During his stay in the US for his PhD studies, Dr. Pan was struck by the substantial differences between the eastern and western teaching models. Foreign countries tend to adhere to an “experience is the best teacher” philosophy, while the Chinese believe that “rote memorization” is more effective. Dr. Pan realizes that while China is a very hard-working country, its educational system had stagnated, potentially hindering the progress of countless students.
With the intention of promoting educational reform in China, Dr. Pan established Saybot in 2004. Saybot utilizes interactive voice recognition, and was designed to help students practice English orally. The Saybot project was later incorporated into numerous online formats. In 2010, the platform became a full-fledged educational product provider under the brand name “ALO7”.
ALO7 currently employs 3,000 foreign teachers on its platform, 90% of whom are North American. The brand also boasts more than 50,000 paid users a year and cooperates with more than 100 well-known institutions (e.g., Oriental, Zhuo Yue, Only Education Institution). ALO7 has produced hundreds of its own songs, has over 60,000 copyrighted images, over 40,000 pictures, and numerous original animated products.
In 1994, Dr. Pan graduated from Zhejang University, where both his parents worked as teachers. He later stayed to teach computer and industrial-design-related courses. That year, Dr. Pan read a book entitled Digital Survival. The book detailed the advanced and progressive nature of the American information technology scene, which inspired him to apply for a PhD at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts. At MIT, his research focused on how to make machines smarter by programming them to learn. The key was giving machines the ability to mimic how the human mind grows and develops.
After completing his studies at MIT, Dr. Pan returned to China. When considering the small size of the campus at MIT, Dr. Pan noted that it was surprising that the school had produced 85 Nobel Prize winners. He concluded that a high quality of education is crucial to producing future leaders. He was further impressed by how knowledge acquired at MIT was later expressed freely and reinterpreted by its students. With the realization that this openness and creative aspect was lacking from the eastern educational system, Dr. Pan decided to pursue reform in China.
In 2009, the annual sales volume of Saybot reached 100,000. Despite this success, Dr. Pan and his team still faced many problems, such as low user numbers and programming difficulties. Improvements were made as the project expanded, and Dr. Pan gradually became more confident in the applicability of Saybot.
Dr. Pan believes that the production of his online learning tool was hindered by a widespread belief that the internet is not a proper forum for education. Furthermore, his initial triumph was mired by a series of technical and educational obstacles. However, he believes that perseverance was vital to his success, and that the difficult trial and error process was instrumental in driving the Saybot project forward. He states that overcoming obstacles is a natural process on the road to success.
In the years following the introduction of Saybot, numerous other voice recognition software programs began to appear. Alternative programs such as Liulishuo and Scallop in Shell Works reached 10 million users, collectively. Dr. Pan attributes the growth of the mobile internet, new productions in intelligent hardware, and increased user awareness to the growth in popularity of interactive voice-based software over the past decade.
Significant advances in hardware included new graphics cards, headsets, and other devices. These required fewer configurations than were needed previously, and were more easily integrated into software applications.
User awareness has also changed substantially. In the past, people were skeptical about non-traditional teaching methods, particularly those rooted in technology. It was believed that these modern approaches to teaching might be detrimental to student production.
Technology-based phonetic learning programs have expanded and improved substantially over the past decade. A growth in user volume and the expansion of the voice-based teaching market have driven these advancements. However, the technology has yet to be perfected, and the majority of platforms only provide of a basic level of recording and phonetic functions. Fortunately, artificial intelligence (AI) projects have attracted numerous entrepreneurs, producing a surge in financial support. Dr. Pan states that while many market insiders are interested in adaptive human-computer interactive technology, their understanding of AI is limited. This lack of understanding of the product itself has resulted in a tumultuous market.
Finally, Dr. Pan states that timing is crucial for any entrepreneurial undertaking. Ten years ago, the market was a less accommodating place for online educational companies. However, the current market environment is much more accepting of progressive teaching methods, allowing for more entrepreneurial growth. In spite of the restrictive market environment that existed ten years ago, however, Dr. Pan is proud to have pursued online education when he did.
In 2009, Saybot made the formal transition into children’s English education, and in 2010 ALO7 was founded. ALO7 specializes in English products for children aged 3 to 15. While most modern educational companies are rooted in teaching, ALO7’s success is rooted in product production.
Dr. Pan believes that the online educational industry has reached a level of maturity whereby there are formal divisions of labor, products, and services. While most offline training organizations may boast a sturdier cash flow, they are more operationally demanding.
He believes that educational products in China still have some catching up to do. Many Chinese educational products are extremely outdated, and some of the books used today are largely identical as those used by previous generations. This lagging progress is behind Dr. Pan’s commitment to modernize Chinese educational products.
Following a surge in popularity of the mobile Internet, Dr. Pan and his team predicted that digital learning would continue to expand. Therefore, the majority of early research and production programs at ALO7 were for “English digital teaching materials” and the “ALO7 English learning website”. These programs were later shortened into AKJ (courseware), ACP (testing platform), and AXT (apps for teacher-parent communication). Physical teaching materials were later developed as the number of users grew.
