horizon: Education events originally scheduled as far out as this fall are changing plans. See the latest updates in our tracker of U.S. education industry events. |
👀 ALSO ON OUR RADAR
States must resume spring student testing, says the U.S. Department of Education. Despite granting flexibility in how tests are administered, the decision has sparked plenty of backlash from educators to Congresspeople alike. (NPR)
“New wave of research shows nudging students by text is not as promising as hoped.” (The Hechinger Report)
Four studies from the Lucas Education Research found that project-based learning approaches can boost student achievement on state tests and AP courses.
“Google to roll out slate of over 50 updates for Classroom, Meet and other online education tools.” (TechCrunch)
Sponsored by AT&T
Connecting to Learn
Together, we’ve learned and listened a lot this year. The potential to learn is limitless when teachers and students are connected. They need access to the tools, resources and content that inspires, nourishes and transforms. Learn how AT&T is helping to close the homework gap with affordable solutions for qualified schools. |
Looking for a job in edtech? You’ve come to the right place. EdSurge has the leading edtech jobs board in the industry with openings from schools, nonprofits and companies.
Post a job | See all jobs
District Partnerships | Goalbook | Multiple
Goalbook is hiring for District Partnerships across the country to fuel our growth. You’ll lead efforts to bring Goalbook into school districts and work closely with instructional leaders.
Business Analyst | XAP Corporation | Remote
XAP is looking for a talented, curious, and thoughtful Business Analyst who wants to join a vibrant, fun, collaborative team working hard to improve student lives and address important societal challenges.
Senior Business Development Manager | NovoEd | Remote
NovoEd is looking for an experienced B2B software salesperson to work with training and consulting firms who is passionate about providing more effective and scalable learning to working professionals.
Partner Success Associate | TalkingPoints | San Francisco, CA or Remote
As a partner success associate, you will work closely with our partnerships team and our technical team to successfully implement, optimize and grow our partnerships with our school district partners and impact!
Marketing Consultant | nXu Education | Remote
nXu is looking for a versatile and creative Marketing Consultant to support our faced-paced organization’s marketing and branding projects with the aim of elevating and growing awareness of purpose development and of nXu’s programming.
Course Operations Specialist | Digital Learning & Innovation | Boston, MA
The Course Operations Specialist will work collaboratively to support the development and production of digital learning projects across multiple learning platforms and programs.
Events
Post an event • See all events and meetups
Skill Hoarding For Your Career | March 19 • Online • Free
Our panelists will share how they've leveraged their network and learned new skills to build on their current and future career opportunities!
ISTELive 21 June 26-30 • Online • $51 to $250
Get strategies to help you move from surviving disruption to reimagining learning by joining us to design a new learning landscape! |
EdSurge covers and connects the people, ideas and technologies that shape the future of learning. We are an independent news and research initiative of the International Society for Technology in Education.
|
|
