This holiday season, consumers are looking at buying and gifting another transformational format for the media and entertainment industry – the e-book. With the foundation being built slowly over the past two years, the e-book industry is now unleashing its full marketing potential to convince tablet owners to make the “digital switch” from traditional hard covers and paperbacks to its electronic form. Amazon and B&N have already established their proprietary e-book formats and dozens of other publishers are getting on-board to digitize their output.

This has spelled a boon for publishing outsourcing companies who are experiencing a record boom in demand for services such as digital publishing, document conversion, electronic publishing and online content services. The major market for these services includes, not only fiction and non-fiction work, but extends to the highly lucrative academic and text book markets.

My alma mater, the Michigan State University, too has joined the digital bandwagon, with their Environmental Stewardship Initiative gathering interest and building demand for students to make the switch to digital courseware. Digital formats will be a huge breakthrough for reducing paper waste and as a student, I would prefer loading all my e-texts onto a compact tablet rather than lugging around a bunch of heavy text books. Pricing, however, remains a challenge with administrators and students alike, and will most likely be the deciding factor to make the change to digital a success.

As a lighter, festive note, I would like to wish “Happy Holidays” to each and every one of you, while I go ahead and browse through and gift a few e-books to my friends and family.

– Guest post by Ashmita Gupta, Research Analyst, ValueNotes

There exist great opportunities for the private sector to play a dominant role in the near future. With an eye on the future, a few weeks ago TiE (the entrepreneur network) set about hosting a seminar on private participation in Indian higher education. I was invited to represent ValueNotes, and moderate a most stimulating panel discussion, joined by the likes of Mr.Siva Ram Mallela (Founder of Knowledge Partners, Former Dean of New Initiatives at ICFAI University) and Mr.Chenraj Jain (Founder, Jain University). I’d like to share some of my thoughts on the subject,  enriched from the event!

Indian higher education presents multi-fold opportunities…

We know that the demand for higher education institutes will increase, as the number of students is expected to increase at the rate of 5% annually. A typical Indian household spends the most on education today after food and transport. Higher education spends in India are currently estimated at Rs.46,200 crore and are projected to grow over Rs.150,000 crore in the next 10 years, reflecting an average growth rate of 13%. While public expenditure on education has increased to meet this need, the percentage share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) spent on higher education has reduced from 0.77% in 1991 to 0.7% in 2008, as per an E&Y-FICCI report.

It is heartening to know that the private sector has recognized the opportunity and stepped up. In 2009, the education sector received $118 million from venture capital and private equity investments across nine deals, and this trend is expected to continue in 2010. The education market is estimated to be worth $80-billion, and the number of private equity deals has increased four-fold in the last four years.

The Government needs to act fast in exploring the options of maximizing public private partnership in higher education and implementing changes in policy. While there is still opposition to make it a profit generating endeavour, if regulations and strict monitoring are adhered to, the entry of private players will provide this sector with the much needed impetus.

While reform is the mantra of the day, we must acknowledge the overwhelming challenges that Indian higher education faces. Consider first the access issue. In 2000, the gross enrolment ratio in higher education, which measures the number of individuals going to college as percentage of college-age population, was 8% in China and 10% in India. By 2008, the ratio had shot up to 23% in China but crept up to only 13% in India. College and university education remain off-limits to many talented Indian students. The National Knowledge Commission has recommended 1,500 universities in the long run, to reach the 25% GER target…the demand-supply gap is glaring!

On the quality front, consider the QS World University Rankings, which are designed to assess the all-round quality of universities across all disciplines and levels. Two Chinese universities found listing among the top 100 universities in the 2010 rankings, but sadly, not a single Indian university made it to the list. No doubt, we have institutions of excellence in teaching in the IITs and IIMs. But they are not full-fledged universities. Leading Indian institutes are good at teaching but they are not research-oriented. We need more quality institutions of world-class level than what India has right now. That’s where foreign universities and the innovation universities come into play, bringing about true global competition.

The UGC needs to encourage universities to increase the rate of adoption of ICT. The incorporation of ICT is imperative for the sector to become globally competitive. To retain the quality of education, private players need to commit themselves to bringing world-class university experience to Indian students – technology across university functions then becomes a key enabler in achieving this.

