New Delhi, Dec 28 (IANS): For many reasons, the year 2020 has been significant for the education sector in India. To start with, the year saw a renewed focus by the government on online education and the recognition that technology will play a key role in the sector not just to increase its reach but also to create more inclusiveness of higher education in the country. The year also saw the rise and wide acceptance of Ed-Tech companies in the education space.

Talentedge, India's leading Ed-Tech firm which was the first to bring 'Live & Interactive' learning through the virtual world to create greater accessibility to high quality education, has witnessed a two-fold increase in its revenue numbers in the past two years owing to a tremendous spike in enquiries, partnerships and admissions in 2020.

During the year, the country saw the pace of online education pick up with a number of new players entering the market with serious offerings. According to some estimates, more than 4,500 EdTech start-ups came up during this period. EdTech start-ups also raised over $2.2 billion in investments. Some of the big names that are active in this space include Talentedge, Eruditus, Vedantu and Byjus.

This year, Talentedge added 15 new course offerings to its portfolio, taking the total number of learner centric courses to over 250. Among them, some of the most preferred courses included HR, Analytics, Leadership, Strategy and Marketing. Additionally, the company added over eight premier institutions to its existing list of highly-reputed academic partners and surpassed 17.5 million learning hours.

Online education will get further established in the country and get the seriousness it has always deserved. EdTech companies will play a major role in this as they will reach education to all even as colleges and schools remain closed.

The New National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 put an increased focus on higher education across the country as well as on technology in education. It has also put a focus on online education. This is where Ed-Tech companies will step in to educate people not just in the K12 segment but in the higher education segment as well.

There will also be a demand for executive education. Talentedge is a leader in the Executive Education segment and is looking to more than double its workforce in 2021. Due to the surge in inquiries and admissions, Talentedge has already added 250 plus employees and also bolstered its leadership team for its journey ahead in 2021 and beyond.

Distance learning will also become a more pressing reality. With the NEP allowing the top 100 universities to award degrees online, we will see students from remote parts getting degrees from recognized universities from anywhere in the country.

While replicating the classroom in the digital world, Talentedge enables students to have live and interactive sessions which allow active engagement. Talentedge aims to build a larger Ed-Tech ecosystem with the highest education standards that drive outcome-based learning as opposed to degree based learning. It is constantly adding various value-added services to its platform.