Dr Maszlee Malik waves to the media after announcing his resignation as Education Ministry during a special press conference in Putrajaya today. Bernama photo

KUCHING: Dr Maszlee Malik has today announced that he will resign his post as Education Minister effective Jan 3.

Maszlee made the announcement following a press conference called at his office after several reports emerged that he would be resigning his post.

Following a meeting with Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, I realised that it was in the countrys best interest that I resign my post as education minister, he told the media.

He reiterated several times that his loyalty to the country and his party (Bersatu) was unfaltering, and his trust in Dr Mahathirs leadership.

Maszlee also highlighted several achievements of his ministry since Pakatan Harapan took power after the last general election.

Meanwhile, Dr Mahathir has also issued an official statement, saying that he had received and accepted Maszlee resignation.

I will announce his successor shortly, the statement read.

The Simpang Rengam MP has come under fire several times in the past after making some controversial moves, the latest of which is the introduction of Jawi calligraphy in vernacular schools.

Readers can view the full press release on his Facebook page below:

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Modern technologies, be it AI, machine learning, 5G, Internet of Things, or blockchain, are transforming our future. Leading the way are startups that are harnessing disruptive innovation to create a new market and value network, displacing established firms and products.

The ranking of the 50 Most Disruptive Startups for the year 2019 was based on a well-defined methodology that takes into consideration key valuation metrics and leverages the YourStory teams rich experience and knowhow in the space. As the most prominent startup ecosystem enabler in India, YourStory is rightly equipped with the qualitative data and industry insights to create the most authentic listings of its kind.

Our ranking of the Top 50 Most Disruptive Startups spotlights startups with groundbreaking ideas that are creating a deep impact for good with the help of technology.

To arrive at the rankings for the 50 Most Disruptive Startups, a jury comprising YourStory Research and Data Heads, senior editorial staff, and industry experts narrowed down the initial list of around 300 nominations through multiple deliberations. A score was assigned to various valuation metrics such as market opportunity, team, technology or the product or service provided, innovation, and growth potential to determine the ranking of each of these startups.

The jury carefully considered the teams capabilities and skills to create disruptive tech-based solutions and scale the business in its addressable market. In addition, the extent of the product innovation of startups, both in terms of product utilisation and defensibility, its market potential, the scalability of the solution, and clarity of the revenue models were also carefully considered by the jury before making their final selection of 50 Most Disruptive Startups.

Ola, one of the worlds largest ride-hailing companies, announced 'Mission: Electric', with a commitment to place 10,000 e-rickshaws in its service in the next 12 months.

From cycle rickshaws to shuttles and last-mile transport, three-wheelers continue to be a dominant form of daily transit for many people in India. Building on the pioneering EV pilot by the company in Nagpur, Ola believes electrification can improve outcomes for drivers, customers, and its business model.

Ola is the market leader in app-based hailing and intends to leverage its scale to bring cleaner, more comfortable, and safer products to the market.

With investments from SoftBank, Tiger Global, Ratan Tata, and several others, the well-heeled startup became the fastest unicorn after Udaan.

Ola Electric has an ambitious target to deploy a million EVs by 2021, with around 10,000 of them by end-2019 itself. It is also building charging infrastructure and swappable batteries for these vehicles.

In March this year, Hyundai Motor and Kia Motor announced an investment of $300 million in Ola with a focus on electric vehicles. As part of this partnership, Hyundai, Ola, and Kia will develop unique fleets and different mobility solutions.

Read more at:https://yourstory.com/companies/ola-electric

Paytm Money is a wholly-owned subsidiary of One97 Communications, which owns and operates Paytm. The company has partnered with all 40 AMCs, making it the only investment platform that offers investments in direct plans of mutual funds from all AMCs in India.

The company has received regulatory approvals for offering Stock Broking NPS services and is expected to launch soon.

Paytm Money aims to become a full-stack investment and wealth management platform in its journey to bring wealth creation opportunities to millions of Indians. It is headquartered in and operates from Bengaluru with its 250+ member team.

Paytm Money, the wealth management division of Paytm, one of Indias biggest payment brand, launched with a bang last year. Pre-launch, the platform already had close to 850,000 signups, 65 percent of which came from Tier II and III geographies.

The diversification includes its foray into stock broking servicesfor which it has acquired necessary approvals from SEBI, earlier this yearas well as the sale of National Pension Scheme, exchange traded funds (ETFs), and other financial instruments.

This comes when just two percent of Indias population has invested in equity-related vehicles. Meaning plenty of opportunities for new-age digital investment platforms like Paytm Money.

The One97 Communications subsidiary is also looking to pick up Rs 250 crore from its parent in the next 18-24 months, and reach 50 million users in the next three years.

The wealth management space in India has caught the eye of several investors this year, including the likes of Ribbit Capital, and Y Combinator with their investment in Bengaluru-based wealth management startup Groww.

Read more at:https://yourstory.com/companies/paytm-money

Ninjacart undertakes the risk of picking up fruits and vegetables from farmers and delivering it to small retail outlets, its revenue is largely dependent on the commission it earns from the entire transaction.

In a country like India, the supply chain of fruit and vegetables is riddled with inefficiencies where the ends of the chain, meaning the producer (read farmer) and consumer, are generally shortchanged in terms of quality and price. Bengaluru-based startup Ninjacart wants to change that with the adoption of technology.

The startup sources agricultural produce directly from farmers and supplies to small retailers. Fruits and vegetables are highly perishable commodities, and any lag can severely impact the entire supply chain.