To sum up my argument, we, and by we, I mean the private sector, need to invest in our education infrastructure – now. We need to take a hard look at the scenario today – grossly inadequate infrastructure, under-compensated faculty, lack of research focus, mired regulatory framework, inefficient, outdated systems and processes in several institutions, and the overall lack of focus on quality. The ultimate fallout – vastly unemployable youth, disconnected from industry requirements. Little thought is being given to harnessing the younger population: unless we find creative ways to massively increase investment in higher education, the potential dividend may fail to translate into real dividend.

But let’s make no mistake, with the growth rate at 8% or more, the Indian economy today offers large private returns to higher education…care to comment?

Why is cost such a big issue?

• Even before establishing the viability of $35 tag, talks about taking it to $20 and $10 are underway. So will that cheaper version be sans the solar recharging facility?
• Isn’t inclusive education reason enough to pray that this product survives launch phase and moves on to the next level… Even if it means a few bucks more?
• Considering the Indian government that has millions of rupees allocated to ICT in education, to repeat my earlier question, why is cost really an issue? Funds exist, where they go is another matter altogether.
• If we believe $35 is cheap and that the poor students will buy it, then the euphoria is misplaced, because they will not.

What is the purpose of this m-device?

Inclusive education… said the Indian HRD minister Kapil Sibal… his pet project is aimed at making sure that all Indian children gain access to education. So will this m-device -

• Fill in for the non-existent teachers?
• Replace the non-competent teachers?
• Add to the information available in books?
• Reach where books are not available?
• Not need any repairs, ever?

Logistical challenges mostly, but unfortunately very real. What is this little m-device aiming at? And do we have back up plan ready to make sure that it does achieve, what it has set out to do. This is of course assuming that by 2012 mass production will be well underway, and all those looking to benefit from it are queuing up to own it.

This brings me to some other concerns…

• The first thing that the government did was launch it. Was it a product launch, or an idea launch?
• How many education experts were consulted about how would it be used, where and by whom?
• How many manufacturers were consulted about commercial viability?
• Why did not he government first identify or at least shortlist partners in this noble cause who are willing to manufacture it?

Information on at least some of these questions would have assuaged a number of skeptics. Optimism pays but being real pays even more…

Going back to why comparison is unfair, one was an Apple product, the other is a government initiative, do I really need to say more?

A market-ready foolproof device the iPad still is not, but there are plenty of interesting ways it may be leveraged for learning at the workplace / university (or actually, outside of those places). In this post, I want to the cover the actual implementations being made by educators (I’ll cover corporate initiatives in my next post).  A great example is Rutgers University’s iPad marketing course that I blogged about earlier. There’s a lot of talk of how the iPad is a game changer, but how many universities are putting their money where their mouths are, and investing right away?

Here’s 5 university initiatives worth mentioning.

1. We all heard about Seton Hill University, George Fox University and Abilene Christian University shelling out big bucks to give out free iPads to all new students. While this illustrates their incredible confidence in Apple, it doesn’t tell us how their students plan to use it, or what the universities have up their sleeves. What will work in their favour is the uniformity in terms of device make, if/when they push out any mobile learning initiatives.
2. In contrast, Oklahoma State University is taking a more calculated (and sensible, IMHO) approach to tackling this unknown mobile monster… they’ve launched a pilot that’s going to track any reduced textbook costs (if at all) and learning activity of its 125 pilot students. They’re also looking for ways to incorporate the iPad’s web/app based tools into classroom learning.
3. Loyola University’s English Dept. has designed a new course for the iPad, in alignment with its Film and Digital Media focus. The success of this ‘practice run’ class will decide its future in the next academic year. What’s interesting here is that while the iPads were acquired through grants and donations, the students are allowed to keep them, since they need to purchase the ebooks themselves.
4. Binghamton University has introduced a new iPhone/iPad app that helps its community stay updated with all kinds of campus news, notifications, and events. Although, this isn’t exactly a learning initiative, more to do with campus communications.
5. Duke University is also joining in on the iPad pilots, through Duke Global Health Institute’s ‘Research Methods in Global Health Sciences II’ course. This would form a part of the institute’s Master of Science in Global Health degree program. The iPads will enable students to explore various research techniques by exploiting its small form factor, Wifi and 3G capabilities, long battery life and lightweight design.

