LearningSpark.Corp

🚀 Korea’s AI Digital Textbook Revolution: Transforming Education with Personalized Learning The AI Digital Textbook initiative is a large-scale national project aimed at transforming the education system into a learner-centered, personalized learning model. To support this transition, the Korean government has allocated approximately USD 950 million in 2024, with investments in infrastructure (USD 644 million), teacher training (USD 282.8 million), and a learning data platform (USD 29.9 million). AI Digital Textbooks integrate artificial intelligence and intelligent information technologies to provide diverse learning resources and support features. Key characteristics include learning analytics, personalized learning, and learner-centered instructional design. Key Services of AI Digital Textbooks by the Ministry of Education Common Features (for Students, Teachers, and Parents) ✅ Learning analytics via dashboards ✅ Communication support among students, teachers, and parents ✅ Integrated login system ✅ User-friendly UI/UX that ensures accessibility (including UDL and multilingual support) For Students ✅ Learning diagnostics and performance analysis ✅ Personalized learning paths and content recommendations ✅ AI-powered tutoring for tailored support For Teachers ✅ AI-assisted lesson planning and instructional support ✅ Content customization and expansion ✅ Data-driven learning management based on students’ learning histories The Ministry of Education provides flexible guidelines for AI Digital Textbooks, taking into account school levels, usage scenarios (e.g., pre-study, review, classroom integration), curricular and extracurricular applications, and subject-specific needs. Teachers are encouraged to use these tools creatively to design engaging and interactive lessons that foster conceptual understanding, project-based learning, collaboration, and discussion-based activities. To support this transition, Korea is also expanding its 1:1 device initiative in K-12 education. Regions such as Gyeongnam, Daejeon, and Chungbuk have already achieved full deployment, while Seoul, Sejong, and Jeju have reached approximately 60% distribution. The Ministry of Education’s digital transformation policy is expected to further expand the EdTech ecosystem, especially in conjunction with AI-powered digital textbooks. However, a government-led, hastily implemented digital transformation may not overcome the repeated cycle of high expectations followed by disappointment. Currently in Korea, the introduction of AI digital textbooks has become a politically charged issue and is facing stagnation. #EdTech #AIEducation #DigitalTransformation #Korea #AITextbooks #PersonalizedLearning

This post provides an overview of the Basic Plan for Promoting the EdTech Industry, published by the Korean Ministry of Education in 2023.

Insights into South Korea’s Education market and EdTech industry. 📢 Personal Notice I would like to inform you that, for branding purposes, I have changed my English name from "Vincent" to the abbreviation of my Korean name, "JH." I appreciate your understanding and cooperation. Thank you! 🙇♀️ 💁 The South Korean Ministry of Education’s budget for 2025 is set at approximately 72.7 billion USD(104.9 trillion KRW) 🏅 Key allocations include: 1️⃣ USD 1.4B(2 trillion KRW) for university innovation, 2️⃣ USD 2.2B(3.2 billion KRW) for early childhood education, and 3️⃣ A significant portion dedicated to scholarships and improvements to medical school facilities. 4️⃣ Additionally, USD 18.5B(27.1 trillion KRW) is spent on private education. The budget allocated by the current government to support university innovation and early childhood education is highly likely to lead to the increased adoption of EdTech solutions. In many Asian countries, gaining admission to a prestigious university is highly important. This deep-rooted aspiration among parents is not likely to fade easily. In South Korea, despite significant government efforts to reduce private education expenses, a staggering USD 18.5B(27.1 trillion KRW) is still spent on test prep academies and private tutoring in English and Math as well. This creates immense opportunities for EdTech solutions targeting the Entrance Exam Preparation, English, and Math education markets within the private education sector. The South Korean EdTech market has an average annual growth rate of 8.5% and is projected to reach approximately USD6.28B(9.2 trillion KRW) in 2025 and USD 6.38B(10 trillion KRW) in 2026. Last year, AI-powered digital textbooks were a key government initiative. The one device per child policy is being fully implemented across all K-12 schools, and the AI Digital Textbook industry is expected to grow beyond USD 4.78B(7 trillion KRW). But unfortunately the rapid adoption of technology and political debates over technological maturity have become key issues, creating a state of confusion right now. However, I in authentic educational contexts, well-established global EdTech products already dominate the market. Platforms like Google Classroom, Microsoft, Apple, Padlet, Canva, and Kahoot hold significant shares. LearningSpark publishes the South Korea EdTech Market Map annually. Notably, 65.3% of the 150 featured products were developed by domestic Korean companies.Additionally, approximately 87.3% of the products in use were developed by the private sector. While global tech giants like Google and Microsoft, Padlet dominate internationally, Korean EdTech companies such as QuizN, Thinkerbell, ReadingN etc also demonstrate strong competitiveness in the domestic market. Starting from the next post , we will start covering South Korea's EdTech policies #EdTech #SouthKoreaEducation #AIinEducation #PrivateEducation #DigitalTransformation #LearningSpark

