The Rise of EdTech in Brazil: Challenges and Opportunities Amid COVID-19

What is the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on the success of Educational Technology? A question that interests not only entrepreneurs and investors. Teachers and other representatives of the education system are also keeping an eye on the latest technological solutions in the field, particularly because these solutions will likely remain and change the way of teaching and learning in the long term.

Certainly, there is still some resistance to so-called EdTech. But the educational sector had already seen changes in recent years, and now, during the new coronavirus pandemic, many EdTech companies have had the chance to show what they have to offer.

School Closures Worldwide

During the COVID-19 crisis, schools around the world had to close their doors. Teachers, students, and parents were then forced to embark on the enormous challenge of homeschooling. According to the United Nations education agency, around 91% of students worldwide were affected by school closures.

To gather concrete information on home learning during the pandemic, the UK-based accelerator EDUCATE Ventures launched a global survey to test the success of EdTech. The researchers hope to discover more about what is working well to help the sector learn from the experience.

“We have never had an opportunity before for such a large-scale experiment, so it is essential that we use it to generate evidence about the impact and effectiveness of technology at this challenging time,” said EDUCATE director Rose Luckin.

COVID-19 and the Brazilian Education System

In Brazil, since March this year, several mayors and state governors ordered the suspension of classes in the public and private school sectors. Teachers and instructors had to adapt their classes to remote teaching. Unfortunately, this turned out to be a major challenge for most of them.

The Brazilian Center for Innovation in Education (CIEB) analyzed how faculty members have been using technological and EdTech solutions to stay in touch with students. According to the final report, most sent digital materials or general guidelines via social networks or produced video lessons that students could access through their mobile devices.

A factor that may explain the difficulty of teachers in adapting to educational technology is that distance learning in Brazil has previously been allowed in higher education, but not in primary education. They can only offer online classes in emergency situations – like the current coronavirus pandemic.

Main Challenges Brazilian Teachers Must Face

The CIEB report indicates that the country’s educational system still needs significant improvements when it comes to implementing EdTech. The reason is that Brazil has little or no experience with educational technology, as stated by CIEB director and president Lucia Delagnello.

“Most of the state departments of education in the country do not have an established platform or methodology to offer remote classes,” she said, according to an article published by DW.com. Additionally, many teachers and instructors lack adequate training on how to adopt EdTech during classes. The exception is in the states of the Amazon region, which use distance learning to reach riverside communities.

Brazilian EdTechs as Winners of the Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic served as a catalyst for the Brazilian EdTech sector. For example, the startup Shapp, which connects teachers and students for individual classes, already recorded a significant increase early in the pandemic. In March alone, the number of registered teachers, as well as the number of lesson requests, doubled compared to the same month the previous year.

“In Brazil, the demand for educational apps grew by 130% in March alone, the first month of the pandemic,” said André Alves, co-founder and CEO of Shapp, according to inforchannel.com.br.

As a result, educational apps performed better than delivery and video streaming apps, added Alves. Only apps that assist in remote work and video conferencing registered higher demand.

New Challenges Await EdTech Startups in Brazil

According to a national study (“EdTech Mapping – Research on Educational Technology Startups – 2019”) by the Brazilian Startup Association (abstartup), the country registered 449 EdTech startups. This represents a 23% increase over data collected in 2018. Most are located in the Southeast region, with the state of São Paulo hosting about 35% of them.

Regarding profiles, 61% of the ventures offer Software as a Service (SaaS). In addition, over 70% serve basic education, of which 48% serve primary and secondary education. Additionally, around 22% serve the early childhood education sector.

In the coming years, EdTech companies in Brazil will primarily have to deal with how to enter the public school sector, which is considered more bureaucratic and with a limited budget. Another challenge will be how to reach these students, especially in rural areas, who currently have little or no internet access.

Check out the main fields of Educational Technology in Brazil:

• Educational Games
• School Management Support
• Educational Management System
• Virtual Learning Environment
• Adaptive Educational Platform
• Online Content Platform

Meet Some of Brazil’s Most Important EdTech Startups:

• Quero Educação
• Educross
• DreamShaper
• Witseed
• Descomplica