Lastly, I’d like to bring to your attention the foray made by CourseSmart, into the iPad textbook game. The provider is now offering over 10,000 textbooks (including those from the 5 biggest textbook publishers) through an iPad app that allows it to bypass the dreaded iBooks mire. I’d watch out for this one.

So the overlying theme I see here, is that there are only a handful of universities across the world that are giving  the iPad the attention it demands. And it looks like even these institutions are starting small, treading cautiously into the mobile computing-led learning future…

Do you know of other universities that have followed iSuit with Apple’s latest gift to mankind? Or know of innovative ways in which universities could? Please do share…

In our nationwide survey of ~400 Indian higher education students (for the EDGE report on online assessments), we had some interesting insights w.r.t attitudes about online exams.

While most students are aware and ready to take their exams online, there is in fact a clause attached! Most students have some preferences and ideas about the type of exams involved. The graph below illustrates…

Students have preferences in type of exam to take online

Preference in type of exam to give online

Source: ValueNotes Research

The consensus from the survey was on the following kinds of exams.
● Objective tests of any kind
● Class tests and mid-terms (in-course exams)
● Entrance exams, especially for MBA, engineering, UPSC and IAS
● Exams in different locations, such as foreign university exams
● Exams for professional certificate courses (such as Java)
● Non-academic exams (driver’s license, passport, etc.)

Two themes emerge from these responses:

1. Objective assessments are easier to envision in an online format (for Indian students).
2. Convenience is another factor considered. Exams for foreign universities, nationwide entrance tests and other non-academic tests that are not a part of official university curriculum are easily deemed fit to give online.

Why these particular exams, but not the rest? I believe that while 95% of students are aware of the concept of online assessments, their perceptions are currently influenced by a select set of experiences with online exams, mostly objective assessments. Thus, they are like to believe that this is the entire range, reach and capability of assessment technology. And their thoughts are pretty much mirrored by university officials and decision makers in our study, perhaps a source of all the confusion. The lack of suitability of exam format was one of the biggest challenges stated by university officials, and the majority of them echoed the same sentence, “You cannot hold subjective (essay based) exams online, it’s not for our university. But we can think about small, objective tests online”.

Where did this belief start, and where does it end for India? Educational institutions and innovation labs across the world, especially in developed countries, are experimenting with and successfully implementing subjective assessments online (will address this in a later post). So are stakeholders in the education industry unaware, or unconvinced of the possibilities?

All comments sought and welcome!

As early as the January unveiling of the iPad, the e-learning blogosphere has been buzzing with the possibilities that the device presented for learning, both at the corporate and the school/university level. I would say that post the initial excitement, the ground realities really sunk in. Innovative? Yes. Made things interesting? Yes. But recommend as a formal learning tool? Not so sure. Why the hesitation to a device that was designed to really ‘push the boundaries’ according to the maker?

Let’s look at the initial buyer side reaction – how happy are universities/students?

Some universities (the likes of Princeton and Cornell) have already taken a stand and straight out banned the iPad on campus, due to issues with network access and connectivity. These institutions are just not prepared, the infrastructure is not efficient enough, and it probably won’t be for a couple years.

As far as students are concerned, sure there will be many takers (we saw how the iPod really took over the world), but what about essential academic work, how does the iPad score? No multi-tasking capabilities (something that’s second nature to any student working online), problems with ergonomics (having to remain hunched over while typing out a 3,000 word paper – I think not!) and readability of e-textbooks don’t bode well for the device. Coupled with this, the data costs and prices of e-textbooks (not to mention no resale value) aren’t exactly catering to the average thrifty student. Zack, a student blogger from ZDNet  sums up the general sentiment quite well on his post here.

What are the industry implications…for e-learning providers, trainers and even publishers?

The biggest source of discontent on this front is clearly Apple’s rigid stance on ostracizing Flash applications from all its mobile devices. This has multi-fold implications for e-learning providers, as much of the learning content available makes creative use of Flash. Not only is the web plug-in excluded, the Apple stamp must be given to all applications, and developers are less than happy with the lock-in agreement which requires them to only use the company’s dev tools. This essentially means that a conventional e-learning provider will have to reinvent the wheel in terms of back-end technology to be able to cater to the niche Apple crowd (god forbid his client company select it for enterprise use).

