Germany’s highly diversified education and learning sector provides excellent opportunities for international investors in a number of classical segments and emerging markets.
Digital Education Solutions for the Smart School Classroom
Demand for school online learning platforms and digital education solutions is growing. The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the urgent need for a radical overhaul of digital infrastructure in Germany’s school education system. Germany is making more than EUR 5 billion available over a period of five years to bring the country’s schools into the digital age. The funding, equivalent to EUR 500 for every one of Germany’s 11 million school pupils, will help schools upgrade their digital infrastructure through the provision of smartboards, Wi-Fi provision, online learning platforms, and the use of mobile devices.
Growing Private Consumer Market for E-Learning
The private consumer market for online learning platforms and services is growing. The global e-learning market passed USD 200 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow at more than eight percent CAGR for the period 2020 to 2026. Cloud computing and artificial intelligence technologies married to high internet penetration levels across the globe are driving market growth.
The coronavirus pandemic has also increased demand for e-learning solutions, with mobile learning, microlearning, social learning, and corporate massive open online courses (MOOC) being the emerging trends increasing market turnover. Digital learning content and e-learning course account for more than 50 percent of the German e-learning market alone.
Internationalization and Transnational Education
Transnational education (TNE) is an increasingly global trend that is gaining ever more traction in the higher education market. More and more educational establishments are carrying out their academic programs across a number of countries according to different modes including articulation programs, branch campuses, distance learning, MOOCs, and franchising arrangements. The German Academic Exchange (DAAD) provides support to numerous TNE projects as well as binational universities and branch campuses, with a strong focus on engineering and the natural sciences.
EdTech – Global Growth of Educational Technology
The global edtech market is growing. According to a 2020 Citi study, international edtech spending is set to more than double to around USD 360 billion in 2024 from USD 160 billion in 2019. In 2024, edtech will still only account for less than five percent of total education spending. However, according to Citi’s long-term prognosis, the future edtech market could value be as much as USD 2.7 trillion.
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