The CEO of DreamBox Talks Virtual Learning with Guy Raz | How I Built This | NPR

TL;DR

DreamBox Learning offers a personalized K-8 math program that adapts to each child's learning style, providing engaging experiences that feel like games. During the pandemic, DreamBox expanded its reach by offering free access to schools, nearly doubling its user base to over five million students. The company emphasizes supporting teachers and parents to ensure effective learning outcomes.

Transcript

hello and welcome to how i built this resilience edition from npr uh this is where we talk about how businesses are building resilience during this challenging time in the window next to me is jesse wooley wilson hello jesse phil is the ceo of dreambox if you're a parent or you work at a school or you know school kids you might know dreambox it's a... Read More

Key Insights

• DreamBox Learning is a K-8 math program that personalizes learning for each child.
• The program is designed to feel like games, making serious math learning engaging.
• DreamBox expanded rapidly during the pandemic, offering free access to schools.
• The company doubled its user base to over five million students in five weeks.
• DreamBox emphasizes supporting teachers and parents for effective learning.
• The company adapted to remote work, focusing on employee safety and customer care.
• DreamBox maintains a B2B model but also offers options directly to parents.
• The company values 'benevolent friction' to foster innovation and growth.

Questions & Answers

Q: How does DreamBox Learning personalize math education?

DreamBox Learning personalizes math education by adapting to each child's learning style and pace. The program feels like games, making math engaging while delivering serious learning. DreamBox uses data to understand a child's learning process and provides actionable insights for teachers to modify instructional strategies, ensuring personalized and high-impact learning experiences.

Q: How did DreamBox adapt during the COVID-19 pandemic?

During the COVID-19 pandemic, DreamBox adapted by offering its platform for free to schools, nearly doubling its user base to over five million students. The company focused on employee safety by transitioning to remote work early and emphasized supporting teachers and parents to ensure effective learning. DreamBox's agile response helped maintain relationships and expand its reach.

Q: What is the leadership philosophy at DreamBox Learning?

The leadership philosophy at DreamBox Learning, led by CEO Jessie Woolley-Wilson, emphasizes 'benevolent friction.' This concept involves fostering courageous conversations and being hard on ideas but soft on people. The goal is to subject ideas to scrutiny to drive innovation and growth while maintaining a focus on democratizing learning opportunities for all children.

Q: How does DreamBox support teachers and parents?

DreamBox supports teachers and parents by providing them with data and insights to personalize learning for each student. The platform helps teachers identify students' needs and readiness for new concepts, allowing for targeted instruction. DreamBox also offers free trials to parents and maintains open communication to ensure effective partnerships between educators and families.

Q: What challenges did DreamBox face with rapid growth?

With rapid growth, DreamBox faced challenges such as overwhelmed support systems and the need to onboard two million new students in five weeks. The company had to stretch its resources and adapt quickly, moving to a four-day workweek while managing increased demand. DreamBox focused on maintaining quality and reliability amid the explosive growth in users.

Q: What is DreamBox's approach to remote learning?

DreamBox's approach to remote learning involves providing a personalized, engaging math program that adapts to each student's needs. The company emphasizes the importance of supporting teachers and parents, offering data-driven insights to enhance learning outcomes. DreamBox believes in a blended learning model that complements traditional education, ensuring all students have access to quality education.

Q: How does DreamBox address educational equity?

DreamBox addresses educational equity by focusing on institutional partnerships to reach all students, including those in underserved areas. The company advocates for improved broadband and device access and collaborates with public-private partnerships to close opportunity gaps. DreamBox aims to bridge the gap between talent and opportunity, ensuring all children have access to quality math education.

Q: What future trends does DreamBox anticipate in ed-tech?

DreamBox anticipates a continued growth in educational technology as remote learning becomes a permanent feature of education. The company believes that proven, effective, and engaging learning technologies will see increased demand. DreamBox expects blended learning to be a key component of future education, enhancing the role of teachers and providing personalized learning experiences at scale.

Summary

In this interview, Jesse Wooley-Wilson, the CEO of DreamBox, discusses how the edtech company has adapted to the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. DreamBox is an online math program for K-8 students that offers personalized learning. Wooley-Wilson talks about the company's response to the pandemic, such as opening up the platform for free and providing support to educators and parents. He also addresses the future of remote learning and the potential for educational technology companies to thrive in the coming years.

Questions & Answers

Q: How has DreamBox adapted to the changes caused by the pandemic?

DreamBox has gone through two phases of adaptation during the pandemic. The first phase was focused on survival, where the company prioritized the wellbeing of its employees and took care of its school customers. The second phase was about thriving and ensuring the company's long-term success. DreamBox made significant cost reductions, moved employees to a four-day work week, and opened up the platform for free to support teachers and students learning from home. Despite the challenges, the company saw exponential growth in the number of students using the platform.

Q: How did DreamBox continue to sell its product to school districts during the pandemic?

DreamBox initially faced uncertainty about how it would connect with district administrators and decision-makers when schools shut down. However, they found that educators were actively seeking solutions to keep learning going, even in a remote environment. DreamBox's partnerships with trusted organizations, such as Harvard University, helped maintain relationships with customers. The company also relied on its reputation for quality and reliability to maintain access to district administrators and decision-makers.

Q: What was the economic impact of the pandemic on DreamBox?