Again, this may be an opportunity for a new player, and interoperable solutions for major LMS’ can be expected to evolve, but at what cost? Why lose out on the many leaps (even if they may be deemed small) in learning that have been made through the use of Flash in the last few years…whiteboards and interactive, engaging content for learners of all ages and walks of life. As this goes to print, Adobe just announced its Flash 10.1, which is all set to support touch screens, conserve battery life and take advantage of faster mobile processors, and in the process, pretty much prove Steve Jobs wrong! And of course, there are workarounds to getting Flash into Apple devices, but this is merely a reaction by the rival company. Why can’t we all just get along, especially as Apple has already professed its commitment to furthering education?

I’ve personally seen some vendors’ briefings where innovation in learning content was facilitated through Flash. So why be forced to abandon ship simply so the device company is able to earn more than a few bucks from its organized app store (take my colleague Vivek’s coverage of the publisher’s plight for example)? I would really like to hear about this from a service provider. Do innovations in technology have to come at this cost? Or this is really an opportunity to redefine mobile learning as we know it today (as Rutgers University just illustrated)?

Vice chancellors we spoke to mentioned that there was a certain amount of reservation expressed by students and therefore adoption was slow. To bridge the perception gap of these university officials and students, we spoke with 400 students from across Tier I, Tier II and Tier III cities, studying mostly at graduate and postgraduate levels, with a few inputs from junior college and PhD students. The aim was to capture the students’ awareness, readiness and experiences with online examinations. Even as efforts are under way to make ICT an inherent part of our education system, are the students really ready? We share some of our findings here.

Online exams: Student awareness not an issue

The survey revealed that an overwhelming majority of students (95%) are aware of online assessments. Also, the majority of students (69%) felt that these universities are more technically advanced, though students originating from Tier III cities are far more impressed.

Vast majority of students originating from Tier III cities (~80%) claimed universities that conduct online tests are more technically advanced. This is in contrast to Tier I (56%) and Tier II students (61%). In contrast, more students from Tier I and Tier II cities feel universities that conduct online tests are similar to others. This could be attributed to greater exposure to technology enabled environs.

Student perceptions: Exposure a differentiator

A significant percentage of university students (46%) consider the online process to be more secure, compared to traditional methods. However, there is also a significant percentage (23%) which considers online security and credibility to be less than traditional exams. Almost 40% of students who have given both entrance and university exams online believe there is no difference in the security and credibility of process. This establishes that students who have limited experience with online exams are more speculative of security infrastructure, given recent issues with national level competitive online exams. In terms of experience, more than half the students (55%) interviewed had never given online exams, at the university or entrance level. Comparatively, students in Tier I cities have more experience with online university exams. Further, younger students have not given too many online exams; universities are experimenting with more online PG entrance exams. Vast majority of students (71%) who have given both entrance and university exams online are studying in Tier I cities, along with the majority of students (60%) who have given university exams online. 40% of respondents who have never given an online exam are studying in Tier III cities. Tier III students instead have more experience with competitive exams.

It was also found that the accuracy and authenticity of online exams is thought to be far higher, by majority of students (68%). There was a strong correlation drawn between these students being more likely to join a university which conducts online exams. Students thus see great benefits with being able to give exams online.

Among other aspects, the study found that the transparency of processes is seen as the major benefit, followed by greater efficiency. The convenience in online application/registration is perceived to be greater by 32% for competitive exams. However, the system is not without its challenges, and students are greatly concerned about the difficulty of usage of online exams, and lack of support from exam authorities.

Keeping in mind the benefits and drawbacks, the majority of students did have an idea of the type of exams they would prefer taking online. The consensus was on the following:

• Objective tests of any kind
• Class tests and mid-terms (in-course exams)
• Entrance exams, especially for MBA, engineering, UPSC and IAS
• Exams in different locations, such as foreign university exams
• Exams for professional certificate courses (such as Java)
• Non-academic exams (driver’s license, passport, etc.)

