Nordic EdTech News #2 : 2019-09-16
Your Week 36 & 37 news update from the Nordic & Baltic EdTech ecosystems
It’s a big week for Nordic EdTech with Dare to Learn taking place in Helsinki this Thursday and Friday (19/20 September). I’m excited to be attending - please drop me an email (hello@10digits.org) if you’d like to meet up there.
Dare to Learn is again hosting the Scandinavian semi-finals of the 2019 GESAwards, the world’s largest EdTech startup competition. Ten brilliant startups will be pitching for a place at the global finals at BETT next January. Good luck!
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Regional news
Registrations are open for EdTest - a fantastic initiative from Edtech Southeast Sweden for companies to test their product with Swedish teachers and pupils. Apply here before 23rd September.
I’m sure that this will also be on the agenda at The Edtech Day at Oslo Innovation Week (25 September), which brings together expert colleagues from Finland, Norway and Sweden. Full details here.
Edtech Finland have begun approving member applications. Sign up now via this link.
The OECD launch ‘Education at a Glance 2019’ with invaluable national reports for all Baltic and Nordic nations. (Link)
Sanoma Learning receives the go ahead to acquire Iddink Group - and will create “..user-friendly digital learning solutions for schools”. (Link)
xEdu’s Fall19 cohort starts today (16 September)! Follow updates here.
News from Denmark
Great reaction including on Product Hunt for the launch of Eduflow. It’s made by the team behind Peergrade.
Love the idea behind the KUBO VIP Club! First meeting took place recently and they’ve launched a series of future events for kids to get hands-on with their tech.
Labster launch their latest thought-leadership piece (on Virtual Labs in Science Education) and were identified as leading the way in educational VR. (Link)
Shape Robotics announce the launch of new Fable Start! set and showcase impact of Fable in a UK school. (Link)
News from Estonia
Cleveron opens a robotics academy in cooperation with Estonian Entrepreneurship University of Applied Sciences. (Link)
DigiEduHack is a global movement dedicated to solving digital education challenges. Their Tallinn event on 4th October 2019 seeks to redesign the learning experience - sign up here.
Compelling insights from DreamApply’s tech on trends for recruiting Indian students into universities globally. (Link)
Estonian president, Kersti Kaljulaid, highlights the importance of offering better education on democracy and human rights in Estonia’s school system. (Link)
Useful summary of the strengths of the Estonian education system from Kopal Maheshwari, N8 Country President (Link)
News from Finland
Big Ear Games sees more potential for music-learning apps (Link)
Edtech Finland announce lean innovation meetup for EdTech - well worth attending! (Link)
Eduten launch new maths guide - Digital Pedagogy and Learning:Making the Most of Technology in Your Classroom. (Link)
Freeed launches international community for English language teachers. (Link)
Google opens Digital Garage learning space in Helsinki and partners with Code School Finland. (Link)
Helsinki XR Centre opens - certainly one to watch as a hub for supporting “Next Generation EdTech”. (Link)
Kide Science announce their first deal in Thailand at the new Kensington Learning Space and participate (this week) in Tech BBQ EdTech panel.
School Day announces partnership with PowerSchool to support student wellbeing proposition. (Link)
News from Iceland
Kara Connect launch a new corporate film with a powerful story from their Founder. (Link)
The Vexa Group’s forthcoming event about creating with technology sounds like one not to miss. (Eng, Ice,)
Some interesting insights into Icelandic school education here. (Eng, Ice)
Two Icelandic gaming companies listed here in a round-up of start-ups to watch.
News from Latvia
Back to School resources and new functionality from Uzdevumi.lv. (Lat, Eng)
Physics teacher shares six years’ of resources and work online. Wow!
Riga TechGirls and Accenture launch a She Goes Tech fellowship program to provide women with core IT industry skills. (Latvian)
News from Lithuania
BitDegree celebrate their second birthday and co-founder Danielius Stasiulis receives a FERD's List Award. (Link) Congratulations!
Great Tech.eu report on the start-up landscape in Lithuania and Vilnius. (Link)
EdTech startups are encouraged to join official Lithuanian database. (Link)
News from Norway
Hubro Education highlight the use of simulations to make business courses more engaging. (Eng, Nor)
IKT Norge hail the export strength of national EdTech businesses and argue the case for increased teacher training and investment at home. (Eng, Nor)
Forthcoming guide announced to protect school children from harmful online content. (Eng, Nor)
Scrimba start charging for coding courses to great success, via Oslo Edtech Cluster. (Eng, Nor - subscription required)
VIGILO move into Sweden and join Swedish Edtech Industry. (Eng, Swe)
News from Sweden
Clio and Wizkids combine to create a better writing experience for Swedish school students. (Eng, Swe)
imagiLabs take over the Move to Stockholm Twitter account for a week, providing a great insight into the start-up scene over Stockholm Tech Week. (Link)
Andreas Fridell takes over as CEO at IST AB. (Link)
Sana Labs have created a comprehensive glossary of terms for AI in Education. (Link)
Sqore identified as Editor’s Pick on EdTechX 360 and their CEO talks about how universities need to adapt to the digital future of education. (Swedish)
Strawbees provide free lesson plans for inspiring STEAM teaching. (Link)
Important insight and forthcoming research on standardisation and interoperability in school tech systems via Swedish Edtech Industry. (Eng, Swe)
Vercity and Beyond Edtech Hub have invited Sarah Horrocks, London Connected Learning Centre, to a morning seminar on October 2 on Digital Learning and Inclusion. Sign up here.
Thanks for reading and see you again in two weeks!
Best regards, Jonathan
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