As Ed-tech apps gain prominence among education institutes globally due to lockdowns forced by the COVID-19 outbreak, Microtraction has invested in Nigerian ed-tech startup Gradely.
The artificial intelligence-enabled educational tool now joins a growing list of Nigerian startups backed by Microtraction.
It is unclear how much capital Gradely secured from the fundraising, but this investment came after Microtraction announced that it has changed its standard deal by increasing its investment to $25,000.
The investment in Gradely is the first for Microtraction this year and according to the investment firm, the Nigerian startup is closing the gap in Nigeria’s educational system and taking advantage of the COVID-19 crisis.
“Nigeria has repeatedly reported abysmal performances in the annual private West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
“Factors such as low access to quality education, which is connected to a dearth of funds in Nigeria’s education sector, low quality of learning resources, are hindering students making it difficult for them to pass core subjects like Mathematics and English Language.
“Gradely is addressing this problem by helping parents and teachers get a hang of these issues early in the student’s journey, reduce reliance on the government’s funding of the sector and prevent repeat mass failures,” Microtraction said
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What does Microtraction see in Gradely? Gradely is used by parents and teachers to identify learning gaps of their children and students, with the AI-driven educational tool.
The tool was designed to provide recommendations and close the identified gaps through personalised homework as well as other periodic tests that can be taken by kids, teachers, and parents.
It also recommends educational products and services to buy and offers live online tutoring. There are over 4,500 Math practice questions and more than 80 video lessons for WASSCE and International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE). Gradely is being utilised by about 70 schools to digitise homework for their students.
These are some features that lured Microtraction during the fundraising, “Gradely launches at a time when most schools are looking to explore digital learning for the first time. Gradely’s laser focus on getting intelligible insights from the student’s work is what truly differentiates them and underscores their desire to make an impact in the collective growth and educational journey of each student in Sub-Saharan Africa.”
Microtraction added that “We believe that Gradely’s approach moves us closer to improving the country’s recurring mass failure in certificate examinations thereby producing qualified students that are ready for the next chapter of their educational journey.
“We are confident in the team’s ability to pull this off by driving improved retention and results for primary and secondary school students in Africa.”
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How COVID-19 is fuelling demand for ed-tech: Demand for ed-tech platforms has risen since the outbreak of the disease globally. Home-schooling has become a culture among schools due to the lockdown which has restricted movement. So with the surge in demand for eplatform-based education, investing in startups like Gradely is rewarding to Microtraction.
With this investment, Gradely becomes one of the many Nigerian startups that have received financial support from Microtraction.
Some of the startups in Microtraction’s portfolio include Accounteer, Riby, Thank U Cash, CowryWise, Wallet.ng, Schoolable, 54gene, Termii and Festival Coins. Ghana’s Bit Sika has also secured funding from Microtraction.