Online exams: Students give it a thumbs up

It was evident that students from all university levels and steams are positively inclined towards online assessments for various kinds of exams. They are definitely aware and resolutely ready, despite the limited exposure to the medium. It is now the responsibility of university and exam board officials, policy makers, and exam technology providers to collaborate and innovate. It is only then the inherent benefits of the system will be introduced down to the student level.

The developments in the education space have evinced a lot of interest. The pace at which changes take effect may not alter much with respect to the earlier years. Though if any of these are effective and achieve what they are meant to, India will arrive on the global education scene. The two instances mentioned above tackle two different segments within the education market – K-12 and Higher Education.

So what are we really looking at? – An Indian education system that needs a lot of improvement, and needs it fast. There is no doubt that the best of university education in India is comparable to the best anywhere in the world. However it is also well known that these form the cream and the rest of the education system in India is a far cry, even when it comes to the most basic standards. The great divide between the demand and supply only makes things worse.

And what are we aiming at? – Better quality and globalization, with the hope that just like it has worked in some of the other industries; it will work here as well.

CBSE-I is a great concept, however it is competing against the more popular Geneva-based International Baccalaureate (IB) and International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE), affiliated to Cambridge University. Similarly countries that already have a robust education system may also view it much more critically. Recognition and acceptance from universities across the world will be crucial and the key to success. What is definitely needed is a differentiator that sets it apart from the others. Indian education boards are known to take very long to implement changes. In this case the board will need to be dynamic and extremely adaptive to constantly evolving demands to sustain. Establishing itself as a force to reckon with will be tough, popularizing even tougher.

Higher education segment is ready for a revolution – with almost every aspect about quantity and quality being debated fiercely. Allowing foreign universities to set up branches in India is just another step to make the segment more competitive and therefore improve quality. Many universities have already started making their presence felt with tie-ups with Indian colleges and universities. This will however help those studying in the slightly ‘less privileged’ institutes. Skeptics are doubting the idea as many ‘not-so-good’ universities may try to enter the country, a high possibility, considering a number of dubious institutes are already flaunting their association with other equally dubious but foreign universities. Regulation has to be optimized so that it does not deter good universities from entering India, and at the same time, effectively thwart the entry of suspect universities.

More thoughts are welcome…

With the Indian higher education sector undergoing major changes, domestic providers are now offering a variety of services to help educational institutions become more efficient and globally competitive. Technology can benefit these institutes in areas such as course delivery (through e-learning), automation of administrative processes (ERP, etc), and exam management (through online delivery and assessment), among others.

Universities and exam boards in developed countries are all trying to leverage the use of technology in these activities, leading the way for innovations in education. Many universities offer completely online e-learning courses. Large scale, internationally renowned exams such as the GRE, GMAT and TOEFL, are held online in many countries. As evangelists in the education sector are exploring, the potential for technology is immense.

ValueNotes recently completed a study (in collaboration with EDGE forum, initiated by MeritTrac) about the role of technology in Indian higher education, specifically in the examination process. As per our estimates, the size of the Indian higher education exam market is in the range of Rs.35,300 – 52,400 million, including university end-course exams and entrance exams. The number of exams in the country is estimated to be over 200 million each year. The huge size of the market justifies the need for a step up in efficiency in many areas of exam management. Automation and the use of technology in exam management could save universities and exam boards around 20-50% of their overall costs, depending on the level of implementation.

The extensive study includes views from 75 decision makers in universities and exam boards, namely, vice chancellors, registrars, exam controllers, and education experts. All decision makers interviewed see technology as an important tool to bring about changes in the Indian higher education sector. The majority of respondents are interested in online exams, with a significant untapped section (52%), which have not yet initiated any pilots, internally or through external providers.

Exhibit 1: Interest levels in online exams are high

Many potential rewards for Indian educational institutions

The factors which will most influence Indian exam authorities to incorporate exam technology and online assessments are faster results, greater transparency and higher security of processes.

• Processes and assessment set to change: With the advent of technology into exams, the lengthy processes are expected to be faster, more efficient and fair. Assessment is also going through many innovations and is moving towards becoming a more robust system, where all stakeholders are aware of student performance.

• Greater importance to security of exams: All exam authorities expressed concern about cheating and other malpractices in exams. They use various methods to curtail it, and hope that technology will help them in this endeavour.

