European Edtech Alliance Update January 24
News from the world of European Edtech
2024 has started with some amazing events and opportunities to meet, exchange ideas, and plan for this new year. Through all the different events, the topics of sustainable funding mechanisms for innovation, evaluation frameworks and certification of EdTech, growing trust between the public and private sector and ensuring efficacy and evidence through dedicated testing environments are taking center stage. Make sure to check out the most recent publications from the EmpowerED project, which provide an overview of the European EdTech ecosystem, and look out for our event reports, sign up for our next EEA Meets webinar with the Council of Europe, and become part of our newly launched EdTech strategy lab project! We are looking forward to another exciting year with you all and to keeping you up to date with what is happening within European EdTech.
Beth Havinga
Starting January 2024, the EEA is delighted to announce that Jannie Jeppesen will step into the role of chairwoman of the board.
CEO of Swedish Edtech Industry, Jannie has extensive experience in digital competence, pedagogy, and management, both as an educator, as head of professional development and as principal. She has been an appointed commissioner to the Swedish Government’s strategic cooperation program on Competencies and lifelong learning and Advisory Boards for The Swedish National Agency for Higher Vocational Education and the National Agency for Employment and is now Chairing the International Advisory Board for the School of Education at the University of Iceland. She has been 2nd chair of the EEA from the beginning.
We thank outgoing chairwoman Svenia Busson for her dedication and passion and are excited for Svenia’s continued role within the EEA managing the EdTech Fellowship programmes.
We are happy to share two new comprehensive reports on trends and developments in European EdTech from the pan-European EmpowerED project:
The reports map developments in investments, trends, and policy and describe the evolving European EdTech ecosystem highlighting crucial factors for sustainability, support, funding, and enhancing trust and quality in EdTech solutions.
To start the year, we are excited to launch a new project funded by the Jacobs Foundation exploring evidence-informed evaluation mechanisms for EdTech.
In this project, the EEA will explore new ways to exchange knowledge with an aim of harmonising existing and developing quality assurance or evaluation frameworks for EdTech. By supporting the interoperability of existing evaluation mechanisms and bringing key stakeholders together, we endeavour to anchor evidence informed decision and development elements into EdTech implementation and lower the hurdles for safe and evidence-based Edtech. The EdTech sector faces a critical challenge: there is a stunning lack of research and evidence to support the efficacy of EdTech products and without a unified approach certifications can become an overwhelming burden.
The EdTech Strategy Lab event series will feature a series of online and in-person discussions, collaboration opportunities and outcome-focused formats. These events will culminate in a Strategy Symposium in September 2024 focused on advancing evidence-informed evaluation mechanisms.
Register your interest to participate!
🇪🇺 EEA Meets... Council of Europe - 21.02.2024 at 14:30 (CET)
Join us on 21.02.2024 at 14:30 (CET) as we discuss the Council of Europe´s 2030 Strategy with Ahmet Murat Kilic, Head of Digital Transformation and E-Learning Unit. With a focus on “Advancing education through a human rights-based digital transformation”, we will explore their preparatory study for a legal instrument to regulate the use of AI in education, and the idea of a review system for EdTech solutions. On top of that, you will receive information on the upcoming 2025 European Year of Digital Citizenship Education. Don´t miss your chance for direct interaction and register here!
🇪🇺 EEA Meets... UNESCO: Review
In our second EEA meets, Borhene Chakroun from UNESCO gave us an overview of both the challenges and opportunities in the wider EdTech sector and explored the need for; standardized quality criteria in EdTech; Emphasising the role of educators and ensuring they are well-equipped to navigate and utilize digital tools effectively; The application of technology in education being purpose-driven, aligning with pedagogical goals and learner needs; and EdTech companies’ involvement in global discussions like UNESCO Global Education Alliance
Read the full summary written by Federico Malpica Basurto, Board Member of Edtech Finland here or re-watch our webinars with the DC EAC & UNESCO here!
