There are currently 1.3 million schools in India with ICT
penetration of approximately 14 percent. It is estimated that with
7 percent of India’s population going online, 44 percent of
these netizens are students. Can technology which students are
already comfortable with be used to transform the way we are
educated? Dell believes so, and has launched the ‘Connected
Classrooms’ initiative in India to tap the huge market that
exists for enabling learning solutions powered by information
technology. This is reflected in a report by Springboard Research
which says that the IT spending in the education sector will grow
at a CAGR of 19 percent from USD 356 million in 2008 to USD 704
million in 2012.
Dell wants its equipment to be at the heart of the action and sees
a future where students will collaborate with teachers to
accelerate their learning process. One vital piece in the
Dell’s ‘Connected Schools’ initiative is its
customized Latitude 2100 netbook which offers wireless connectivity
and an optional touchscreen to enable easier navigation.
The one missing piece in Dell’s artillery was content. This
has now been addressed through an alliance with Educomp –
India’s largest educational services provider. The connected
classroom setup will enable simultaneous collaboration of students
on an interactive whiteboard. It will allow teachers to document
class discussions allowing real-time student assessments for
parents to see online. Teachers will also have the ability to view
all connected student workstations simultaneously.
Dell already has huge experience in running connected classrooms
in the US. While India is a completely different market, Neeraj
Gupta, General Manager for Public, Dell India, believes that the
experience will come in handy for running this initiative in India.
Cost of the solution is a huge aspect in a price sensitive market
such as India. Currently a connected classroom setup costs anywhere
between Rs 2 lakh to Rs 3 lakh and varies on the customization
required by an institute
“We already have the connected classroom solutions deployed
in nine countries before bringing it to India. This experience
coupled with our understanding of the Indian education system makes
us confident of our ability to tap this segment,” says
Gupta.
Dell also plans to leverage the cloud to offer customized offerings
to schools over the cloud. Cloud computing has the potential to
totally change the way educational institutes impart education and
the way students learn. The cloud model can also help in delivering
customized learning solutions based on student interest and
learning ability.