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See how this Swedish Startup is making bite size learning frictionless

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Bite-Size learning is the “in thing” when it comes to enriching learning experiences. Bite sized pieces of content are easy to consume, enable us to learn more in less time and often enhance our learning experiences by using the right combination of images, graphics and text, all in the technology enabled milieu.

Harnessing the potential of bite size learning using the right blend of technology and making learning fun is Dailybitsof, a Sweden based Startup. Founded in 2015 by Niklas Laninge, Björn Henriksson and Mathias Eriksson, dailybitsof was created as a ‘tool to help people create a daily habit of learning something new.”

“We founded the company based on the frustration that most online learning outlets weren’t designed to fit our lives. We rarely got around to spend 20-60 minutes a day on classical e-learning so we set out to create something that would be so frictionless that everyone using it would have a hard time not to learn something from it. Email was the natural format for this since most people check their email obsessively during the day. Our first version quickly got traction and soon external experts wanted to create courses for our platform.” said Niklas Laninge to Times of Startups.

Initially relying on the emails for sending information nuggets to the subscribers of the courses, dailybitsof soon realized the potential of messaging apps and how they can be integrated with their platform to make bite size learning even more seamless.

“Björn, Mathias and I were amazed by the potential of messaging apps for years. During a trip to Zimbabwe in 2013, I was stunned by how crucial WhatsApp was for entrepreneurs in that region. Mathias had a similar experience from Telegram during his many visits to Iran. And we all had heard about Wechat and how that messaging-app was sort of the new operating system for smartphone-users.

This is why in 2015, we set out to be a message-first company since that would be a great way to make learning even more frictionless. We started out with experimenting with Slack and Telegram but as soon as we learned about Facebook opening up Messenger, we decided to focus on that platform for two reasons: 1. Facebook being Facebook. 2. Looking at who uses our service and who uses Messenger told us that the platform would be a perfect fit.” added Niklas.

Last year, Facebook announced Bots for Messenger at F8 , its annual developers conference. Facebook Messenger bot allows users do everything from asking for News updates to receiving shopping notifications through Facebook messenger. Dailybitsof was one of the earliest platforms to adopt Messenger bot.

“When we started out there were some 300 developer in the messenger community. As of now it’s close to 50 000 of us. Looking at what bots people are developing it’s clear that the best usecase for a bot is still…unclear. We see a lot of ecommerce bots but I’d say that content delivery is one of the best applications of bots.”dailybitsof bite size learning 1

Talking about the challenges associated with the bot feature, Niklas said that discovery has been a real challenge. “Still”, he says that “around 20,000 people have tried the bot. About half have converted into active users taking courses and we are retaining +30% of them. Facebook have helped us by driving traffic to the bot but that traffic have sometimes been irrelevant so we’re really looking forward to see their new discovery feature.”

However, the way dailybitsof have integrated bot in their platoform makes it useful for the learners who belong to a younger dmography. Talking about the user profile of dailybitsof, Niklas said that most of the users are either email or Messenger users. The messenger platform is being used by the younger audience (18-25 years old). Some users enjoy both the formats; they use email for more work-related courses and the bot for courses that are more personal.

“With our bot we are trying to emulate a teacher. So it’s not just content but you will also get a simple for of a teacher nudging you to reflect, apply and think about what you are learning. This is really were having a bot is amazing!” he added.

When asked about the future of bite size learning, Niklas said that, the whole idea of of bite size learning to him is to make learning frictionless.

“When I hear about Elon Musk’s new company that will wire up your brain, I instantly think that we are getting closer to learning new skills the way they do it in the Matrix, upload it straight to your context!.

In short term I think we’ll see more innovation when it comes to when and were you will get your learning delivered. This of course needs to be highly personalized to avoid friction. I’m not too fond of videos, I think what people at Blinkist are doing with audio is really inspiring. And imagine when you can connect services like ours, with audio, to Google Home and Amazon Echo. It will be like having a private tutor next to you at all time ready to share bite-sized knowledge that will help you live better.” he added.

Some courses worth considering on Dailybitsof.

Hacking Human Nature For Good written by Professor Dan Ariely. So far close to 10 000 people have taken his course Another success, from a less known author, is How to beat procrastination by researcher and psychologist Alexander Rozental.

 

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Education

Top Tips For 2018: Student Loan Hacks

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Taking a loan is not a bad thing, sometimes it becomes a tool to grow faster and sometimes it is the only option you have. People take different kinds of loans in order to fulfill their immediate or long term goals. From taking loans from institutions to taking personal loans for starting a business and from taking home loans to taking a loan for your education.