A huge endorsement for Ninjacart was when the young startup got the attention of Tiger Global. In April this year, the PE fund led the $100 million round for Ninjacart. Walmart has also reportedly expressed interest as an investor. The staratup has raised $154 million till now.

Read more at:https://yourstory.com/companies/ninjacart

Residents use the MyGate app to communicate with neighbours, discuss matters of the community and society on internal discussion forums, manage visitors (guests, deliveries, cabs etc), maintain attendance records, and salary payments for daily help, discover services, pay society maintenance bills, among other services.

The huge market opportunity has seen many players throwing their hats into the ring. MyGate competes with the likes of Reliance Industries (which has entered the segment with its apartment-management app JioGate), NoBroker, and Adda, to name a few.

Bengaluru-based startup MyGate offers security management and convenience service for gated communities and apartments. Its mobile app allows home-owners and residents to have control and monitor entries and exits, communicate with their neighbours, log attendance for domestic workers, and pay society maintenance bills.

In October 2019, the security management startup bagged $56 million in its Series B funding from Chinas Tencent, Tiger Global, JS Capital, and existing investor Prime Venture Partners.

The startup said it would invest the funds in its technology architecture and hire almost 200 individuals across its product and technology functions. With a team of 700 employees, MyGate plans to take its employee count to 2,000 over the next year.

Read more at:https://yourstory.com/companies/mygate

Meesho is creating an environment where anyone can start their business with zero investment. The startup aims to create about 20 million micro-entrepreneurs by 2020.

The word meesho means my shop, and the hook of the company is to enable people to start their business from home without any investment, the biggest problem that any small entrepreneur faces.

There are over two million resellers on the Meesho platform; more than 20,000 manufacturers from 500 towns get distribution facilities through Meesho across the country. Meesho works on approximately 10-15 percent commission and sellers can earn by adding a profit margin on every sale.

The company saw 50X growth in two consecutive years and the growth in the number of orders (HY18 to HY19) has been 1451 percent.

The biggest validation for the company was when Facebook invested in the company. Till date, the startup has raised $215.2 million in funding.

Bengaluru-based Meesho is a mobile-first social commerce platform for small businesses that typically use WhatsApp and Facebook to keep in touch with customers. It is touted to be one of Indias first reselling apps, providing an "escape route" to homemakers.

While social apps have seen a lot of traction in Bharat, social commerce is still in its early days in the country: while 300 million people use social apps like Facebook on a regular basis, less than 100 million of them buy online trust and discovery being the biggest issues.

Meesho, which has stated its vision is to enable an environment where anyone can start their business with zero investment, is solving for these problems, by providing micro-entrepreneurs with trusted supply, social sharing tools, efficient logistics, and payment capabilities.

It began with with apparel, but Meesho now sells a range of products, including cosmetics, jewellery, accessories, and kitchenware. According to RoC filings, the startup reported a revenue of Rs 84.88 crore for FY19, an increase by 14x from Rs 6.01 crore in FY18.

Facebook recently made an undisclosed investment in the startup - the social media giants first in a startup in India.

Read more at:https://yourstory.com/companies/meesho

CleverTap claims to have generated over $2 billion in incremental revenue to its customers, and currently, has a reach of more than one billion devices and over 8,000 consumer apps in more than 100 countries.

Since 2015, the startups revenue has been growing at 250 percent year over year.

Recently, the startup opened its APAC headquarters in Singapore and has expanded its presence in the US and Europe to serve rapidly-scaling brands.

The India market has a clear dearth in providing viable solutions that drive needed business outcomes for mobile conversion, retention, and growth. CleverTap is solving this pain point, and is the only player that has shown significant growth metrics in India.

The platform offers customer lifecycle management and engagement, so as to promote growth and long-term user retention for startups run by mobile apps. Leveraging machine learning, it offers an engagement suite that enables brands to convert, engage, retain, and grow their mobile user base.

Led by its existing investors Sequoia Capital India and Tiger Global Management, CleverTap raised $26 million in Series B and $35 million in Series C funding rounds, raising its valuation to $385 million.

The company said the latest round of funding would enable it to help more companies achieve their retention goals as they build long-lasting relationships with their customers.

Read more at:https://yourstory.com/companies/clevertap

BulkMRO caters to large corporate customers that procure MRO (maintenance, repair, and operations) products in high volumes. It supplies products usually categorised under 'indirect spends', 'category C spends' or 'miscellaneous spends' in the company's finances. This includes products across hardware, tools, electricals, and office supplies.

BulkMRO was one of the eight Indian startups shortlisted for YCombinator's Winter 2017 batch. In April 2017, it raised an undisclosed amount from YCombinator with other investors, including Ace & Company, Bain Capital Ventures, FJ Labs, and a few other angels also participating in the round.

According to the founders, BulkMRO works with large corporate customers across industries. It makes margins from the difference in the buying and selling price of the products it supplies.

BulkMRO was founded to consolidate the otherwise fragmented B2B marketplace for long-tail industrial products. Its customers are giant corporates that manufacture everything from medicines and cars to locomotives and turbines. The market for these industrial products is completely fragmented and corporates need to deal with thousands of mom-and-pop shops.

Major government reforms such as GST, Make in India, and the push to digitise the supply chain have created opportunities for players to consolidate the highly fragmented market. According to BulkMROs founders, this is their 'Flipkart moment.'

