(Hong Kong, 20 March 2020) NetDragon Websoft Holdings Limited (“NetDragon” or “the Company”, Hong Kong Stock Code: 777), a global leader in building internet communities, wishes to announce that in view of the disruption of education due to the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, Edmodo, its global leading online education community, has been selected in an unprecedented move by the Ministry of Education in the Arab Republic of Egypt (“MoE”) to be the designated online learning platform for the K12 education system in Egypt. Starting today, Edmodo will be rolled out to over 22+ million students and over 1+ million teachers in the country to provide distance learning support in the period of school suspension and to enhance learning thereafter.
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 virus, the Egyptian government has taken substantial precautionary measures to minimize the spread of the disease, including temporary closure of schools and universities, which has led to an imminent need for an effective online platform to ensure students’ learning will continue to progress during the school closure. Edmodo is chosen by the MoE as the designated learning platform of Egypt, given its ability and readiness to offer a rich environment to support collaborative learning, enable teachers to communicate with students and share class materials online, and ultimately make learning accessible anywhere for students. This rapid and large-scale deployment of Edmodo nationwide, which is set to begin immediately with this roll-out, is both an important milestone in the advancement of education technology in Egypt, as well as a result of the readiness achieved through years of investment in education technology and digital content by the MoE.
His Excellency, Dr. Tarek Shawki, Minister of Education and Technical Education, Egypt comments: “The unprecedented times that we have found ourselves in means that all governments around the world need to find innovative solutions to ensure the continued education of all learners. In Egypt we have been investing in our digital learning strategy for three years as part of our educational reform project. We find ourselves well positioned to be able to support distance learning, and the rapid implementation of Edmodo as the platform, to ensure that teachers, students and parents can collaborate and learn during this period.”
Innovera, Middle East partner of NetDragon and long-term technology partner of the MoE, will make their company resources available to support the MoE, schools and teachers with the training and helpdesk to ensure a smooth implementation and long-term usage of Edmodo within Egyptian schools.
As part of this roll-out, Edmodo will also join hands with the innovative Egypt Knowledge Bank (“EKB”), one of the world’s largest educational digital libraries, to bring in a massive volume of interactive contents including research journals and other exclusive educational resources for students and teachers. The integration of Edmodo and EKB provides learners an exceptional opportunity to access high quality educational resources and collaborate with their peers online.
Dr Simon Leung, Vice Chairman of NetDragon, comments: “It is both a privilege and an honor to support the Ministry of Education, Egypt in delivering practical and innovative solutions that will ultimately contribute to the improvement of education throughout the country, especially during these challenging times. The deployment of Edmodo across the whole of Egypt will create for a positive transformation in the use of innovative and effective approaches to teaching. We intend to fully support the Ministry of Education in its bold and visionary approach to both the current situation, and the future of teaching and learning in Egypt.”
The deployment of Edmodo in Egypt will provide a remarkable foundation to accelerate the adoption of education technology in the country in ways that have never been done before, ultimately benefiting students, teachers and educators over the long run. With the epidemic continuing to spread across the world, NetDragon continues to act swiftly and responsibly to ensure the learning of students around the world will continue in the most engaging and effective manner.
