Byju's, NITI Aayog partner to provide free education in 112 districts
New Delhi: Byju's, India's most valuable edtech firm, has collaborated with NITI Aayog to provide students from 112 "aspirational regions" of the country with free access to its tech-driven learning programs.
According to a statement released on Friday, as part of the cooperation, a dedicated working group will be formed to actively monitor and assess program implementation, among other things. In areas such as health and nutrition, education, agriculture, and water resources, infrastructure, financial inclusion, and skill development, the so-called aspirational districts are located in the country's most developmentally challenged regions.
"A number of classrooms have switched to an 'online' style," NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant stated. “In many respects, this has accelerated the creation of educational innovations, and we must redesign education to stay up with these advancements.”
Effective use of technology in education may promote transformation, and Byju's participation will allow students in these aspirational districts to obtain access to quality education, he noted.
There will be two primary components to the collaboration:
- Byju's Career Plus program will identify and deliver high-quality coaching to 3,000 students in grades 11 and 12 who want to take the NEET or JEE exams.
- Under the edtech's social impact initiative, Education for All, youngsters of school-going age (Classes 6-12) will be able to choose academic content from Byju's Learning App for three years.
"Through our Education for All program, we have been empowering and affecting millions of students across the country, and our efforts are being enhanced further by working with NITI Aayog," Byju's founder Byju Raveendran said. "With this relationship, we are certain that youngsters from marginalized groups and places will be empowered with tech-enabled learning, resulting in beneficial structural improvements in the education ecosystem."
Students will be chosen for the Career Plus program based on a pre-designed test and will receive teaching and content materials, as well as mentoring support and guidance. Classroom and online learning will be combined in this initiative.
Students will have access to digital infrastructure in the form of devices (tablets/smartphones) in addition to dedicated centers for implementation support.