BulkMRO acts as a master vendor for large corporate customers, managing the entire pool of MRO through a network of indirect vendors on its platform. Thus, BulkMRO, as one centralised vendor, reduces the order intensity and reconciles GST input credits. By consolidating orders across multiple, large customers, BulkMRO is able to negotiate better rates across brands. These discounts are ultimately passed on to the customer.

Read more at:https://yourstory.com/companies/bulkmro

OkCredit uses digitisation to reduce the merchants burden of maintaining business accounts. It also allows them to send collection notifications to customers in case of delayed or missed payments.

To solve the trust problem, once a merchant registers a transaction on the platform against a customer, s/he is immediately informed through text or WhatsApp.

Eventually, the startup became a part of YCombinators 2018 summer batch and raised money from the US-based seed accelerator during its $1.7 million pre-Series A round. The round saw participation from LightSpeed India Partners, Venture Highway, Y Combinator, along with other angels.

In January 2018, OkCredit picked up seed investment of $300,000 from Lightspeed India Partners. Post the June 2019 Series A funding, the founders said the capital will be used primarily for scaling up the team and hiring across functions, including product and technology.

OkCredit will use the funds to grow its customer base by focusing on aspects of customer stickiness.

It was 2017 when serial entrepreneurs Harsh Pokharna, Gaurav Kumar, and Aditya Prasad realised that despite the proliferation of digital payment instruments and point of sale machines, most customers purchase goods on credit recorded in a notebook. Small businesses are yet to completely digitise their bookkeeping processes.

Their interactions with daily grocery stores helped them understand that most of the accounting and credit given by these shopkeepers were recorded on paper; small pieces that could easily be misplaced.

This system meant that it took longer to calculate and also lacked the aspect of trust since there was no way to verify accounts. This is what led them to start a digital-based credit balance recording solution for small business owners later that year.

Investors have taken notice of the startups success. In June 2019, OkCredit stated that it had raised $15.5 million as a part of its Series A round led by Tiger Global Management. The round also saw participation from new investor Morningside Venture Capital and existing investors Lightspeed India Partners, Venture Highway, and Y Combinator. Lightspeed had also made an initial seed investment in the company.

Just three months later, OkCredit raised $67 million as part of its Series B fundraise from Lightspeed (India and US) as well as Tiger Global. This round took OkCredits total fundraise from June 2019 to September 2019 to $83 million.

Read more at:https://yourstory.com/companies/okcredit

The parent company of Glance is InMobi, which was Indias first unicorn. A little more than a year old, this startup has achieved a key milestone of having customers running into millions and an endorsement by way of investment from a leading Silicon Valley venture capital firm.

These are still early days to talk about monetisation for Glance as this is the initial phase. The monetisation route will depend on how the content players are willing to enter into a revenue-sharing model. It would also be dependent on how the users continue to explore newer avenues that go beyond mere consumption of information.

Glance is available in multiple languages like English, Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu and also in Indonesian language Bahasa. This gives the startup access to a wider captive audience.

The opportunity is quite large for Glance and with the deployment of technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, it gives it the heft to make a difference in the dynamic world of mobile content.

Disruptive Quotient

In a mobile-first economy like India, smartphones have seen rapid adoption, and startups are innovating for the handset. Here is a startup that has built a captive customer base at the entry point of any mobile handset: the screen.

Bengaluru-based Glance provides content on the screen of a mobile handset that is snappy, consumable, and in sync with the needs of both the millennial and Generation Z.

The aim of InMobis mobile-first platform Glance is simple: provide visually rich content that informs and entertains users be it an entertainment factoid, a sporting event result, a news snippet, or a fashion recommendation. And all this, one lock-screen at a time.

Today, Glance has over 50 million daily active users under its belt who spend an average of 22 minutes. Glance is not an app, but comes as a service that is pre-installed on mobile phones manufactured by Samsung, Xiaomi, Gionee, and Vivo.

As the entry point of Glance is through the mobile handset manufacturers, it gives them an edge in reaching out to the content consuming public.

Affirmation for Glance came in the form of investment from Mithril Capital, whose Co-founder Peter Theil is a legend in his own right in the Silicon Valley.

This is just the beginning for Glance as mobiles as the platform for content consumption is going to remain for a long time and this will only enable this startup to come out with newer innovations.

Read more at:https://yourstory.com/companies/glance

About Company

Yulu's vision is to decongest urban traffic by providing scalable, affordable, efficient, and clean modes of transportation as solutions for first and last-mile connectivity and short distance commute.

Meant for one commuter, Yulu EVs or its scooters have a 48-volt motor controller and a maximum speed of 25 km per hour, and they require no licence or helmet.

A single charge can take the light-weight bike (45 kg) up to 60 km. The user need not worry about the battery; it has a swappable lithium-ion battery. Like a smartphone, the scooter interacts with the server every five minutes. This helps the company know the charge level of every Yulu Miracle being operated across the city, and the team gets an update the minute the battery levels drop below 10 percent.

If required, they can send the on-ground ops team to swap the battery. Yulu is currently operational in Bengaluru, Pune, Delhi, Mumbai, and Bhubaneswar. In Bengaluru alone, Yulu has over 850 Yulu zones or parking zones. Users pay a mandatory Rs 10 for a Yulu Miracle ride, and an additional Rs 10 per 10 minutes of ride time.

