Technology

Posted on October 26, 2018 by staff

EdTech platform tackles ‘parental guilt’ over devices

Technology

EdTech platform Azoomee is on a mission to help tackle the guilt many parents feel when letting their children use technology says company co-founder and CEO Douglas Lloyd.

The e-learning app, which helps kids enjoy learning while ensuring they’re safe online, is live in 60 countries with plans to more than double that by the end of the year.

Having recently opened an office in Luxembourg as part of the company’s growing relationship with Vodafone, Lloyd says the team is on a mission to help parents get the screen time balance right for their kids.

“Most platforms for kids are heavy on the entertainment or are pure education,” he told BusinessCloud.

“What’s missing, and not just in the UK, is a product that gives parents a way of supplementing what’s going on in the classroom and makes them feel good because the kids are having fun but also learning.

“Our motto is ‘play to learn, learn to play’ and the emphasis is on parents seeing concrete benefits – it also assuages the guilt so many parents feel, unreasonably, when giving a device to their child.”

Lloyd doesn’t believe it’s realistic to ban kids from devices, so it’s vital that parents don’t back away from tech but are more aware of the different types of screen time.

On Azoomee this can mean watching a tutorial to learn origami, or playing a game where they get attacked by a bat if they get their sums wrong.

“Our children’s future depends on being tech savvy so it’s the responsibility of parents to get their tech time right,” he said.

“Everything should be in moderation, whether that’s sweets or devices, so it’s understanding play can be physical and offline or online. Above all parents should be more aware of what kids are doing because there’s screen time and then there’s screen time.”

One mistake Lloyd sees parents making is that the judgements and criteria they use for themselves they don’t use on their kids.

“Parents should ask themselves what is acceptable for them and their kids,” he said.

“Do they feel their kids should be advertised to? Some may not care. Do they feel they should be able to buy things without their approval? Are they comfortable with them being approached by strangers or reading comments from strangers?

“Parents are time-poor but despite that they can make some conscious decisions and say ‘these things are wrong’, in the same way they wouldn’t let their kids go to the shops by themselves before a certain age.”