The E-learning Miracle

By staff reporter ZHOU LIN

August marks the first anniversary of xue.taobao.com, an online education platform along the lines of Taobao (the Chinese online shopping website equivalent to eBay and Amazon). Nipping at its heels, having appeared last November, is Google’s new product Helpout, a C2C (consumer-to-consumer) e-learning platform. This successive branching out of Internet giants into the e-learning marketplace will undoubtedly have a positive impact on both online subscribers and retailers. Before the Internet became commonplace, high quality education was beyond the reach of the broad masses. Now it is accessible to everyone.

This “silver surfer” is proficient in the use of PCs and tablets for learning at Tianjin Senior Citizen University.

Having gained his MA in engineering management from a prestigious university, Chen Bo started work at a state-owned enterprise as project budget manager. Last November, after subscribing to an online course on Taobao, he obtained certification as a level-A cost estimator. “You can buy whatever you want on the Internet. Buyers’ ratings and reviews make it easy to select the cheapest, most appropriate options. Nowadays more than ever, time is money. E-learning saves time and energy and also gives us the freedom to learn whatever we need at any time.”

Chen Bo went on to say that besides career development considerations, online learning also complements college courses that are out of pace with today’s social requirements. “Young engineers lack the practical experience gained through field work. But a well-designed online learning program makes an engineering project as clear to me as if I were actually on site.”

E-learning in China has gone through three stages – from distance education in rudimentary forms and formats, to online programs run by conventional training agencies, to direct involvement and greater contributions from Internet companies. Both business model and products associated with this new type of learning have evolved into multiple choices with immense consumer appeal.

Taobao’s riposte to pervasive skepticism after the announcement of its entry into the education domain was, “We are providing tools – the educational equivalents of sand, cement, and shovel.” Taobao has since verified this intent. Its xue.taobao.com operates as a platform where customers purchase knowledge and skills in the same way as they would goods – a “supermarket of learning for all” as the company describes itself. As in any store, the website displays the products of all relevant commercial concerns, and is responsible for their marketing and maintenance. Its profits come from fees charged to suppliers for placement of their products, and commissions on sales. As an online business for both B2C and B2B customers, Taobao provides a platform for both businesses and individuals to optimize their self-worth and transform conventional education modes.