Disruptive Quotient

Founded in 2017, the bike-sharing solution platform Yulu first launched its shared-cycles in Bengaluru. It aims to address traffic problems with an IoT solution. Its light blue cycles and electric bikes are visible even in some of the most traffic-congested areas of cities. There are different moving parts in Yulus system that ensure these bikes are available in the right density at every location at the right time.

Founder Amit Gupta estimates that the market size of the shared mobility space with bicycles is currently close to $8-$10 billion globally, and is expected to grow beyond $1 billion in India by 2022.

Since mobility solutions need a high-frequency use-case, Amit believes Yulu can be grown into a platform with the business potential between five to 10 times.

Yulu launched its electric vehicles, Yulu Miracle, in Bengaluru in February 2019. It expanded this offering to Delhi in August. The startup also recently partnered with Uber with pilot operations in Bengaluru. With this tie-up, the Uber app redirects users to the registration page of Yulu.

In Delhi, due to the extreme weather conditions, the company doesn't find it feasible to launch its cycles. Yulu is planning to deploy 5,000 Miracles across metro stations in Delhi by the end of this year and up to 25,000 of the EVs by 2020.

Read more at:https://yourstory.com/companies/yulu

About Company

Avaada Energy is a leading independent power producer (IPP) of renewable energy projects. With a portfolio of over 1.8 GW of renewable energy projects in India, Avaada is one of the fastest-growing green energy firms, developing sustainable energy through its innovative utility and open access solutions in the solar, wind, rooftop, and hybrid energy markets.

Avaada works with various businesses, supporting them in interweaving business goals with initiatives of environmental sustainability and social responsibility, producing mutually beneficial results. Avaada aims to uplift the livelihood of the communities it works with through its engagement initiatives.

The company claims to have commissioned over 1.8 GW of renewable energy plants and has a portfolio of over 500 MW of open-access solar plants in the commercial category.

Avaada Energys annual revenue is estimated as $3 million.

Disruptive Quotient

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YourStory's Top 50 Disruptive Startups: Indian companies that dominated the news in 2019 - YourStory

Jennifer Brantley was 17 when she experienced an abortion.

I wanted to go to college. There was no (abortion) education at that time, no social media, she said. My parents told me we cant afford to raise another child.

Now director of a branch of Hand to Hope in Raleigh, North Carolina, the pregnancy center which recently won a fight with the city to relocate next to Planned Parenthood, she oversees the abortion recovery program, known as PACE (Post Abortive Counseling Education).

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To help these women feel less isolated, she created an invitation-only Facebook page.

Women say they feel alone. I stress (that) they are not alone, she said.

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Brantley uses the Bible study Forgiven and Set Free, created by Linda Cochrane, in her program. During the past two years she has led the study, 18 women have completed the program 14 just in the past year.

Its been amazing what God has done, she said. I think some of that is due to the movie Unplanned. More women are learning about abortion healing.

Because of concerns about Facebooks operations as a company, Brantley also set up a community for program participants on an app called Group Me, creating a facilitators page as well.

Its even more private than Facebook, she said. Its going well. These women are talking. They are thinking, I dont have to guard myself.

Facilitators also need a space for sharing with one another, Brantley said.

Its very heavy emotionally (to work with post-abortive women), she said. We can glean off of each other and pray for one another.

Earlier this month, she and several of the women shes mentored came together for a Christmas gathering.

Ten of the 14 showed up, she said. We had snacks, played games, and the ladies could share their story if they wanted. Many did. It bonded us, and were going to get together even more.

Another event is planned for February, she added.

Im really excited, Brantley said. Well have food and games again, with door prizes, and well sit and talk with each other.

She encourages other centers with an abortion recovery program to do something similar.

Id like to see this grow in North Carolina and with centers across the country, she said. It takes a lot of fight (to go through abortion healing).

Brantley knows about that fight. She became addicted to alcohol and drugs. After she married, her mother-in-law began taking her to church. That experience changed her life.

It was the first time I heard the Gospel, she recalled. I accepted Christ and asked Him to forgive me for the abortion. Afterward, I felt that peace that surpasses all understanding.

However, she said, the devil began his attacks. Amid the challenges, she felt God wanted her to serve at a pregnancy center. She learned about Hand of Hope from a friend and attended a banquet.

I decided to volunteer, Brantley said. They asked me if I was post-abortive. I said yes, but that I knew God had forgiven me. I learned that to volunteer I needed to go through Forgiven and Set Free, so I did. Little did I know I hadnt healed from the abortion. I had not grieved for my child. Its an amazing transformation.

From volunteer to director, from a woman experiencing abortion to helping women find forgiveness and freedom after one, Brantley sees the hand of God in her life and in her work at Hand of Hope.

I want a woman to know the whole truth nobody told me what having an abortion would be like, she said. God wants me to share my story, and Im very humbled by what He is doing by using me.

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Education is critical to growth, and online learning beyond traditional walls is transforming business unlike ever before. The relationship between learning and work is becoming more blurred as the two become part of the same integrated ecosystem.

So why is owning education so transformational for a business, its employees and customers?

Companies that invest in online learning have 218% higher revenue and 24% better profit margins. Thus, companies that arent already integrating online learning, are scrambling to catch up. By 2025 the global elearning market is expected to reach $325 billion.

On this episode of EdTech by MarketScale we talk with JW Marshall, a B2B Online Learning Consultant, about the technology and content in todays online learning management systems and the importance of integrating education into an organization.

