【Z-kai Group, Eikoh Group and Edmodo, Inc.】
SNS and Learning Platforms for Schools from February 2016
September 7, 2015
Investment in Edmodo and Basic Agreement to Enter into a Business Alliance
September 7, 2015 – Zoshinkai Publisher Inc. (Headquarters: Sunto-gun, Shizuoka, Japan; CEO Takaaki Fujii, “Zoshinkai”) today announced that in August 2015 the company made an investment in Edmodo, Inc. (Headquarters: San Mateo, CA, United States; CEO Vibhu Mittal,”Edmodo”) and on September 4th reached a basic agreement to form a business alliance with Edmodo.
Zoshinkai Publisher Inc. and Edmodo will continue to discuss the details of this alliance. The two companies will develop SNS and learning platforms for schools, and the service will be launched starting February 2016. Our aim is to promote communication between students, teachers and parents, and to support teaching and learning.
Alliance to support schools looking ahead to 2020
Background
In recent years, governments and companies have been developing Internet connectivity. In Japanese education too, it can be expected that the spread of ICT-based services will proceed more rapidly in the future.
As part of this evolution, the focus in Japan is now on the use of SNS and learning platforms for schools. These tools can help students and teachers to communicate more smoothly; teachers can better share their knowledge, and students can better encourage one another and stimulate their motivation to learn. The growing use of ICT in schools requires security support so that these services can be used in safety.
Strong Points of Edmodo and Zoshinkai
◆Edmodo provides a social learning network service whose aim is for students, teachers and parents to be able to communicate and connect with each other safely and securely. Today, Edmodo has more than 55 million users in 190 countries.
Edmodo’s learning platform offers multiple functions such as homework submission, progress and achievement assessment in order to improve learning effectiveness. Furthermore, by providing the most appropriate content and creating communities of teachers from multiple schools, the platform expands teaching possibilities.
◆Through its subsidiary Z-kai Inc. (Headquarters: Sunto-gun, Shizuoka, Japan; CEO: Takaaki Fujii), Zoshinkai Publishers Inc. provides educational services for students via a wide range of channels, including publishing, correspondence courses, mock tests, testing, and ICT-based services . Also, through Eikoh Inc., Educational Network Inc. and Shane Corporation Ltd., which are subsidiaries of its group member Eikoh Holdings Inc. (Headquarters: Chiyodaku, Tokyo; CEO: Masataka Koreeda), Zoshinkai also manages cram schools for elementary, junior and senior high school students and English Conversation schools, and markets educational materials and tests to public and private schools all over Japan.
The Z-kai / Eikoh Group and Edmodo will enrich school education by utilizing their expertise, facilitating communication within schools and providing support for the acquisition of the skills that are needed in the 21st century.
Our Business
Educational Content and SNS/Learning Platforms will be offered to schools from February
As a business partner of Edmodo in Japan, Zoshinkai -
- will offer Edmodo’s SNS and learning platform to schools from September 2015.
- will provide educational content through Edmodo’s learning platform from February 2016.
Principal functions and Services
- Communication services for students, teachers and parents limited to the school
- Providing content and supervising homework
- Tests and questionnaire surveys
- Schedule management, schedule sharing
- Analysis of learning conditions
- Online communities for teachers
*Some of these services are provided free of charge.
Comments by Edmodo CEO Vibhu Mittal
“We are looking forward to being part of this agreement. Edmodo has brought innovation to the teaching and learning experience in the United States and many other countries, and will surely maximize the ability of Japanese learners.”
