Laying the Foundation: Indian EdTech’s First Steps (Part 1)

This is the first part of the series of “EdTech in India: A Journey of Promise, Disruption, and Discovery”

It was 2014. The unused, old staffroom in a public school in Hyderabad, where I was teaching, had a single desktop computer pushed towards one side, gathering dust alongside torn chart papers, old attendance registers, and years-old exam sheets. This single computer represented the reality of technology in most Indian schools. Yet simultaneously, in Bangalore, Delhi, and Mumbai’s elite private schools, students were already familiar with smart boards and tablets – so much so that these schools had to explicitly ban mobile phones in classrooms. The contrast was even starker in rural villages of North India, where educational technology meant perhaps a weekly computer literacy class or occasional access to recorded lessons.

This was India’s EdTech foundation. With a journey that began in the mid-2000s with government-initiated satellite-based education, EdTech In India gained momentum through the 2010s, making small but impactful inroads select pockets across the country. 

The foundation was being laid, even if we didn’t realize its importance at the time. Each segment of education was discovering its own relationship with technology, contoured by its unique needs and constraints.

• Early Childhood Education’s relationship with technology was minimal – simple interactive games and basic digital storytelling served as occasional tools rather than core teaching methods. This limited adoption actually aligned well with early childhood development needs, where physical interaction and hands-on learning are crucial.
• The K-12 sector showed the most varied technology adoption patterns. High-income private schools showcased computer labs and smart classrooms, while government schools and low-income private schools received computers under various schemes that often went unused due to lack of trained teachers or proper maintenance. This disparity would later become crucial during the pandemic.
• EdTech companies of this period weren’t trying to disrupt education – instead, they focused on creating alternate, project-based curricula while staying aligned with established boards like CBSE and ICSE, with primary innovations within assessment software and school management systems. Some introduced playful learning approaches, but importantly, none attempted to replace traditional education entirely.
• Higher education’s adoption of technology was cautious and often viewed skeptically. Universities offered some online courses and digital libraries, but these were considered inferior alternatives to regular programs. Engineering colleges faced a particular challenge – teaching future tech leaders using outdated software that didn’t match industry standards.
• The working professional segment, however, showed the most promising adoption. Online courses and certifications gained traction because they served a clear purpose – helping professionals upgrade their skills and knowledge without leaving their jobs. This segment’s success offered early insights, though unrealised at the time, into where educational technology could be most effective. 

It is very interesting to note that digital adoption naturally increased as students grew older.

Then came 2020, and with it, a storm that would shake these foundations to their core. Everything we understood about educational technology – its role, its limitations, its potential – would be challenged. The pandemic would force educators, parents, students, and technology providers to confront fundamental questions about the role of EdTech in reshaping the future of learning in India.

[Continued in Part 2: “The Storm: Education’s Digital Disruption”]