There is a shift away from old school learning management systems that traditionally were thought of as a compliance tool by HR for employees to comply with rules. Today, online learning is meant to be so engaging that people want to learn to build more skills and advance their careers. IBM found that for every dollar they spent on eLearning, they saw $30 in increased productivity.

[In the] early stages of learning management, systems got a bad rap that they are boring, not engaging and a have-to. In the new digital world of Netflix and YouTube, you can binge-watch almost anything and now and we hope that training and online learning are moving that direction. That theyre so engaging that you want to learn more, says Marshall

Online learning helps people learn without an agenda. The missing link? Companies providing the platform for their employees so they dont have to go somewhere else to get it.

Unlocking the potential of online learning

Science and creativity are both vital in executing content for online learning systems. A lot of companies have great ideas but dont know how to create engaging content and design in engaging sequences with video, text, assessments, says Marshall.

Today is the golden age of online learning. The eLearning industry has grown by 900% since 2000. Learning has evolved from simple text-based documents, to PDFs, to powerpoints to what we have today video that is not just animated, but also 3D and interactive.

Historically, higher education had been the early adopter of online learning with technologies slowly trickling down to high schools, middle schools, elementary schools and lastly businesses. But in last two years the gaps are beginning to close and companies themselves are starting to innovate more and prioritize learning.

Why? Digital natives have entered the workforces and the status quo is no longer good enough. Today, 80% of US companies are using online learning.

Being able to curate content to guide employees and extend learning beyond just the core of a business helps in building a culture of learning which is incredibly powerful. Why? So you dont end up with workers that dont want to change, evolve and progress.

But its not just employees. Learners can be customers, employees, channel distribution partners really anyone that is taking the course, says Marshall.

Customer training is becoming more and more important as you want to make sure your customers know everything they need to know about your products, your services, that youre continuing to train them as your products evolve and that youre building that relationship so that they stay with you, says Marshall.

So why should a business invest in education not just for their company, but for their industry? Listen to the full episode of EdTech by MarketScale on Apple and Spotify, and learn more here.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in theEducation Technology Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter @MarketScale Facebook facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn linkedin.com/company/marketscale

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Why You Should Be Investing In Online Learning for Your Customers and Employees - MarketScale

Punishing kids for bad behavior often doesn't correct the problem.

A dramatic rise in e-cigarette use among middle and high school students nationwide has prompted some suburban districts to take a different approach.

They are going beyond detention, suspensions and punitive measures when students are caught vaping.

Schools are using online vaping education curriculum through VapeEducate and 3rd Millennium designed to help students and families understand the dangers of e-cigarettes and learn strategies to prevent its use. Topics covered include vaping health risks, how e-cigarette marketing targets youths, addiction, and vaping marijuana and THC -- the main psychoactive compound that produces marijuana's high.

Hersey High School in Arlington Heights and Prospect High School in Mount Prospect are the first in Northwest Suburban High School District 214 to adopt VapeEducate's curriculum this year. Provided it's successful, officials might roll it out districtwide.

"We have a lot of different ways we are being proactive. This is one of the tools we are using," said Nick Olson, Prospect division head for student success, safety and wellness.

Huntley Unit District 158 has taken a comprehensive approach to addressing the vaping problem through education for teachers, parents and students since last school year. As a result, fewer students have been caught vaping this year, said Tony Venetico, principal of Marlowe Middle School in Lake in the Hills.

"We're going to handle it on a case-by-case basis," Venetico said. "Sitting in suspension doesn't teach students anything. We're hoping they walk away from this and make better choices and help educate their friends as well. That is how we are going to have a lasting impact on this epidemic."

3rd Millennium's course can take between 45 minutes and two hours to complete depending on the student's ability and focus. It includes a test that students can take at home or during non-class times at school, said Janet Cook, Glenbard District 87's director of student services.

Students placed in detention for having or using vaping devices can complete the course to get out of detention.

"We're trying to use this as part of restorative justice," Cook said. "Our hope is that it changes future decisions."

VapeEducate's online course also is self-paced and includes six lessons and a test after each unit. Students must score a minimum of 80% to pass a unit. The course takes about 5 hours to complete and can be done at home or at school. Results are sent to school administrators and parents, and students receive a certificate of completion.

The McHenry County Substance Abuse Coalition used federal grant funding to purchase 1,000 licenses of VapeEducate's course, which it is providing for free to middle and high schools countywide. Each license can be used only once.

Health officials have been providing five weekly presentations in schools on the risks of tobacco use, vaping and nicotine addiction. But it's hard to gauge how much information students absorb or retain, said Laura Crain, Drug Free Program coordinator for the coalition.

"VapeEducate is similar in content, but it is more you watch and learn," Crain said. "It's just one more way of really reaching the students that we know are engaged in (vaping)."

Some high school athletic coaches are considering having entire sports teams take the course rather than just the players who might be vaping, Crain said.

VapeEducate's curriculum is developed by Ohio-based school administrators and teachers. It is updated frequently with new information about vaping-related health issues, the vaping industry and new laws.

"We have an average of about 25,000 online users that we are educating. ... It's growing immensely," said Dorothy Bishop, chief operating officer. "Some schools are being very proactive and using it to educate students in orientation, health class."

Many schools that piloted the program are returning to purchase additional licenses. "That's a strong signal that it's helping," she said.

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How schools are using online education, rather than punishment, to curb vaping - Chicago Daily Herald

BOSTON, Dec. 3, 2019 /PRNewswire/ --Berkeley Executive Education is collaborating with online education provider EMERITUS to offer Artificial Intelligence: Business Strategies and Applications, which launches December 5, 2019.

