Education Technology Products Still Attracting Investor Capital

Although schools have been slow to adopt technology products in large numbers, that hasn’t stopped Edmodo from attaining over 4,600,000 users. The online social learning and communication system was launched in 2008 and has grown quickly. Edmodo has now gained $15,000,000 of additional venture capital to finance growth.

Edmodo builds a learning experience around knowledge sharing among students, teachers, and parents. Founder Jeff O’Hara created the concept while working for a school system IT department that blocked social media sites. The creation of a new option permitted entry into a space that is closed to other forms of social networking. Company co-founder Nic Borg is the chief engineer who continues to develop new options for teachers and students to reach outside the classroom.

The Edmodo system provides an avenue for sharing details about school projects and activities. Not only can parents remain informed about school assignments, but also a collaborative exchange mechanism is established. Teachers create classroom groups on Edmodo and invite students and parents to participate.

The social media interface of Edmodo is similar to Facebook. This means that interactions are easier on Edmodo than typical web portal systems. In addition, Edmodo includes places to write and answer questions plus features related to project management, notifications, quizzes, and badges. Teachers also use the system to exchange information and advice with other educators within the district or school.

Management of Edmodo reports recent interactions with 35,000 schools but that’s not the only education technology gaining market traction. DreamBox recently raised $11,000,000 of capital from angel investors to aggressively market its Internet learning system to elementary schools. Plans are in place for eventual expansion to middle schools and high schools. DreamBox started as a new corporation in 2006 and first launched its product offering in 2009.