Media24 has introduced an online education platform, Educate24, which seeks to provide short courses for South African looking to further their careers and boost their skill sets.
According to the company, the six-week courses start from R399 and go up to R1 299 for higher levels.
They are designed and taught by expert conveners, lecturers and academics. Also, a number of the courses are endorsed by higher learning institutions, it adds.
The courses range from the basics of domestic work and laundry, to entry-level customer service skills classes, through to project management, digital marketing as well as market research, says Educate24.
The site is built for mobile, laptop, desktop and tablet and has over 13 000 people registered on it, says Nawal du Toit, GM at Educate24. There are 25 courses live on the site. By the end of May Educate24 hopes to have 40 courses, and before year end, close to 100, she adds.
"We've seen that digital innovation has brought Internet connectivity to most South Africans. Educate24 is helping to deliver on the promise of connectivity - bringing affordable and accessible education and upskill opportunities to our people. We aim to be the next step in the career of a person looking to improve themselves, and their lives," says Educate24 founder and CEO Peter du Toit.
Nawal du Toit says there is a critical gap to upskill a large percentage of the population who cannot afford to study through a tertiary institution or simply do not have the time to wait to finish a one-year or a three-year qualification.
"They need on-demand critical skills training and career support and Educate24 assists them in taking that next step that sometimes seems insurmountable."
There are plenty of higher and tertiary education options out there, but we have recognised that not every person can afford to enrol at a university, nor can they benefit from long-distance learning, says Educate24's academic convener, Dr Elsamari Botha.
"We cover a vital gap that has been left open in the market by providing meaningful short courses that are accessible and can be completed in your own time and at your own pace."
Once the user has successfully completed the course they are issued with a certificate of competence.
Moira De Roche, MD of e-learning company Aligned4Learning, applauds the initiative and believes the platform has a chance of being successful provided it serves a niche market and is well-developed (good instructional design, interactive, engaging).
"I like that they are covering basic skills, but wish they would focus more on topics such as laundry where there a few if any online courses provided. There are literally dozens of courses on project management for instance, so why reinvent wheels?"
She points out there is much competition from global portals on generic topics and Educate24's success will come down to how well it's marketed and the quality of the product.
GetSmarter has done surprisingly well in the South African market (and it develops few courses, mostly curating quality content from other providers). De Rouche believes its success can be partly attributed to flying under the UCT flag.
"I hope [Educate24] are mobile-friendly - this means that not only should they play nicely on a mobile but be presented in bite-sized chunks. Also, the price point is quite low, but I would like to see it even lower."
De Roche notes if they have employed game-based learning tactics, it would make all the difference because games are challenging and addictive. They are simulations with fun built in, she says.
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