• Automation of administrative tasks: To reduce pressure on the university administration and staff, a number of universities are planning to increase automation and reduce administrative and repetitive tasks. This will also help them cut costs and lower manpower requirements.

Infrastructure and suitability of exams are the main challenges

Exam authorities opined that there are major challenges which inhibit their usage of technology in exam processes.

• Lack of suitability: There was ambiguity regarding the creation of online exams, and format and adaptability also came up as concerns. According to over half the respondents, the current exam formats allowed them more choices and they did not believe they could adapt it to the online format.

• Lack of infrastructure: Online assessment will require a strong and wide spread infrastructure complete with computers, Internet, and support from technology companies, and India currently does not possess sufficient resources to move. Many feel that awareness about computers is low among the rural students.

• Lack of knowledge: Size of universities and therefore ease of implementation, lack of knowledge on best practices and hard data were other major issues that came up during the survey.

Online exams in India – future plans

The majority of exam authorities (68%) said they want to implement online exams in the future. With almost half the respondents believing that less than 10% exams will be online in the next 2 years, and nearly 50% looking to go online in the next two years, the gap or opportunity is tremendous. It establishes the need to share knowledge, experience and beliefs about the entire process of going online. It also firmly establishes that improvement is assessment using technology is the way to go.

Exhibit 2: Increasing use of technology in exam process

While universities may not risk conducting entire exams online just yet, they are already moving towards automating of various exam processing, right from candidate registration to result declaration.

The ValueNotes study shows the high level of interest among exam authorities, to introduce the use of technology in exam systems. Considering there is still a lot of groundwork to be done, the penetration of online exams will increase by 5 -10% in the next two years. However, given the greater levels of experiments and innovation in assessment, we believe that there will be significant traction over the next three to five years. Going forward, Indian higher education needs to be equipped with trained faculty, infrastructure and technology that can adapt to Indian requirements, which in turn calls for a lot of experimentation, innovation in assessment techniques, and an openness to experiment with traditional methods. Technology providers must be sensitive to the unique challenges that Indian universities face, and present customised solutions. The good news is, there are quite a few domestic providers specialized in exam technology. With many international clients, these companies are in the position to offer Indian universities the best of breed technology, with on the ground support and access to facilities. Exam authorities that are as yet hesitant in initiating in-house pilot activities need to explore collaborations with external agencies. Only innovations through such experimentation will bring about the much required change in the learning and assessment experience for the average Indian student.

This article was first published in Global Services. For a complimentary copy of the EDGE-ValueNotes report on online assessment, please email us.

The event had a great turnout, from biggies such as Sam Pitroda and Kapil Sibal who inaugurated the conference, to eminent personalities from the field of higher education. Many vice chancellors, pro chancellors, directors, principals represented the academic side, as well as senior management from companies servicing the sector. There were also quite a few foreign university/exam board/accreditation agency representatives, who gave the event a truly global perspective.

Our report dwells on the applicability of technology in the Indian higher education exam process, for universities as well as exam boards. From our extensive primary research including dialogues with 75 exam authorities and an analysis of global best practices, the consensus rang clear… technology is going to make a strong impact, and most respondents are interested in ways to being experimenting with exam processes.  However, there was a slight lack of clarity on actual implementation plans. I will post in coming weeks about the results, but Sam Pitroda and Kapil Sibal really drove the point home… In their speeches, they stressed that the time to talk was over, it is now the time to act, to bring about the much required changes in higher education.

Right before our panel discussion regarding the role of technology in exams, Sam Pitroda made a great speech about the future of high education. It was heartening to hear him say the 3 most important words (in his view) for higher education, “Technology, technology, technology!”. According to him, technology is a leveler, and one of the only ways through which growth can be achieved. This. in fact, is the exact point our report is trying to make! Our panel discussion, with representation from technology providers MeritTrac (Madan Padaki, CEO) and Eduquity (Dhirendra R, CEO), Collegeboard (which holds SAT), and Dr. Nigavekar (former UGC chairman), went off very well, with pertinent questions being raised by the crowd. On the role of the report, Madan Padaki, CEO of MeritTrac said, “This report will help catalyze the change that is needed in examination processes. At MeritTrac, we have always strived to bring scalable technology for examinations and this will help us address the key concerns in a structured manner.”

Watch this space for more on the results!