Dushyantt Kohli discusses the future of knowledge delivery for young and growing brains
In the older times, audio was the only means by which people learned and passed on learning. In fact, even before the TV was invented, wireless radio-communication was a part of everyday life to communicate and share information.
Can audio still play a vital role in literacy? Will listening to audio or podcasts help students become better readers? Or will it simply be a rather passive way to consume content? Currently, research highlights that a growing number of young minds are choosing to listen to audio stories or content, when travelling or in their leisure time, instead of reading books.
Having said that, now the question that arises here is, can audio learning become the future of knowledge delivery for these young and growing minds?
The fact- At present, the population of India is 1.4 billion, and 1.1 billion have mobile devices or smartphones. Out of 1.1 billion people, 622 million are active internet users. That makes 43 per cent of the population. All these people using the internet can access audio as all it requires is a basic mobile handset and minimal internet bandwidth. Considering the convenience of minimal infrastructural need to be able to consume audio content and fast-growing internet penetration in tier-3 and 4 markets of India, one can agree that the potential of content consumption through audio is better. Therefore, the possibility of audio-led digital education in our country is immense.
Let’s take a look at another aspect; 850 million people are below 35 years old and 70 per cent of them live in rural India. If we talk about educating this lot, digital mediums with a focus on audio platforms are the way forward.
Rising demand for audio content- At present, India is witnessing a rapid digital revolution. A large part of the population is getting accustomed to the use of several digital platforms. It has been flooded with a variety of content. Moreover, with the fast adaptation of digital content consumption and impressive growth of OTT platforms in the past two years, people got habitual of consuming content on their personal devices at the time of their choice.
At the same time, knowing the ill effects of increasing screen time, people are now turning to audio content especially for gaining knowledge and fulfilling their learning need through podcasts, audiobooks, and so on. In fact, India’s podcast market is growing at 34.5 per cent CAGR and will continue to grow at the same rate till 2023, as per a KPMG report.
Moreover, the demand for audio content in Indian regional languages has increased considerably in the last few years. The pandemic-induced lockdown has been a driving factor. Now more people are opting for podcasts that offer relevant content in regional languages for e-learning and entertainment purposes.
Further, considering the bigger challenge of infrastructure and limited availability of resources to the rural population of India, audio is becoming the most convenient way of consuming content for any purpose. Similarly, for education, audio has the potential to provide maximum coverage, considering the 19,500 different languages/dialects prevalent in our country. It is because audio content is faster to create and can be accessed in a low-bandwidth area even on a basic mobile phone, unlike other mediums where the screen plays an important role.
Benefits of podcasts/audio content- So, the podcast-based platforms or audio content are addressing the digital learning need-gap with their innovation-driven approach. These are bringing about the desired change, catering to a large number of learners, especially from the rural parts of India, who are only acquainted with vernacular languages. On the other hand, it is also true that people enjoy listening to the news and stories in their regional languages.
There is also a wide range of options available to choose from, according to the listening interests and needs of people like educational or inspirational audio, news, stories, entertainment clips, and so on. All these are enough to provide the required exposure that anyone might need.
It is not just eliminating the language barrier, but further empowering students, from even the remotest parts of the country, to receive a quality education. When it comes to passive learning, audio has its peculiar benefits ensuring that students get a holistic understanding and more time for learning. Audio content can also be easily understood by anyone; including children.
Audio content is mostly engaging and has the potential to increase the concentration power of the students. Overall, it has made learning an easy and joyful experience. The cost-effectiveness of podcasts is also an added advantage.
Therefore, the large-scale adoption of audio content can be the ‘revolution in education’ in India. And so, we must rethink education and develop more innovative ways of learning with audio in mind. This format is already showing its potential to cater to the needs of digital learning. It has paved its way in delivering knowledge for India’s diverse, young and growing brains.
(The author is the co-founder and COO of Khabri, an Indian vernacular audio platform.)