Student life is not a piece of cake, especially when you have taken loans. Taking loans can be easy, but it is the part that comes after that is difficult. Repaying loans is not easy in any way, and when the interest keeps adding up, the situation only gets worse. Click here to find out more. Here are some student loan hacks you can follow.

  1. Pay While In School

One way you can minimize your student loans is if you start to pay the interest while you are in school, so your loan does not get bigger. Many student loans provide the option to students where they can defer paying while they are still in school. However, if you are a graduate student, the interest on your federal student loans is very much your responsibility. If you pay now, it will be a lot better and easier because no excessive will be added in your principal balance.

  1. Get Scholarships

Most students go straight towards loan options when you have so many other better options. Before you consider applying for loans, try applying for scholarships and other programs. They can help you just as much, and there will not be any debt on your shoulder that you will need to pay back.

  1. Earn Cash Back

Did you know that you can get paid for the things you normally do every day, such as shopping and eating out?! Well, you can, and you should start thinking about it too! Maybe the dollar amounts are not that huge, but every big thing starts small. If you link your credit card to your Upromise account, the dollars will add up over time. You can also invite your family to join in.

  1. Keep Track Of Your Loans

If you know that you will be facing problems regarding loans and their repayment, you should start thinking big. Start getting organized; it is never too early to do that. You can lose track of your loans very easily with your studies and extracurricular activities going on. You should make a plan about how you are going to repay. Make a list of all of your student loans and include every detail starting from names to contact information. Record the amount you are owed, the interest rate, and when you are supposed to give it all back. Breakdown your federal student loans, if you can.

  1. Tax Write-Off

Take advantage of the student loan interest deduction allows you to deduct up to $2,000 in private and federal student loan interest. Take advantage of this policy. You can claim this money even if you do not itemize.

  1. Auto-Debit

There is an offer that many lenders have. In this offer, there can be an interest rate reduction of if you sign up for auto-debit. What happens is that every month, your loan payment will be deducted from your bank account automatically. You can save up to $300 in interest for every $10,000 that you have borrowed.

Follow these tips and make your life easier!

About the Author:

The article has been written by Taylor Hill for Times of Startups. Taylor works for a financial technology company Stilt located in San Francisco which is revolutionizing the way individuals with limited or zero credit history get loans in the U.S.

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Computer Programming for kids; why now and not later

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If grade-schoolers are taught biology and mathematics in order to understand the world around them, then knowing the basics of how computers communicate—and how to engage with them—should be a given. There is virtually no field that doesn’t use computers in its day to day operation. Be it medicine, construction, legal services etc., every field involves the usage of computers and coding skills give a definite advantage to the people involved in these fields.

Understanding the importance of coding in the present times, various initiatives have been taken both by the government and private players to improve the coding skills of young children. For example, few years back, Google  launched an initiative called “Made With Code”, aimed at getting young women excited about learning to code and close the gender gap in the tech industry. The idea behind this initiative was to show young girls that the things they love, from apps on their smartphones to their favorite movies are made with code, and they can apply the skills they learn to their own individual passions.

Still, there is a great disparity between the percentage of men and women who can code. In the United States, for example, Women currently hold only 24% of the jobs in computing—a level that has held steady since 2011. What’s worse is that the situation doesn’t seem to turn around for good in the near future. That percentage is likely to fall to 22% by 2025 if no new efforts are made to create and sustain young women’s interest in computing, from junior high to university.According to various Federal reports, the share of women computer science majors in the US dropped from 34% in 1984 to 18% in 2017.

The gender gap in computing doesn’t just impact women’s earnings by leaving them out of key industries like medicine, engineering, dentistry etc. Eventually, the lack of gender diversity in a workplace impacts a company’s competitiveness as it attempts to navigate new business models using technology.

Globally too, there has been a decline in the number of women involved in computing roles thereby impacting their participation in the above mentioned fields simply because of computational and other fields are intertwined in modern times.

It has been seen that young children generally show sparking interest in junior high school, before their interest falling in high school, eventually their interest level reaching an all time low by the time they reach college. The way computer science is taught to young minds matters the most apart from other contributing factors.

What parents in America should do to create interest in coding among children?

Learning to code prepares kids for the world we live in today. There are tons of jobs and occupations that use code directly, like web designers, software developers and robotics engineers, and even more where knowing how to code is a huge asset—jobs in manufacturing, nanotechnology, medicine or information sciences. Some educators and experts are calling it the ‘new literacy’—a subject so important that every child needs to know the basics to excel in our rapidly changing world.

