Digital education platform Kami introduces a slew of new features to prepare teachers for a new kind of back-to-school

LOS ANGELES and AUCKLAND (Aug. 11, 2020) — Kami, the interactive digital classroom app used in over 18,000 U.S. school districts and 175 countries, today announced its latest iteration, including an awaited integration with the Microsoft 365 and OneDrive environment, and supporting Google Classroom on iPads. Kami will allow educators to beta test the Microsoft integration and share their feedback in the upcoming weeks.

Prompted by insights from Kami’s educator community, teachers at schools using these platforms can now use Kami to seamlessly create assignments and distribute, collect, and grade documents. The expansion of Kami’s existing Google Classroom integration to the iPad will allow students to easily open and work on Google Classroom assignments using Kami on their iPads, even for those without a stable internet connection. Kami has also enhanced its existing integration with Schoology, the learning management system.

Announced at Kami’s first-ever virtual conference, Kami Connect 2020, the new product features also include stickers for engaging teacher feedback, and more enhancements for its popular video-comment and screen-recording tools. These have proven valuable for teacher instruction, feedback and student engagement in remote learning environments.   

Kami pioneered the shift to multi-media-based digital learning reflecting the same tools and learning processes found in physical classrooms. In the shift to full-time remote learning, Kami equipped school districts with accessible digital tools to foster a student-centric blended learning environment, equalize student experiences, and enhance class engagement. With COVID-19 further accelerating the digital transformation and adoption of virtual experiences, the digital education market is projected to reach $350 billion by 2025. This significant surge shows how online learning will be imperative for disseminating knowledge, eliminating barriers, and preparing the 1.2 billion school children globally to navigate the new normal. 

A leader in digital learning technology, the Auckland-based startup’s product is now widely used in the U.S. education system, supporting thousands of teachers with asynchronous learning tools. Kami is currently in one-third of U.S. schools and has nearly 11 million users globally. Kami has recently seen a ten-fold growth in monthly sign ups, sometimes adding over 50,000 new users in a single day. Kami’s subscribing customer base has grown by 20% in July 2020 alone. 

“The pandemic has launched digital-learning technologies into the center of thousands of students’ and teachers’ lives,” said Hengjie Wang, CEO and co-founder of Kami. “We are committed to closing the education gap by increasing access to integral lessons and knowledge for any student, on any device, anywhere at any time. In the face of these unprecedented circumstances, we have been listening diligently to educators and have worked to mitigate the impacts of school shutdowns on students, regardless of learning abilities and environments. Our latest seamless integration with systems they already use will enhance the learning experience of students across the board, both in the classroom and at home.”

In Fall 2020, Kami is doubling down on its commitment to help teachers build live and asynchronous lesson plans that fit seamlessly with existing digital tools. The new product features and updates come ahead of a hotly debated back-to-school season, where school districts across the U.S. are still debating between remote and in-person learning environments, with COVID-19 cases spiking nationwide. 

“This new school year brings forth unprecedented challenges for teachers, students, and parents,” said Jill Nation teacher at Palm Springs Unified School District. “The flexibility of asynchronous learning allows students to learn at their own pace from home and gives teachers the power to dive deeper into the material. Kami’s partnership helps my students be fully integrated into the learning experience, whether I’m in the classroom with them or not.”

“Transitioning to remote learning during the pandemic created stress and uncertainty, especially as teachers didn’t know what learning with digital tools would look like,” said Megan Barnash Instructional Technology Coach at Scottsdale Unified School District. “As we’re headed into Fall 2020, tools like Kami will improve how we continue to approach the shift to remote classrooms with students. With Kami, we have a seamless, comprehensive way to assign independent work, and an easier way to communicate and interact with all of our students.”

About Kami:
Kami is a leading digital classroom app built to transform an existing document of any kind into an interactive learning experience. Kami is currently used across 18,000 U.S. school districts and in 175 countries by educators looking to improve engagement and collaboration while teaching in the classroom or online. Learn more about Kami at www.kamiapp.com.

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