BrandVoice
In a world of multiple careers and occupations, continuous learning is nothing short of a necessity, and what’s more convenient than studying from one’s own home, at flexible hours, and in your pyjamas? The phenomenon of online studies “exploded” during the COVID-19 lockdowns, when the Campus IL – the national e-learning infrastructure – a joint initiative of the Israel National Digital Agency and the Council for Higher Education – experienced a sharp 300% increase in the number of users.
Today, about 650,000 students study using the platform that has changed the rules of the game in the learning industry. They learn a variety of fields in Hebrew, Arabic and English: from history studies to data science, from psychometric studies, matriculation, language and Excel studies, to courses in biology, statistics and mathematics. In total, the platform offers more than 400 courses that are produced by over 85 of Israel’s best content partners.
When it comes to e-learning in the 21st century in Israel, Campus IL managed to “move the needle”. “The Campus IL team, together with dozens of government and academia partners, brings the digital learning revolution and the tidings of the democratization of education to Israel on a daily basis,” explains Asaf Weiss, substitute director of the Campus IL project. “There are already over 650 thousand students in Israel who enjoy the best courses in Israel free of charge, and thus progress in terms of occupation, acquire skills and expand their horizons.”
Narrowing the gaps and creating growth
Indeed, it is a platform that enables social mobility, social gap reduction, and accelerated economic growth, led – for the first time – by a state. But innovation does not end there, and the continuous learning is not intended only for those who want to expand their horizons – it is also a driving force for companies that are continuously required to train their employees for the ever-changing working world, the frequently-changing technologies and the soft skills required in this new world.
The State of Israel has changed the rules of the game for the learning platforms in large organizations in Israel. E & M Computing, one of the largest integration companies in Israel, won the infrastructure tender for the Campus IL project through its subsidiary, MidLink, for many years to come. Following the win, and thanks to other opportunities worldwide, an online learning unit – CampusGlobal, led by Roi Shillo, was established at E & M computing, which provides comprehensive learning solutions for large, multinational organizations and public sector organizations.
These organizations can use the technological platform that has been developed and is already at their disposal, to integrate their unique content and train their employees in accordance with the specific needs of the said companies.
“Since 2016, I believed that large educational organizations should implement open-source-based learning platforms, because when rapid growth and complex implementation processes are at stake, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts,” explains Shillo, who also serves as the Chief Architect of the Campus IL project through E & M Computing. “While the assets of these learning organizations are the courses, the learners and the learning methodologies – the platform provides the tools for making these assets grow and allows the learning organizations to invest most of their resources and put the full focus on their assets, namely, on the learners and the courses they need to teach, rather than on the learning platform, which they receive ready-made from the community.”
“Together with dozens of government and academia partners, we bring the digital learning revolution and the tidings of the democratization of education to Israel on a daily basis. Over 650 thousand students progress in terms of occupation, acquire skills and expand their horizons”.
Assaf Weiss, substitute Director of the Campus IL Project
Access anywhere at anytime
What is that open-source code that Campus IL shares with other organizations? The technological platform is based on Open EdX, an open-source platform that is used by over 110 million learners, more than 900 universities and tens of thousands of courses worldwide. The platform was also established in Israel with a developmental horizon, conversion to Hebrew and Arabic, and support for decades to come. In fact, MidLink has officially become the exclusive Open EdX partner in Israel.
“When learning organizations use an open source-based platform, they can collaborate on product development and share insights related to its use, while still advancing the organizational vision and developing their assets,” adds Shillo.
Another advantage of the platform is its installation on an AWS cloud infrastructure from Day 1, which enabled its adaptation to the rapid growth of recent years. This decision contributed fourfold. First, to the rapid deployment of the platform. Second, to the quick adaptation of the infrastructures to the changing loads. In addition, to share insights about the physical layout with large learning organizations around the world, that have chosen AWS as their cloud solution (such as Pearson – globally), and above all, to meet the strictest information security and privacy standards. The system further proved itself during the Covid-19 pandemic, for example, when the learning systems of other learning companies collapsed due to the internet overload, and it also demonstrated its resistance to repeated cyber-attacks targeting the government sector.
According to Shai Cohen, CEO of MidLink, “the implementation of the system on the AWS cloud infrastructure allows us to quickly install the system and make it accessible anytime and anywhere, while maintaining high performance, information security and optimizing costs that are natural derivatives of the use of the cloud. In addition, Midlink provides its clients with FinOps services, and regularly makes adjustments to the services provided by AWS, as well as to the pricing plans, all in order to guarantee the client maximum cost optimization, without compromising on the quality of the service and on performance.”
Start-up Nation
Other countries that see the potential for social and occupational leadership for their citizens are looking to the Israeli breakthrough, another project from the start-up nation. The platform does not only offer academic courses – some of which grant eligibility for academic credit points – but also practical and professional courses, in collaboration with the Work Division at the Economic Center and life skills courses such as using Excel and Word, preparing for job interviews and how to start a business.
“The State has changed the perception of learning,” says Shillo, “and makes learning accessible to disadvantaged populations. We see a very wide range of learners who receive the highest quality content from all places in the country, including Dimona and Kiryat Shmona, and including Tel Aviv.”
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