2️⃣ General Information about the South Korea and Its Education System South Korea, famous for K-Pop icons like BTS and Rosé’s "APT," as well as K-Food, is a country with a 5,000-year history and a population of approximately 51 million. Due to its geopolitical location, it has experienced numerous wars throughout history. Even today, it remains the world's only divided nation. South Korea is rapidly aging, and since the Korean War, its economic growth has shifted from a "Fast Follower" model to a more competitive effort to transition into a "First Mover" position.  This transition involves intense efforts to innovate and lead in various industries especially education. 3️⃣ The Korean school system follows a 6-3-3-4 single-ladder structure:🏫 🎒 • 6 years of elementary school, • 3 years of middle school, • 3 years of high school, and • 4 years of university. The first academic semester begins in March, and the second semester starts at the end of August. Summer vacation typically runs from July to August, while winter vacation spans from December to February. Elementary and middle school education is compulsory, and in line with the principle of equal educational opportunity, all citizens receive primary, secondary, and higher education based on their abilities, regardless of their social status. South Korea's education governance consists of the Ministry of Education and 17 provincial and metropolitan education offices. The Minister of Education serves as Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs, overseeing policies related to human capital development, school education, lifelong learning, and academic affairs at the national level. In 1991, the Local Education Autonomy Act was enacted, decentralizing the Ministry of Education’s budget and major administrative decisions related to local education. This led to the establishment of a decentralized local education autonomy system, granting more authority to local governments. 4️⃣ "This is where the key insights begin." South Korea currently has 20,480 elementary, middle, and high schools, with approximately 11,000 being elementary and middle schools. The student population is around 5 million, and there are about 500,000 teachers, accounting for roughly 10% of the total workforce. Once a homogeneous society, South Korea is gradually becoming multicultural. The student-to-teacher ratio is: •12.7 in elementary schools, •11.6 in middle schools, and •10.1 in high schools. The average age of teachers is 40.4 years, indicating an aging workforce. However, South Korea does not currently face a teacher shortage. South Korea's declining population and aging society indicate an increasing reliance on foreign talent. At the same time, more companies are looking beyond the shrinking domestic market and expanding into global markets. This trend suggests a continued demand for language education, alongside the growth of the upskilling and reskilling workforce training market.

Participated in the most valuable conference "EdTech Trends 2025 through the Lens of Big Tech Company" for Decision makers

