These 7 startups are transforming the K-12 learning space in India

Over the last few years, these seven startups have tapped technology, and are changing teaching formats to improve learning experiences and outcomes.

The landscape of K-12 learning has undergone an overhaul in recent years and yet the journey has just begun. Many emerging digital learning formats, including interactive games, learning management systems, and hands-on learning methodologies, have swept the landscape with the promise of improving learning experiences and outcomes.

Students from primary classes to Class 12 are now actively leveraging websites and apps in their search for excellent tutors. In the last few years, the approach of the parent, teacher, and student fraternity in India is veering towards the online world, especially in urban and semi-urban India.

Here is a compilation of seven Indian startups that are actively contributing in the K-12 learning space.

Byju’s Learning App

Founder Byju Raveendran’s passion for teaching was ignited after tutoring a few friends for prep exams way back in 2003. The Azhikode-born teacher-entrepreneur's equation with teaching began in 2007 when he quit his IT job in the UK and set up shop in Bengaluru. The Byju’s learning app, which was launched only in 2015 and is run by Think and Pvt Ltd, is changing the game in the edtech learning space. It currently has over 16 million downloads just on the Android platform.

In fact, in 2017, his efforts were noted by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which decided to invest $50 million in his startup. The historic development – the funding being Zuckerberg’s first major investment in an Asian startup – was another stamp of approval in Byju’s journey of running the most-funded startup in the education sector in India. With $140 million investment in its kitty, Byju’s Think & Learn is now the largest funded edtech startup in India.

Eupheus Learning

Delhi-NCR based Eupheus Learning is an edtech startup that develops hybrid solutions, including textbooks and digital material (in offline and online form), to seamlessly integrate in-class and at-home learning so that it is much easier for a student to understand a concept. The services are offered on a subscription basis, and the solutions can be bought as a bundle or as a standalone service.

Launched in June 2017, it was started by ex-colleagues Sarvesh Shrivastava, Rohit Dhar, Ved Prakash Khatri, and Amit Kapoor.

LogicRoots

Jaipur-based startup LogicRoots Pvt Ltd develops educational material in the form of interactive games—both physical board games and digital games. Founded in 2011 by IIT-Bombay alumni Gunjan Agrawal (previously founded MenuFry.com) and Kunal Gandhi, LogicRoots creates games to boost the mathematical skills of school kids.

IMAX Program

The IMAX Program includes textbooks, workbooks, school exams, feedback reports, and individualised remedial worksheets along with teacher manuals and teacher training modules.

The IMAX Program is based on the insights of the Co-founders Naveen Mandava and Varun Kumar, from their work in education impact evaluation consulting, working with organisations like Sesame Street, American India Foundation, and Johns Hopkins University.

The startup raised $13.5 million in 2018. The investment was advised by LGT Impact, the impact investment team of LGT. The round also saw participation from the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation (MSDF), and Aspada, an existing investor in the company.

The current infusion of funds will be used to further innovate the product, enhance in-school service experiences, and expand the customer base through multiple distribution channels. IMAX will also explore working with K12 publishers internationally, to deliver high quality in-school remedial programmes to a global student base.

Vedantu

This platform provides live online tutoring sessions for students from Grade 6 to 12. Offerings range from monthly tuitions and IIT Foundation to prepare for exams like NTSE, PSA, KVPY, IMO and JEE Mains. It uses technology to bring together teachers and students to enable live learning. Students can get tutoring from a tutor of their choice and preference at a time of their preference. The technology comprises a custom-built whiteboard, audio and video technology. Vedantu's focus is on live online 1-to-1 tutoring between a teacher and a student. The startup wants to bring the offline tutoring experience online, but make it more personalised.

Started by IITians Vamsi Krishna, Pulkit Jain, Saurabh Saxena and Anand Prakash, Vedantu is the second venture by this founding team. Lakshya, their first startup launched in 2006, was a test preparation and training company; it was acquired by a listed company, MTEducare in 2012.

mGuru

mGuru is a learning app for K-5 students, focusing on English and maths. The apps provide an interactive learning journey for children, with the explicit aim of accelerating learning outcomes in an engaging way. The vision of mGuru is to package the best learning practices and research into a platform for the masses, so that any child can have the tools to gain basic literacy and numeracy skills.

CampK12

This edtech startup which provides coding, app development, and other creative technologies to primary, middle, and senior school students across the nation during vacations and weekends. Camp K12 was founded in 2010 by Anshul Bhagi, a computer science student from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).