LONDON /PRNewswire/
--
Shorter, snack-sized
learning modules built especially for mobile
experience
EF Education
First, Corporate Solutions, has made its award-winning
English-language school - EF Efekta - available as a
dedicated smartphone app.
Available now on
Apple's iPhone iOS, and coming out later this year for Android
devices, the app is designed to make it even easier and more
convenient for global professionals to learn and improve their
English skills on the go. Based on the school's 50 years
of experience in language instruction, EF Efekta is also
accessible via standard internet browsers and dedicated apps
for iPad and Android tablets.
"With the number
of smartphone users in the world fast approaching two billion and
nearly one billion people learning and speaking English as a second
or foreign language, developing a smartphone app for our school
really was a no-brainer," said Andy
Bailey, CMO, EFCorporate Solutions. "Our challenge was
not if we were
going to develop an app, but how."
Bailey explained,
"A mobile phone represents very different ergonomics to sitting in
front of a browser or even working with a tablet. We
couldn't just transpose our current school onto phones."
With that in
mind, EF researched the implication of how people use smartphones -
notably in short, frequent bursts as time and opportunity allow -
on a learning program. The research uncovered two key
findings: The first was that increasing the number of opportunities
students have to study increases the overall time spent learning.
The second was that short frequent bursts of
course interaction via phone were particularly effective
for students at lower proficiency levels.
EF then built the
app around smartphone 'learning moments' - short, frequent
sessions as time and opportunity allow - and focused initially
towards delivering the best possible learning experiences
to people with lower proficiency levels.
Based on the
proprietary EF Method™ that has helped EF become the world's most
popular language school for business and government organizations,
the new app follows the same curriculum and lesson structure as the
current school, with learning units and progression levels aligned
to the Common European Framework Reference (CEFR).
Because it shares
the same Content Delivery Platform as the rest of EF's learning
tools, the app also allows offline learning and full
synchronization of completed modules, units and other activities.
This allows users to pause whenever they like, then pick up their
studies again at any time and place, using whatever device they
choose.
"Our company
mission is to open the world through education. This drives
what we do," said Bailey. "This new app is very exciting for
us and with it we hope our students find more opportunities to
learn."
About EF Corporate
Solutions
EF Corporate
Solutions, an EF Education First company, is the world leader in
language training for businesses, governments and the educational
sector. With over 40,000 employees, a worldwide network of offices
in over 50 countries, and language courses available for every
business need, EF CS is the chosen language partner of many of the
world's most respected businesses. For more information please
visit: http://www.ef.com/corporate.
For further
information, please contact:
Kelly
Double
Marlin PR (On behalf of EF Education First)
+44-207-932-5580
[email protected]