WeLearn shakes up high school scene
Thai-based WeLearn aims to disrupt the hold of brick-and-mortar international schools in the local market by introducing facilities for students enrolled in online high schools.
WeLearn’s first outpost is in Chidlom, but founder David Doran said the company plans to expand through the region in five years. Mr Doran is seeking funding from a Singapore-based private equity firm, but he said the deal is in the early stages.
The Chidlom facility aims to provide social spaces for students who spend their high school years at home rather than in classrooms.
“Our kid was frustrated with the traditional international school system and decided to finish his high school education in an online programme,” Mr Doran said. “WeLearn came out of the realisation that home-schooled students rarely have spaces for meaningful social interaction.”
The programme’s Bangkok space is designed as a hybrid between a high school building and co-working space, and includes access to individual study pods, meeting rooms, laboratories, a tech room with 3D printers, a music room and a greenscreen room for video projects.
The company operates memberships on two levels, one designed for students that use online resources in addition to in-class experience, and another for students who undertake a full online curriculum.
Memberships of the first kind, giving users access to the facilities as well as certain introductory courses, run from 2,000 to 5,000 baht a month, akin to what customers pay at mainstream co-working spaces.
“Independence members” will pay 11,000-40,000 baht a month to use the facilities and have staff help them implement their selected online curriculum.
The name WeLearn was inspired by coworking space giant WeWork, Mr Doran said. WeWork has steadily expanded from its original co-working business into residential buildings and fitness facilities, both of which purport to embody WeWork’s emphasis on community.
Buildings in WeLive (the residential arm), for example, have small units, shared bathrooms and shared kitchens, but also large common spaces, including pools, golf simulators and spas, which the company says promote interaction among residents.
WeWork will launch its first co-working space at Asia Centre Sathorn in September and its second at True Digital Park soon thereafter.
WeLearn is racing with WeWork to enter the education segment. The New Yorkbased company recently established a coding academy called the Flatiron School and announced plans to introduce an elementary school, tentatively called WeGrow.
The curriculum used by WeLearn’s customers is provided by universities with established online high schools, like Stanford and Indiana universities. The staff advise the students on the right curriculum and coordinate with them on the same or similar curricula to discuss class content and undertake joint projects.
Fees for the Stanford High School programme are close to 65,000 baht a month. Adding the facilities fees, WeLearn is in the price range of most international schools in Bangkok. Mr Doran said the model provides at least a 20% discount compared with international schools when lower-priced online high school programmes are taken into account.
“We think our model has the capacity to disrupt high school education. We offer lower prices and more flexibility, which is essential for students focused in areas not emphasised in most schools, like arts,” he said.
The market for e-learning in Asia is estimated at US$12 billion (384 billion baht), up from $8 billion five years ago. Thailand has the second fastest-growing market in the region at 44%, behind Myanmar at 50%, according to market research firm Ambient Insight.
Thailand’s private school market, which WeLearn is targeting, generates 20 billion baht a year. The after-school market, including tutoring, generated 13 billion baht last year, Mr Doran said.
While the market is large, so is the scepticism surrounding online education. Online high school students in the US, for example, represent just 1% of total students, according to a study conducted by The Wall Street Journal.
Virtual US high school programmes have yielded some of lowest-performing students in the system. Graduation rates for online high schools in the US, for example, hover around 52%, markedly lower than the 83% national average, according to the Journal study.