Key Tech Challenges in Edtech and How to Navigate Them 

Edtech is currently one of the fastest-evolving areas in business application development. A few years ago, the COVID-19 pandemic forced schools to embrace remote learning, prompting widespread technological adoption. Ever since, the edtech market has been growing rapidly — and is now projected to reach $232.9 billion by 2027.

However, rapid growth brings challenges. In this article, we will outline the main tech hurdles edtech startups and businesses are struggling to overcome and explain how partnering with a reliable custom software application development company can help. But first, let's explore the current state of the edtech market and its major trends.

The edtech market's growth isn't just about the size — it's also about technological progress. As schools seek digital tools for traditional tasks like grading and learning management, edtech companies find themselves under increasing pressure to innovate. To meet evolving customer demands, they must develop state-of-the-art solutions that transform educational processes rather than just support them.

Yet, no matter if your edtech product is a simple automation tool or ground-breaking software, it’s crucial to keep it competitive. Following edtech trends is a core step towards achieving this goal. Here are the most prominent tendencies:

• Adaptive learning: providing students with personalized learning experiences adjusted to their individual goals, preferences, and learning pace. 
• Gamification: incorporating game elements into an eLearning process to make it more engaging and maximize student outcomes.
• AI integration: creating AI-powered learning environments that customize learning journeys to unique students’ needs, provide interactive guidance, and streamline routine tasks.
• Mobile learning: bringing more flexibility and convenience to the learning process by allowing students to access educational content, tests, and other resources via their smartphones.
• Big data and analytics: gathering and analyzing learning data to gain valuable insights into learners' behaviors, interactions, and performance.
• Automated assessment: using technology to automatically evaluate and grade students' work. 

Given that, you might assume that keeping up with the industry dynamics guarantees success in the edtech sector. However, the reality is far more nuanced. Every business application development project comes with its hurdles. Let’s explore these, too.

Launching a new edtech product is far from easy, even with so many opportunities up for grabs today for startups and established businesses. Here are some of the biggest tech roadblocks you may encounter along the way. 

Achieving product-market fit 

Like in other niches, merely having a great idea is not enough. To successfully complete an edtech tailor-made software development project, you must ensure that your product meets the specific needs of its target audience. The task is often complex since education involves multiple stakeholders, each with their own needs — including teachers, parents, students, and school administrators. Plus, it’s important to consider the existing competition and make sure your product offers something valuable and new. 

Expertise in new technologies

Developing a cutting-edge edtech product requires special skills and know-how in new technologies. Many edtech companies have skilled in-house teams, but depending solely on them when creating innovative solutions is rarely the best idea. An in-house team can hardly track all the technological changes. The lack of expertise can slow down project progress and jeopardize its quality.

An intuitive UX design

In edtech, the user base typically includes students of different ages, their parents with varying tech skills, and educators, some of them uncomfortable with using technologies in teaching. Creating a UX that works well for everyone is quite a feat. The complexity of educational workflows with all the steps and interactions and the need to ensure accessibility for all users, including those with disabilities, only adds to the challenge. 

Ensuring scalability

Another roadblock to success in the edtech sector is adapting your product’s infrastructure to the growing user base with no compromises on its performance or user experience. As the number of users climbs, conflicting priorities become inevitable. On the one hand, you need to release new features to keep up with user demands and competition. On the other hand, you have to scale up, ensuring that your product is fast and responsive across the increasing user base.  

These challenges might hinder your edtech product's success, but the good news is that you can overcome them by partnering with an experienced custom software application development company. Let’s talk about this next.

When you commission custom application development services, you don’t just add more people to your team. IT outsourcing companies usually have broad experience in development projects within a specific niche. It means they can help you avoid common pitfalls, ensuring smooth development and successful outcome. Here’s what you get when opting for such collaboration: 

• A clear product vision. Outsourcing partners can do thorough market research to identify target audiences and assess competitors. The findings will help you refine your product vision and achieve product-market fit.
• Access to specialized expertise. An IT outsourcing partner provides the expertise your edtech project requires, including knowledge of new technologies your in-house team may lack.
• Focus on innovation. Outsourcing non-core IT tasks allows edtech companies to concentrate on product innovation, delegating non-strategic technical tasks to external experts.
• Faster time-to-market. With the right product vision and expertise, you have better chances of bringing your edtech product to market faster, gaining a competitive edge.
• Increased development capacity. Working with an IT outsourcing company boosts your development capacity, allowing you to manage multiple priorities (like scalability and new feature development) effectively.

Do keep in mind, though, that these benefits hinge entirely on partnering with a trustworthy provider of custom application development services. Choosing an IT outsourcing company with relevant experience and a solid reputation backed by positive reviews is essential.

The edtech sector disrupts the traditional learning process, offering a slew of opportunities for innovation and investment. That said, edtech startups and businesses can face significant tech challenges as they try to tap into them. Finding a product-market fit, staying on the cutting edge of technology, designing user-friendly interfaces, and ensuring scalability are only some of them. Securing the backing of a reliable IT outsourcing partner is paramount to sidestep common tech roadblocks of tailor-made software development projects.