This online certificate is for professionals eager to upskill and boost their careers with recent advancements in applications of AI in business. A two-month program, this introduces basic applications of AI to those in business. AI: Business Strategies and Applications (Online) requires four to six hours of study per week and costs $2,800, which makes it both affordable and convenient for working professionals.

CEO of Berkeley Executive Education, Mike Rielly says, "We are building a growing portfolio of online courses in partnership with EMERITUS across the domains of digital transformation and data science within business applications. The AI program is a logical addition to the portfolio as we aim to extend the critical work of our faculty to industry professionals across the globe where AI is, and will penetrate almost every aspect of business need and opportunity."

Lisa Rohrer, Director of University partnerships at EMERITUS, adds, "We are inspired by the suite of courses we are developing with the Berkeley Executive Education team and we're thrilled to be able to bring this world-class learning to a global audience."

AI is transforming the personal and professional lives of people across the world. By 2025, the global AI market is expected to expand to almost $60 billion. There aren't enough trained professionals to fill the jobs needed in this new industry.

In addition to learning about the basics and potential of AI, participants will develop an AI-related project that they can apply to their own organization, will learn how to organize and manage successful AI application projects, grasp technical aspects of AI well enough to communicate effectively with technical teams, and learn how to avoid pitfalls associated with these new technologies.

A team of distinguished UC Berkeley faculty at the forefront of information and communication technology teach the program. Participants will learn from Haas School of Business faculty members including Associate Professor and Faculty Director of the Fisher Center for Business Analytics, Zsolt Katona; Associate Professor and Co-Director of the Computational Culture Lab, Sameer B. Srivastava; Adjunct Professor and Research Scientist, Thomas Lee; and Visiting Scholar and Executive in Residence, Matthew Stepka. Participants will also learn from Engineering Professor and Director of UC Berkeley's Robot Learning Lab, Pieter Abbeel

For more information on Artificial Intelligence: Business Strategies and Applications (Online) by Berkeley Executive Education, interested applicants can apply and learn more here.

Berkeley Executive Education serves leaders and organizations who aspire to redefine the future of business. The organization's profound and unique learning experiences, led by renowned Berkeley Executive Education faculty, equip global executives and their organizations with the vision, culture, and capabilities to thrive in an ever-changing world. Its immersive programs offer both global and industry relevance that executives can immediately apply to shape their career to put themselves and their company ahead of the curve. Working with EMERITUS broadens access beyond on-campus offerings in a collaborative and engaging format that stays true to the quality of University of California, Berkeley.

EMERITUS (www.emeritus.org) offers professional education courses in collaboration with top-ranked universities: MIT, Columbia, Dartmouth, Wharton, UC Berkeley, Cambridge, London Business School and others. Using technology and curriculum innovation, EMERITUS enables working professionals who cannot enroll in full-time courses to access a top-tier, affordable education that will give them the skills needed to be the business leaders of tomorrow. EMERITUS' global team includes 550+ employees located in Boston, Dubai, Mexico City, Mumbai, New Delhi, Shanghai and Singapore.

Contact: Kiki Keating Kiki@kikinetwork.com 1-603-858-2733

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EMERITUS Partners with UC Berkeley Executive Education to Offer New Online Artificial Intelligence Course in Business Strategies and Applications -...

As advances in artificial intelligence and automation continue, the distance between high-skilled elites and everyone else will only grow. To counter this bifurcation, we should be using new technologies to educate more people at lower cost.

LONDON In 2007, Harvard University economists Claudia Goldin and Lawrence F. Katz published The Race Between Education and Technology. Americas once-great education system, Goldin and Katz argued, was failing to keep pace with technological change and the economic disparity that comes with it. Even more concerning, they would likely make the same argument today. As we enter the third decade of this century, students in the United States and around the world are struggling to get an education that prepares them for a rapidly changing workplace.

Technology is clearly winning the race between man and machine. The current wave of technological change is affecting every industry, requiring skills that are far more advanced and diverse than what was expected of workers just a generation ago. With demand for high-skilled labor outpacing supply, a global elite of highly educated, highly paid professionals has emerged, leading increasingly insulated lives. Worse, access to basic education is still being denied to the bulk of school-age children in developing countries, and a university-level education lies far beyond the reach of millions around the world. We estimate that even in 2040, only 25% of the worlds adult population will have secondary education qualifications or degrees and that a higher percentage, 27%, will either have had no schooling at all or at best an incomplete primary education.

This divide between an education-rich elite with university degrees and the education-poor is thus likely to deepen, exacerbating within-country inequalities. Globally, higher education can increase ones wage earnings by 16% on average, and by as much as 27% in low-income countries. But with advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and automation, this gap will widen even further, by boosting the capabilities (or augmented intelligence) of the privileged few who already have the skills to use the new technologies.

But this doesnt have to be the case. By leveraging technology in the service of education, we can end todays winner-takes-all race. Since 2012, the burgeoning MOOC (massive open online course) movement has demonstrated that high-quality education can be provided affordably and at scale to students around the world. Online education platforms have already helped millions of people achieve college readiness or upgrade their skills at prices far below those of more traditional approaches. For example, edX, a project backed by Harvard University, MIT, and other top institutions, has enrolled 25 million people, from every country in the world, and has so far awarded 1.6 million certificates of completion.