Apart from various government initiatives targeted towards improving the level of computational knowledge among children, parents have a big role too in generating interest among children in coding. Given the relevance of coding in various jobs one pursues after college, if you think your kids are too young to learn to code? Think again.

Four- and five-year-olds should learn the foundations of coding and computer commands along with learning to write and spell words. Older kids can learn to code through classes, mentors and online tutorials.

For starter, coding should be made fun. And what’s fun for children? Without an iota of doubt, it is playing games! Code Ninjas provides a unique solution in this regard by providing a place where gaming is celebrated as kids gain confidence in coding, logic, and problem solving. Code Ninjas creates a high-quality, continuous curriculum that lets kids grow and learn, no matter where they start. All this while, the children feel that they are having fun. Coding games and toys equip kids with 21st-century skills!

code ninjas

Another important thing that parents can do is to make sure that students are in contact with role models and inspiring teachers. There is no dearth of role models in the tech field. From Bill Gates to Susan Wijcicki, Belinda Parmer, Juliana Rotich, your child’s name just to name a few of the hundreds of role models to look up to.

Moreover, as discussed above, because young women are more likely to be interested in taking up careers that can help bring positive change in the world. If parents emphasize how computers can help solve problems, girls are going to be more likely to get interested in coding.

Conclusion

By 2019, 51% of all Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) jobs are projected to be in computer science-related fields, according to a White House fact sheet. The federal government alone needs an additional 10,000 IT and cybersecurity professionals, and the private sector needs many more. Computer science is not only important for the tech sector but also for a growing number of industries, including transportation, healthcare, education, and financial services, that are using software to transform their products and services. In fact, more than two-thirds of all tech jobs are outside the tech sector.

At CodeNinjas, their standards are high and their impact is immeasurable. Code Ninjas is Enrolling Now. Waitlist available if full.

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Education

Here’s how Code Ninjas is making Coding fun for young children in the US

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Piano, Violin, Art, Kumon, and Mandarin lessons are just some of the skills we parents are desperately trying to impart onto our children to give them the edge we foresee as worthwhile. However, we neglect the game changer, a skill set many deem to be on the same plane as Math, Reading and Writing-CODING also known as computer programming, or computer literacy.

According to the US Department of Labor, one million jobs in computing will go unfilled by 2020. The biggest reason for these positions being not filled— lack of skilled candidates.

Though there has been a national movement to teach computing to students in schools across the country, the results have not been so encouraging. Moreover, the phenomenon of “pop computing” is on the rise, in which light version of computer science is catered to the students. This has seriously degraded the quality of coding skills among the students.

In this age, without an iota of doubt, one can assert that the knowledge of computer programming among children is very important for them securing a lucrative career in most fields. The world is advancing in technology at an unimaginable pace and those who do not know how to code will be locked out of this mandatory skill set.

Tackling this challenge head on is Code Ninjas, Code Ninjas solves the most fundamental problems involved in equipping children with the right coding skills at an early stage. The idea behind Code Ninjas is to create “Problem solvers of tomorrow “.

For many students, coding experience is not fun all the time. Existing after-school programs are boring and parents have to drag kids there. Existing online materials are too hard for kids to understand by themselves. Kids like to play and have fun, while parents want to see real results.Moreover, everybody wants their kids to be social, but screen time at home is a solitary exercise.

Wouldn’t it be great if one could impart coding skills in children by letting them do what they love the most- i.e. playing games? Code Ninjas provides a unique solution in this regard by providing a place where gaming is celebrated as kids gain confidence in coding, math, logic, and problem solving.

Code Ninjas creates a high-quality, continuous curriculum that lets kids grow and learn, no matter where they start.
Code Ninjas also offers an easy-to-follow system, with support and encouragement from a Code Sensei as well as fellow students. Code Ninja’s biggest USP is that the kids aren’t aware that they’re learning – they assume that they are just having fun.

Computing jobs allow economic mobility and great earning potential over the course of a career. Kids in the US are falling behind the rest of the world in STEM subjects. Moreover, schools don’t have time or resources to meet demand for quality coding education. As justified by the US Government’s own statistics available in various reports, a national non-STEM job opening is filled in about 33 days, compared to 56 days for jobs that require programming skills and 65 days for mobile developing. Thus, it is only wise to impart coding skills at a very early age and doing this in a way kids love will definitely yield good results.

Equip your child with being creators, producers and innovators of technology not SOLELY consumers of technology.

Enroll today, space is limited.https://www.codeninjas.com/enroll/ca-palos-verdes

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