BETT show UK 2024
We were once again happy to partner with the BETT show. EEA member pavilions showcased the innovative products and services from their countries. We were excited to participate in panel discussions with our members, SuperCharger Ventures, and organised an exclusive EEA session focusing on European Edtech Investors together with Dutch EdTech. Sponsored by the British Council and together with BESA, the EEA hosted the annual "Celebrating Women in EdTech" networking event, providing a great opportunity to connect, meet some brilliant women in the industry and explore collaborations.
Check out our first sneak peek at our EdTech Map results for 2024 in our BETT blog post!
EIT Conference
The inaugural EdTech conference hosted by EIT took place in Brussels this month bringing together members of the European Commission, research organisations and EdTech representatives. In presentations, workshops and panels, we discussed the role of EdTech, partnership and collaboration opportunities and necessary structures to ensure sustainability of the education innovation ecosystem. Beth Havinga (EEA) raised the topics of EdTech evaluation frameworks, funding requirements, and the possibilities of intentional community building as exhibited in the EmpowerED project during her panel talk on unlocking the power of EdTech.
Global EdTech Testbed Network (GENT)
Just before the BETT show, the Global EdTech Testbed Network (GETN) met in London, bringing together 40 participants exploring the diverse landscape of EdTech testbed structures worldwide. The gathering provided a platform to explore challenges and discuss how to ensure the sustainability of trialling networks and effectively evaluate testing environments. The EEA was represented by Niko Lindholm (xEdu), Verena Rohrer (Swiss EdTech Collider), Annelies Volckaert (edtechstation) and Antonia Clary (EEA).
Call for Applications
The FuturED Edtech acceleration program is recruiting 10 innovative European startups with the ambition to transform the world of education in school, university, and professional environments for its 3rd cohort. Apply here!
Transcend Network is looking for a new cohort of 30 founders rethinking how we learn and work, so they can help them find product-market fit in the future of learning and work! Apply here!
Hundred.org is identifying impactful and scalable innovations in student wellbeing in schools. Apply here!
Worth Reading:
Brighteye Ventures’ European Edtech Funding Report 2024
Ufi Ventures and Tyton Partners` EdTech and Future of Work market trends and forecasts: Q4 2023
European Digital Education Hub´s (EU Commission) AI Report
Nordic EdTech News Interview with Neil Selwyn, a professor at the Faculty of Education, on the development in the Nordics: "Removing phones and devices is such a bad idea"
FUNDRAISING:
French Beedeez, a B2B training platform, raised 8m € to support its development of innovative formats to raise the skills of workers.
Zurich-based video recruiting platform CareerFairy raised 3.5m € to further expand in the DACH region.
Oslo-based We Are Learning raised 3m € for international growth of its tool that allows anyone to create interactive learning simulations and 3D animations.
Madrid-based Leemons raised 1.5m € to grow its SaaS platform for data-based learning.
Spanish WoWplay raised 400k € for its STEAM platform for children.
Polish Multilango secured 400k € for its platform to enable employers to offer foreign language learning as an employee benefit.
Member News:
Nine US districts from seven states starting to use Finnish Kide Science this school year!
Eduten transforms Math into an Exciting Learning Adventure in a Unicef pilot in Uzbekistan.
Upcoming Events, click on links for more information and tickets:
28th-29th February: IPON 24 in Utrecht, Netherlands - Agenda & Tickets!
20th March: Learning Bytes Festival in Kortrijk, Belgium - Agenda & Tickets!
16th April: SETT Nordic Track in Stockholm, Sweden - Agenda & Tickets! 10 Nordic Startups can apply for an innovation stand here.
7th May: EdTech Austria Summit in Salzburg, Austria - Agenda
Check out our members’ newsletter:
This newsletter is written and produced by the European Edtech Alliance. The European Edtech Alliance is a consortium of national trade associations and clusters working with founders and providers of education technology (Edtech), to support the domestic and international growth of these businesses and the innovations they represent. European Edtech News is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.