Digital technologies can also help us reach new audiences and reimagine the delivery of education. By making major investments to improve access to digital technology and fund tuitions, we can significantly expand the opportunities for more young people to pursue higher education, regardless of where they are.

Looking ahead, digital technology will play a critical role in supporting free or low-cost general education, by providing an on-ramp to college for traditional and non-traditional students in developed and developing countries alike. Institutions such as Arizona State University in the US are developing a new model for online courses. Together with edX, ASU has created the first MOOC program to offer first-year college-level courses for academic credit. The Global Freshman Academy is geared toward older adults who are returning to earn their Bachelors degree, as well as to high school-age students who want to prepare for college or reduce the cost of their undergraduate education.

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Innovation is also underway at the post-graduate level, where one can find competitively priced online Masters programs in cutting-edge fields like data science, computer science, AI, and business administration. Top-ranked universities such as Georgia Tech, the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Queensland, and Boston University offer many of these courses, at a cost of just 20-25% of an on-campus course. Given this progress, the next natural step is to introduce online degrees at the undergraduate level, with curricula sub-divided into stackable, modular programs and credentials, enabling students to learn on-demand and affordably throughout their lifetimes.

Of course, such educational opportunities that should involve person-to-person coaching and mentoring what some call high-tech high-touch courses should also be accompanied by more opportunities for fulfilling work at decent wages. But in addition to nurturing new work opportunities, we also need to ensure that the education we deliver is a proper fit for future jobs, and that the accompanying credentials serve as effective labor-market signals. Just one-fifth of respondents to a recent edX survey believe that all of the knowledge from their college major is translatable to their current field. To stay ahead of the labor-displacing effects of AI and automation, digital-learning opportunities must be developed with employability in mind.

The rising popularity of coding boot camps and part-time, post-college online micro-credential programs shows that more workers are taking upskilling into their own hands. Job-relevant credentials from online programs like edX are also on the rise, with more than three million people having enrolled in various MicroMasters programs since this certification was launched by MIT on edX in 2015. This grassroots momentum can be maintained through support from employers, who should recognize the obvious advantages of lifelong educational opportunities for their employees.

But it is also time for governments and public policymakers to wake up. The inequality caused by lack of access to education is simply unsustainable. Now is the time to leverage digital technologies to improve college readiness and expand opportunities for students and workers at all points in their careers, and particularly for those who can least afford traditional educational channels.

Policymakers should see the growing skills gap as an urgent threat to social and political stability, as well as to economic growth. In addition to the divide between the educational haves and have-nots is a misalignment between what people are learning and what employers need. Closing these gaps will yield benefits for everyone and bring us closer to achieving the global Sustainable Development Goal for education. With the power of technology, we can reduce current economic disparities and become the first generation in history to have made universal, lifelong education a reality.

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Closing the Education-Technology Gap | by Gordon Brown & Anant Agarwal - Project Syndicate

The report titled, Global Online Education market, has been prepared based on an intense market analysis with inputs from industry professionals. The report covers the market scenario and its growth forecast from 2019 to 2026. The report also includes a discussion of the key players operating in this market.

This Online Education Market research study is a set of insights that translate into a gist of this industry. It is described in terms of a plethora of factors, some of which comprise the current scenario of this marketplace in tandem with the industry scenario during the forecast period 2019 to 2026.

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Market competitive landscape:

This global Online Education market report focuses on the key competitors present in the market. The global market is highly split and the major players have used numerous strategies such as new product launches, agreements, expansions, joint ventures, partnerships, acquisitions, and others to dominate their presence in this market. In addition, business strategies utilized by the companies, their financial status, sales, etc. are also incorporated in this Online Education research report. The report includes market shares of the Online Education market for global, North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South America, and the Middle East & Africa.

Some of the major companies profiled in the reports are

Chegg Ambow Education CDEL EF Education First TAL Tata Interactive Systems N2N Services Saba Software McGrawHill Tokyo Academics Knewton YY Microsoft And Others

Segmentation Analysis

The market segmentation for the global Online Education market is product type and application/end-users. The product type segment discusses the different kinds of products made available by the global Online Education market. The product application segment examines the different end-users operational in the global Online Education market space.

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Online Education market analysts are experts in covering all types of regional markets from emerging to old ones. You can hope for an all-inclusive Online Education industry research study of key regional and country-level markets. With detailed statistical patterns and regional categorization, Research Industry US offers you one of the most detailed and very well and simply logical regional analyses of the global Online Education market. The regional category includes major regions such as North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, South America, and Middle East & Africa. Dominating region and the region with the highest growth are also described in the report.

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Online Education Market 2019| Size, Share, Global Trends, CAGR Status, Analysis and Industry Forecasts to 2026| Research Industry US - News Obtain

This years education scandal saw parents shelling out megabucks to gain college admittance for their children. Federal prosecutors have charged more than 50 people with participating in a scheme to get their children into colleges by cheating on entrance exams or bribing athletic coaches. They paid William Singer, a college-prep professional, more than $25 million to bribe coaches and university administrators and to change test scores on college admittance exams such as the SAT and ACT. As disgusting as this grossly dishonest behavior is, it is only the tiny tip of fraud in higher education.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2016, only 37% of white high school graduates tested as college-ready, but colleges admitted 70% of them. Roughly 17% of black high school graduates tested as college-ready, but colleges admitted 58% of them. A 2018 Hechinger Report found,More than four in 10 college students end up in developmental math and English classes at an annual cost of approximately $7 billion, and many of them have a worse chance of eventually graduating than if they went straight into college-level classes.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures,when considering all first-time undergraduates, studies have found anywhere from 28 percent to 40 percent of students enroll in at least one remedial course. When looking at only community college students, several studies have found remediation rates surpassing 50 percent.Only 25% of students who took the ACT in 2012 met the tests readiness benchmarks in all four subjects English, reading, math and science.