This proved to be the right trajectory for Dr. Pan and his team. Currently, there are millions of C-side service users (individual users) and thousands of B-side cooperation agencies (business users) that benefit from ALO7’s products. The company continues to improve its product range and intends to contribute to the growing acceptance of online education.
Dr. Pan believes that English textbooks must be developed by an international team consisting of foreigners who understand the Chinese market. The core leaders at ALO7 are therefore all graduates from prestigious American universities. The company also employs a group of world-renowned English writers to hone its products and improve the brand’s systematic and scientific approach to education.
In the process of developing new learning materials, Dr. Pan noted that imported English textbooks were long, thick, and often contained materials that were too dense for English learners in China. This dense excess of content often created a poor user experience. To address this problem, ALO7 integrated only the most effective teaching methods into its wide array of videos, texts, and other courseware to allow ease of use for teachers, and thereby reducing preparation time. Additionally, ALO7 courseware focuses on the real-world application of knowledge. It teaches basic grammar that can be incorporated it into the daily lives of students.
ALO7 strives to not only improve its teaching materials, but to expand the skills and methods of its teachers. The platform offers a complete teacher training system, which is broadcast live on a weekly basis.
Maintaining an open dialogue with educational institutions and researchers is also crucial. “Not only do we talk to the headmaster, we also talk to research staff to understand student needs and difficulties, and then provide corresponding solutions.” Dr. Pan explains.
Unfortunately, an updated approach to English learning within the Chinese public school system has yet to be popularized. Although the government presently buys a substantial amount of software and equipment for teachers, these resources are often poorly utilized. While ALO7 products have been introduced to a small number of public schools, its client base is still largely comprised of training institutions and high-end kindergartens. Dr. Pan believes that this is because private schools more proactively seek out modern, up-to-date resources; they tend to pay more attention to market movements and competing products. This feature makes private schools more progressive and accepting of contemporary teaching techniques, which explains their receptivity to ALO7 products.
ALO7 offers two types of services. The first type is a direct use of the ALO7 product line, whereby the in-house courseware is used as is. The second type provides clients with customized products, whereby ALO7 courseware is redesigned to match and compliment the content from a specific institution. Customized content can typically be made available within a month.
Within two years of its launch, ALO7’s online tutoring program has already garnered substantial market success. A growing number of educational institutions have begun incorporating online tutoring into their curriculum. Most opt for the one-to-one teaching model, such as ALO7’s one-to-one K12 English course.
ALO7 also adopts a one-to-three (one teacher and three students) teaching model. This precise ratio is the result of a series of experiments designed to maximize learning and minimize stress. The program reduces student stress by eliminating the pressure some students feel in a one-to-one setting.
In terms of content, ALO7 has adopted a scenario-based teaching model which encourages students to communicate in specific scenarios in order to improve their language application skills. Additionally, the teacher selection platform focuses on providing quality resources for teachers and offering outstanding teacher selection and training. Each class is recorded and analyzed by the operation team, after which the team shares and promotes positive class experiences through both online and offline mediums.
Unlike other education institutions, ALO7 can arrange unique curriculum models for students, enabling students to have long-term interactions with their teachers. “Education is a trust relationship. Students gradually become more comfortable with their teachers over time. Once a bond has been established, the learning process can progress faster. If students’ online teachers are frequently changed, then the quality of the educational service has been compromised.” Dr. Pan states.
Dr. Pan believes that the ideal education incorporates a combination of online and offline models. Online education is used primarily to improve spoken language ability, and compliments offline education, which helps both teachers and students improve by interacting naturally in a traditional school setting.
“Learning does not refer to simply following a teacher’s instructions. Teachers are there to ignite enthusiasm. Cultivating a student’s own personal initiative is a crucial part of educational production. While memorization is important, a natural, more organic learning process is also necessary. Students should feel connected to their emotions and feel free to express themselves openly. If an educational institution pursues economic interests at the expense of high-quality learning, then it is unlikely to succeed over the long term. Education needs a heart.”
There are presently numerous companies that provide online tutoring programs. However, successfully executing an online foreign education service is not a simple task. It requires comprehensive operational management. It is essential that teachers not only be knowledgeable and well-trained, they must also be well-managed. Establishing content that compliments foreign teaching methods and offering an appropriate payment plan for foreign staff are both complex processes.
ALO7 cooperates with various training institutions to establish scientifically proven course content, flexible class arrangements, and an effective foreign teacher management system, which form the three pillars of the brand’s success.
Regarding the future of English teaching in China, Dr. Pan posits that convergence of the online and offline platforms will continue to grow. He believes that a combination of the Chinese and foreign education systems provides an ideal setting for integrating new, high-tech teaching tools. He says, “The convergence of online and offline platforms and the convergence of eastern and western models are what will propel the Chinese educational system into the future. This integration will concentrate resources, and will ultimately split the market into two different business models: one being large institutions, the other being small workshops. Medium-sized businesses within this sector will gradually weaken.”
In 2006, the revenue from ALO7’s online tutoring program totaled twice the amount from its teaching materials. It is predicted that income from online tutoring programs will continue to grow.
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