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Knewton adaptive learning technology goes global

Just days after announcing an expansion of a collaboration with Pearson to bring its adaptive learning technology to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) courses, Knewton has announced it is also expanding its reach to new parts of the globe.

knewton-adaptive-learning [1]
Knewton collects millions of data points to create models that can be broken down to help with learning.

Since 2008, Knewton’s technology has been fueling adaptive learning [2] for millions of students, but it’s been primarily confined to North America.

Now, the company is partnering with Cambridge University Press to power the press’s English Language Teaching [3] products, and opening an office in London to support adaptive learning in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

The press’s Learning Management System is used by 250,000 students, and it has a presence in more than 50 countries.

“This is really important technology that doesn’t just affect North American students,” said David Liu, Knewton’s chief operating officer. “Students in other countries want it, too. They need it.”

Liu said Knewton is also in discussions with publishers and countries in other parts of the world, including Australia and in Asia. He said he expects Knewton to be powering products in Brazil by the end of the year.

See Page 2 for details on why Knewton’s partnership with Cambridge University Press is so significant.

Knewton collects millions of data points [4] from its users to create models that can be broken down to help with individual learning. If a student is struggling at biology, for example, maybe it’s not because the student is inherently bad at science, but because he never really learned algebra, the data could find.

The software can then recommend additional assignments in that area.

The partnership is Knewton’s sixth collaboration with a major publisher. The company is also partners with Pearson [5], Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Triumph Learning, Wiley, and MacMillan Education.

That Knewton was already working with MacMillan makes its partnership with Cambridge University Press especially significant, as the two publishers provide ostensibly the same kind of service.

While their platforms may differ in many ways, both Cambridge University Press and MacMillan use Knewton specifically for English Language Teaching.

“The industry is really coming to understand that Knewton is this very open and objective platform,” Liu said. “For this to happen, the industry needs to understand that you can absolutely work with Knewton to be the best they can be to get these competency driven outcomes, to make learning more personal. People are starting to not be at all bothered by the fact that their competitors are using the same platform.”

Follow Jake New on Twitter at @eCN_Jake [6].