Its clear that high schools confer diplomas that attest that a student can read, write and do math at a 12th-grade level when, in fact, most cannot. That means most high diplomas represent fraudulent documents. But when high school graduates enter college, what happens? To get a hint, we can turn to an article by Craig E.Klafter,Good Grieve! Americas Grade Inflation Culture,published in the Fall 2019 edition of Academic Questions. In 1940, only 15% of all grades awarded were As. By 2018, the average grade point average at some of the nations leading colleges was A-minus. For example, the average GPA at Brown University (3.75), Stanford (3.68), Harvard College (3.63), Yale University (3.63), Columbia University (3.6), University of California, Berkeley (3.59).

The falling standards witnessed at our primary and secondary levels are becoming increasingly the case at tertiary levels.Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campusesis a study conducted byprofessors Richard Arum andJosipaRoksa. They found that 45% of 2,300 students at 24 colleges showed no significant improvement incritical thinking, complex reasoning and writing by the end of their sophomore years.

An article in News Forum for Lawyers titledStudy Finds College Students Remarkably Incompetentcites a study done by the American Institutes for Research that revealed thatmore than75% of two-year college students and 50% of four-year college students were incapable of completing everyday tasks. About 20% of four-year college students demonstrated only basic mathematical ability, while a steeper 30% of two-year college students could not progress past elementary arithmetic. NBC News reported that Fortune 500 companies spend about $3 billion annually to train employees inbasic English.

Here is a list of some other actual college courses that have been taught at U.S. colleges in recent years:What If Harry Potter Is Real?,Lady Gaga and the Sociology of Fame,Philosophy and Star Trek,Learning from YouTube,How To Watch Television,andOh, Look, a Chicken!The questions that immediately come to mind are these: What kind of professor would teach such courses, and what kind of student would spend his time taking such courses? Most importantly, what kind of college president and board of trustees would permit classes in such nonsense?

The fact that unscrupulous parents paid millions for special favors from college administrators to enroll their children pales in comparison to the poor educational outcomes, not to mention the gross indoctrination of young people by leftist professors.

Walter E. Williams is a professor of economics at George Mason University.

MATTHEWS: Democratic voters are no longer buying what Elizabeth Warren is selling

BARONE: Give Thanks for Americas Increasing Fairness

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WILLIAMS: Fraud in higher education - North State Journal

Which is Better: School Online or a Standard Education? (Photo : pexels.com)

Online education has grown visibly over the last few years. It has a tendency to offer inexpensive and flexible learning alternatives as compared to the standard education system. You can clearly take a look at online and get a possible diploma certificate upon completing your tasks. Online training is honestly the ideal manner to strike a balance among work, own family and research.

However, we can't completely discredit standard schooling. Attending a physical discussion does not only permit students to have a one-on-one experience with the teacher but also exposes them to real skills that can be useful to their future profession. Fundamentally, each of those educational alternatives comes with its own advantages and disadvantages. It's all about choosing the one that works perfectly for your education needs.

Online Education Vs Standard Education: Which One Is Better?

There are different benefits of classroom learning vs. online learning. Before deciding on which choice to select between online education vs standard schooling, it is essential to first weigh the pros and cons of each. You must be responsible and have a look at the effect of each alternative and pick one that offers greater advantages for your current situation.

Here are two of the important factors that come into play when searching online vs traditional schooling differences:

1. Social Interaction

When searching about online education vs traditional one, people are concerned with regards to social interaction. One of the important questions college students need to ask themselves before enrolling is; do I need a one-on-one discussion with my teachers or friends? Online training typically provides an alternative for teachers and college students to interact with each other via an online classroom or video conferencing software. With the use of such online classroom system, it is less complicated to attend classes online from anywhere at any time. Usually, the platform lets the students enjoy the streaming of full HD and crystal clear audio lessons. It also gives them the opportunity to attend lessons with minimum distractions and can choose to be and their comfy place during each session. Teachers can use screen sharing function to share their modules to the students.

The traditional college or school is an amazing option for those looking for face-to-face communication. It makes it feasible for students to have direct engagements with teachers and college students. With this approach of learning, students are capable of getting exact discussions, asking lots of questions and overlaying many ideas in one topic. That will, in the long run, improve student's overall performance and competence within the field of his chosen specialization.

2. Flexibility

This is one of the main reasons that freshmen and working students should consider. Online schooling offers flexibility to students, especially those who are already committed to work or family life. With online-based courses, you can take lessons whenever and wherever you want, without being forced to attend classes except for the scheduled ones

On the other option, traditional education can be exceptional for students who have more time to spend learning. This option is right for a college student who isn't committed to other major responsibilities. However, some campus courses have classes scheduled for evenings, which may offer another alternative for students. Distance from home could be the most challenging factor when it comes to traditional schooling.

As you could see, each online and traditional academic establishments offer their own particular benefits. They equally come with their personal set of challenges. In either option, it will be your commitment and perseverance that will clearly matter the most.

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Which is Better: Online School or a Standard Formal Education? - University Herald