In an exclusive interview with Raman saini, Co-Founder -unacademy

In an exclusive interview with Ashutosh Asthana, Assistant Editor, Thinking Aloud, Roman Saini, Co-founder - Unacademy, speaks about the challenges of the ed-tech industry of India.


TA: How do you get the idea to start Unacademy?

RS: We started as a YouTube channel about 6 - 7 years ago. There was a huge demand for educational videos and then we pivoted the platform because we wanted to do it full time. I think everybody has something to teach, we wanted them to get empowered and that's how Unacademy came into the picture. If somebody wants to teach, they are found short of tools these days, they don't know where to go and how to teach online. Unacademy is the answer to that. We get the best of the educators and we make sure that they impart their knowledge to millions of people.

TA: From achieving the most prestigious jobs in India to becoming an educator, how was your journey?

RS: I witnessed many ups and downs. Entrepreneurship is not easy. Being an IAS officer is also not easy, both are difficult things but once you have decided to take the plunge then you should not think what has happened in the past. I really enjoy being an entrepreneur. I want to take Unacademy to new heights. But I would suggest that anybody who wants to start entrepreneurship should think 10 times before starting it. You might struggle for 5 to 10 years in the starting phase, so you have to be sure about it.

TA: The online education industry is changing during the present scenario. It is estimated that till 2021 the industry will reach 1 billion dollars. So, what difference do you see in the ed-tech sector when you started Unacademy and now?

RS: People hated learning online 6 - 7 years ago. Parents thought that their children are wasting time sitting on the internet because a computer was related to wasting time. Now the mindset has changed. People now understand that coaching center is not the only way to study. They can go online, buy courses and study. So, I think that mindset has changed, that is the first major change that has happened. Secondly, the earlier courses were not up to the mark and they didn't have much value. So there was a huge gap in the quality of offline and online courses but now these courses have come to the same level.


TA: The internet is expanding in India at a very fast rate but in many countries, specifically tier-2 and tier-3 cities, the speed is very slow, and there is a big problem of accessibility. So what changes are required in the Ed-tech sector to cope up with these problems?

RS: The problem of slow internet speed is in many cities, in several cases, tier-1 cities are also facing this problem. The ed-tech companies can tackle this problem by innovating new systems. A solution can be, making low bit videos, which can run on 1 Mbps of speed. Apart from this, we have to make content for the future as well. These problems will be managed to a large extent in the future. People will have 3g everywhere, if not 4g. For tier-3 cities, the videos can be made just by images and some voiceovers but for future, a different approach has to be made, basically, we need a multi-level strategy.

TA: What are your views on the K12 education system of India?

RS: In the present scenario, apart from few exceptions, the school education system is not up to the mark. The way they teach science, maths to students, it kills the interest of students at 7th or 8th class. Students are made to learn social science and history because of which the get afraid of these subjects as they have to remember dates. So, I don't know where things went wrong. Through online education, students can be made to love the subject. I think that K12 education will help the students in the learning part.

TA: There is always a debate between digitalization and role of a teacher in the classroom. Do you think that digitalization can replace a teacher in the classroom?

RS: Digitalisation cannot replace them at least for the next 10 or 20 years but they can empower them. Right now they can teach 15 students in a remote village or 200 students in a coaching center, but with digitalization, they can reach 2 million students at one time. So, digitalization is a weapon in their hands. Your brain cannot be replaced by a 256Gb memory of your mobile phone but it can store a lot of PDF and lot of books. It can augment our brain capacity, it can make us more productive. Similarly, medicines cannot replace our immune system, but it can enhance the working of the system. So, digitalization will not hamper the presence of teachers but it will be a part of their livelihood.

TA: How should the government promote digitalization in education in the rural areas and what ed-tech companies should do to promote digitalization in such areas?

RS: The government can use pre-recorded videos to educate students and promote digitalization in the rural areas at the gram panchayat level. The major problem is that the infrastructure is lacking in the rural areas. Proper schools and classrooms are lacking. So, firstly the government has to improve infrastructure. Secondly, teachers' regularity has to be ascertained. Thirdly, the government and various ed-tech companies should try to digitalize people of the rural areas and the last change is the language of the content. For the rural sector, the content should not be in English, it should be provided in the local language.

TA: What are your views on the use of AI or augmented reality in the ed-tech sector?

RS: I think these technologies will change the face education sector. Augmented reality has already become a big thing in the education sector, many companies are experimenting with it. VR is not there yet but in next 5 to 10 years it will cover this sector. People are sitting in a classroom enviroment, one student will be sitting in Mumbai, another student sitting in Delhi and both can attaind the same lecture in that virtual surrounding. So, VR is really interesting technology.

TA: What is your advice to the budding entrepreneurs in the ed-tech sector?

RS: It will be a grind. You won't get an exit in next 6 months or 1 year, so be prepared for 5 to 10 years of your life. If you don't want to do for the long term then don't enter into this sector. If you want quick exit then make apps for a gaming company and sell it for a large amount.

 K12 education system will provide the best experience for learning to the students

At the village level, infrastructure is a big challenge in the education sector.So, the government should promote digitalization in rural India through pre-recorded videos to educate the students