Singapore tutoring startup takes a unique approach to personalized learning

Traditional school systems are often too rigid and structured, leaving little room for student autonomy. More often than not, students are led through a set course that’s decided for them.

“When does a student get asked the question, ‘What would you like to learn today?’ Effectively, never,” Devi Sahny, CEO and founder of Singapore-based edtech startup Ascend Now, tells Tech in Asia.

Ascend Now founder and CEO Devi Sahny / Photo credit: Ascend Now

Founded in 2018, Ascend Now offers a premier online tutoring service that puts the passions and interests 0f students at the center of their learning experience.

According to its chief exec, many learners aspire to do the best they can but often need guidance on where they need to exert effort in. She adds that many children now lack self-awareness about how they learn, what they enjoy learning, and what career path is best suited for them, which is a problem the firm is committed to solve.

Going against the norm

According to one estimate, revenue for the global edtech space could reach about US$40.9 billion this year.

Some companies that are trying to get a larger share of the market include personalized online learning platform Geniebook, live tutoring firm Tenopy, and ManyTutors, an online marketplace for group tuition classes.

One of the biggest players is India’s Byju’s, whose valuation just crossed the US$10 billion mark earlier this year, making it the highest-valued edtech startup in its home country. Next to it is live tutoring startup Vedantu, which is valued at US$600 million.

To stand out from the already crowded edtech space, Ascend Now focuses on how tutoring is delivered.

“Teaching entrepreneurship to a seventh grader is not that difficult, but organizing a mentor program where the student debates Harvard Business School case studies, pitches his or her own business to real investors, and identifies real customers for their value proposition is kind of exciting,” Sahny says.

According to the company’s website, Ascend Now delivers personalized one-to-one and group classes that sharpen learners’ critical thinking through games, competitions, and debates, among other innovative methods of learning. It targets students ages six to 18.

The startup boasts an expansive list of offerings, including test preparations, International Baccalaureate courses such as math and language, and advanced placement courses like history and biology.

Once students select a course, Ascend Now provides them with a standardized test to gauge how they can best grasp content. Teachers then take the results of the exam and craft a curriculum together with the students to further align the program with their goals.

Its customers can choose between 20-hour, 40-hour, or annual membership plans to access the courses. Meanwhile, teachers registered on the company’s platform work on a freelance basis.

Fight or flight