There is no doubt that higher education technology is big business, growing more and more every single day. When you dig more into this, you will find that most education technology companies are not student/teacher centered. How can this be, when students/teachers are the ones who use this technology every day? The sad truth is that these companies are more concerned with what the administrators and decision-makers think. This leaves the people who use the technology out of the loop entirely. In this article, we will discuss how edtech companies can avoid leaving professors and students behind.

How the students/teachers end up getting left out

In the education pyramid, the students are the ones that are at the bottom, while all the administrators and decision makers are at the top. New technology acquisition starts at the top of the pyramid, where the decision is made to either adopt a product or keep searching. If the technology is adopted then it will be rolled out to professors, administrators and possibly students. This is where it usually ends because unfortunately feedback is rarely asked for and professors are just supposed to make do with what they have.

Students are just left at the bottom of the pyramid, handing out their money, with no say so in the whole process what-so-ever. Often when decisions are made, they are made to control the way professors teach students, instead of focusing on fostering a positive learning environment for the students. Unfortunately, students end up being just numbers and data to these technology companies, instead of actual individuals.

How Education Tech Companies Can become Student-Centered

Education technology companies need to start from within and change their overall focus. Instead of creating their products with the administrators in mind they need to make sure their technology is made with the learner and their professors in mind. A great way to do this is to do a beta testing with the professors and students at several universities. Make sure that this testing is done at the type of universities that would be apt to purchase your products down the line.

Make sure to get feedback and listen to it! Students and teachers need technology in their classrooms that will capture their attention and create a fun and efficient learning environment. This will, in turn, result in better grades, an increase in retention rates and an increase in enrollment. Taking a more student-centered approach will ultimately help you make more money, as your product will effect positive change, which will make university administrators happy.

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