DreamBox took a proactive approach and prepared for the worst when the pandemic hit by cutting back on expenses and reducing costs. They moved to remote work and eliminated travel and conference attendance. However, the decision to open up the platform for free resulted in an explosion of new customers and an increase in the number of students using DreamBox. Despite the challenges, the company adapted and worked towards maintaining revenue protection while prioritizing employee and customer needs.

Q: How has the growth in users impacted DreamBox's product team and engineers?

The rapid growth in users put a strain on DreamBox's support system and overwhelmed their staff. This strain was magnified by the fact that the company had moved to a four-day work week expecting low volumes during the pandemic. The team had to sprint to meet the increased demand and anticipate further surges when schools reopened. Communication and transparency became crucial, and the team embraced the challenge of adapting to unexpected growth and supporting customers effectively.

Q: Is DreamBox hiring new employees?

DreamBox put a hold on hiring during the survival phase of the pandemic but began the recruiting process again after resuming work in July. However, the recent trend of schools deciding to remain 100% remote until the end of the calendar year has impacted the company's plans to train teachers on using DreamBox. DreamBox is adapting to the changing landscape and ensuring flexibility in their hiring plans to meet the needs of schools and districts.

Q: Will DreamBox pivot back to targeting parents if more parents choose to homeschool or opt out of traditional virtual learning?

DreamBox believes in the importance of parents' role in education and does not plan to move away from parents as a target audience. While DreamBox primarily focuses on school districts and administrators, the company recognizes that winning the confidence of parents can positively impact institutional adoption of their platform. DreamBox aims to bridge the gap between parents and teachers by providing insights and support, ensuring that technology complements rather than replaces the role of educators.

Q: How does DreamBox plan to make its product accessible to every child, especially those who may not have access to online learning opportunities?

DreamBox acknowledges the risk of online learning widening the gap between privileged and underprivileged students. The company's shift towards the institutional model is aimed at making DreamBox available to all children in schools, including those whose parents may not be aware of the platform. DreamBox is committed to working with public-private partnerships, libraries, and foundations to address issues such as broadband and device access. They advocate for policies and funding mechanisms to ensure equal access to quality learning experiences for all children.

Q: Is DreamBox considering becoming a non-profit or collaborating with foundations to make its product free and accessible?

DreamBox has already engaged in public-private partnerships to support its mission and impact student opportunities. For example, the Gates Foundation provided a grant to accelerate the development of DreamBox's educator solution. DreamBox also partnered with the Rise Fund, an impact investment fund, which aligns with their double bottom line approach of achieving growth and impact. Although DreamBox has made the platform available for free during the pandemic, there is potential for more collaborative efforts with foundations or non-profit organizations to ensure broader access to their product.

Q: Do you anticipate an explosion of opportunities for educational technology companies in the coming years?

DreamBox believes that the market for remote learning is shifting and will continue to do so even after the pandemic. The company has experienced explosive growth and expects this trend to continue. The increased reliance on technology for learning has transformed remote learning from a nice-to-have complement to a must-have tool. DreamBox sees immense growth opportunities for proven, effective, engaging, and reliable learning technologies, and the future of educational technology appears promising.

Q: Can remote learning truly work for all children and replicate traditional in-person classroom instruction?

Research shows that the most vital factor for student success is the teacher. DreamBox does not believe that technology should replace teachers but rather support them in personalizing learning experiences for students. Technology can analyze students' thinking processes, provide actionable insights, and help modify instructional strategies. DreamBox emphasizes the importance of connecting technology with in-person learning to create a blended learning experience that optimizes student success. While the future of learning may change, DreamBox believes in pursuing a new normal that combines the best of both virtual and in-person instruction to meet the diverse needs of students.

Q: Are there any school districts that are ready to open in-person?

Due to the absence of a comprehensive national strategy that optimizes frequent testing and tracing, it is difficult to predict when schools will be safe to open. Factors such as sanitization, masks, and distance requirements need to be taken into account in planning for safe learning environments. Without a national strategy and the necessary precautions, many districts lack confidence in reopening fully. At the moment, very few districts in the United States are confident enough to send children back to school on a full-time basis.

Q: How does DreamBox's leadership style, characterized by benevolent friction, work?

Benevolent friction is about having courageous conversations and being hard on ideas while remaining soft on people. DreamBox encourages its employees to subject their ideas to scrutiny and welcomes constructive conversations to improve their innovations. They prioritize leaving ego aside and focus on the ultimate goal of democratizing learning opportunities. Benevolent friction aims to push ideas towards greatness and make sure that every child can succeed in learning math on DreamBox.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• DreamBox Learning provides a personalized K-8 math program that feels like games, ensuring engaging and effective math learning. During the pandemic, the company offered free access to schools, significantly increasing its user base. DreamBox focuses on supporting teachers and parents to enhance learning outcomes, maintaining a B2B model while offering direct options to parents.

• With the onset of the pandemic, DreamBox rapidly adapted by moving to remote work and focusing on employee safety and customer care. The company expanded its reach by offering free access to its platform, nearly doubling its student base. DreamBox emphasizes a partnership between technology and educators to enhance learning.

• DreamBox's leadership, under CEO Jessie Woolley-Wilson, emphasizes 'benevolent friction' to drive innovation and growth. The company believes in empowering teachers with data to personalize learning and sees a future where blended learning becomes a permanent feature of education. DreamBox is committed to bridging the gap between talent and opportunity in education.