In Maharashtra’s Jalgaon district, the story of 15-year old Annapurna Jadhav unfolds—a tale of determination amid life’s challenges. Annapurna had lost her father due to severe health issues, leaving her mother to single-handedly support their family by working at a mat-making company.

Amidst the turmoil of pandemic-induced lockdowns, education for millions of students nationwide almost came to a standstill, particularly affecting children like Annapurna in India’s remote regions. Amidst this uncertainty, a beacon of hope emerged when VOPA, an ed-tech startup, visited her school and introduced their free solution called V-School – which aimed to democratise digital learning among underserved students in Maharashtra’s rural areas.

VOPA’s innovative super app, that hosts educational content in vernacular languages like Marathi, Urdu, and semi-English, was looking to transform traditional learning paradigms. For Annapurna, V-School transcended beyond an app; it became a catalyst for change. Its free, accessible resources, from videos to MCQs, offered a lifeline to tackle the structural challenges that in-person learning presented. Subjects like Maths and Science, once daunting, became comprehensible with V-School’s engaging modules and interactive features.

Instead of having to rely on expensive tuition which her family couldn’t afford, V-School gave her the flexibility to study at her own pace, propelling her to become the top user of the V-School App in the Taluka. Beyond assessing her learning levels, V-School equipped Annapurna with resources to bridge learning gaps, circumventing the limitations of traditional student assessments conducted by school teachers.

“The lessons on the V-School app helped me a lot in my board examinations. The MCQs were also helpful in scoring high marks,” Annapurna reflects, “I was able to secure 93.6% only because of V-School and my school teacher. I dream of becoming a District Collector someday. I know I can!” 

With the integration of cutting-edge technology like the ChatGPT API, VOPA is addressing existing gaps in the ed-tech industry, particularly in providing contextualised learning platforms that offer affordable education to India’s underserved populations. As online learning becomes increasingly integral to India’s education system, VOPA’s solution endeavours to bridge these disparities and make learning more accessible and impactful for all. 

Annapurna’s story underscores the transformative power of technology in empowering students to shape their dreams into reality!