AskEdTech has worked tirelessly throughout the year to deliver the latest EdTech news from around the world to you. (As of December 26, 2024, with no duplicates) 🎖️ Registered Product Information: 1,470 entries 🎖️ Company/Institution Profiles: 1,312 entries 🎖️ Knowledge Archive (Articles/Posts/Documents/Videos): 3,210 entries Based on the high-quality unique data curated by AskEdTech, LearningSpark has organized a webinar titled “2024 EdTech Trend Wrap-Up with AskEdTech” to provide a comprehensive summary of this year’s global EdTech trends. 🎉 Webinar Highlights: 1️⃣ 2024 Global EdTech Trends: Key issues that gained attention throughout the year 2️⃣ Survey Results: Hot topics of 2024 as selected by educators and education industry professionals 3️⃣ South Korea EdTech Trends: Insights into the Korean EdTech landscape and major industry news that shaped the year This webinar is for: 🧑🦰 Those exploring the future of education and EdTech in South Korea 🧔♀️ Anyone interested in global EdTech trends 👩🦱 Professionals aiming to build a thriving EdTech ecosystem alongside LearningSpark We warmly invite you to participate! ⌛ Event Details: 👉 Date and Time: Thursday, January 2, 2025, 8:00 PM–9:00 PM (KST) 👉 Format: Live Online (via Zoom) The Zoom link will be sent via email to registered participants on the event day. The program will be delivered in Korean. The 2024 EdTech Trends Wrap-up with AskEdTech report will be published on LearnAET. 👉 Target Audience: EdTech industry professionals Anyone interested in the future of education and EdTech 👉 Participation Fee: Free Kindly use the link below to register. https://lnkd.in/gPqwqG_p

This report provides specific insights into how public and private collaboration in South Korea can create a robust EdTech evidence ecosystem by analyzing the successes and failures of building such EdTech ecosystems in of the United States and the United Kingdom seperately. In the U.S., the governance structure of the EdTech ecosystem which has a national evidence framework standard based on the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). In particular, the report  focuses on how public and private sectors have collaborated to build systems that evaluate and utilize the quality of EdTech. The EdTech Index plays a key role in brokering and disseminating evidence, while numerous specialized organizations develop evidence grounded in their expertise in specific domains. This structure is regarded as a model that harmoniously combines public foundational approaches with the creative approaches of the private sector. In the U.K., the report Realising the Potential of Technology in Education(2019) outlined methodologies for building an EdTech ecosystem. Centered on the core themes of open innovation, agile approaches, and public-private partnerships, the U.K. features a balanced system. This includes private evidence development and brokerage platforms like EdTech Impact, and research and funding support from institutions such as the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF). Additionally, approaches like EdTech Demonstrator Schools allow for the testing and constant improvement of EdTech solutions in real-world school environments. This presents a viable governance model where private leadership and public support operate in harmony. South Korea is advancing open innovation in the educational use of technology as well. Efforts include establishing a one-device-per-student environment and accelerating the adoption of validated EdTech products in public education. Government-led platforms, such as the nine EdTech testbeds known as EdTech Soft Labs and the EdTech information and experience platform Eduzip, play central roles in these initiatives. While the country is transitioning towards a public-private partnership model to leverage rapid technological advancements for educational innovation, this approach still requires more time and effort to mature. Government-centric approaches can effectively ensure reliability through regulations but face limitations, such as difficulty in fostering self-regulation and development, stakeholder input and constraining innovative attempts by private entities. By reflecting on the U.S. and U.K. examples discussed in this report, LearningSpark hopes South Korea can further develop into a more advanced public-private partnership model. We firmly believe these efforts will serve as a cornerstone for building a healthy EdTech evidence ecosystem in South Korea. https://lnkd.in/g88anAbn

We are excited to blaze new trails into the unknown future!

🎉We’re excited to celebrate a successful collaboration with our partner EdTech Impact on Twohands Interactive’s journey to achieving their first Pedagogical Certification! 

Last week, we had the great fortune to be on-site at one of our AGILE schools, Limestone Community School KS in Lawrence, Kansas with phenomenal leader Madeline Herrera and our South Korean partners Hun Jong and Scarlet Min from LearningSpark.Corp, based in Seoul. As we observed a promising #edtech product from LearningSpark's South Korean accelerator in K-6 classrooms in Kansas, I couldn't help but smile at the power and potential of technology to transcend borders to deliver meaningful experiences to students. #edtech #codesign #educationresearchanddevelopment Leanlab Education