In conversation with Monica Malhotra Kandhari, MD, MBD group on how to find balance between traditional and online learning systems.
In the current scenario, with focus on students studying at home due to COVID-19 outbreak, how will it impact the future of the education industry in India?
The Covid-19 outbreak and resultant lockdown conditions has forced students to study at home and schools to adopt e-learning technologies to remain in touch with their students. Schools will be more open to adopt technology now. Consumption of online content has increased radically during this period and we feel that technology will continue to play a major role in a fine balance with traditional teaching and learning systems.
What initiatives MBD group has taken in this changed scenario?
All digital resources were made available to the 20000+ schools free of cost via www.mbdalchemie.com. At present we are working on a new release of our ACME Learning App which will be available to users from early next month and will entail features like live classroom, animated + video content for Grade K-12, adaptive testing solution, e-books for all grades and will also cater to State Board Students. We foresee a great digital future for MBD Products and are poised to support the learning and teaching community.
What is your take on NEP?
Overall the New Education Policy is a game changer. The vision and the changes envisioned in the policy looks promising and an overhaul in the education system is much needed to align with the real world challenges and opportunities. The policy aimed to make present & future generation “Future Ready” by connecting our education system to our national values & reforming it as per our national goals. However, as with any policy, a lot depends on its implementation and the government must continue to engage with various stakeholders in the implementation stage as well.
What are the new digital education products for students and how students are benefiting from it?
There are a bouquet of digital education solutions available for students in the market with the aim to enhance online education and re-define learning both inside and outside the classroom. MBD Alchemié, is our e-learning platform backed by our strong legacy in publishing educational books for students. MBD Alchemié has successfully implemented Ecademy Solution (Digital Classrooms) in 3500 private schools and 5000+ Government Schools across various states in India along with 500+ schools in South Africa and Srilanka.
