CEO of Xplor- Mark Woodland is a recognised thought leader in the edu-tech space, and a current BRW Young Rich List member. Woodland witnessed first-hand the need for customised technology within the education sector, after working alongside his mum in Aussie childcare centres.
His team at Xplor now design software and technology solutions which mean educators can spend fewer hours focused on compliance, rostering and other time-consuming operational tasks – and have greater capacity to provide improved educational outcomes for children and families. Woodland’s mantra is ‘education before administration’.
Dynamic Business had a chat to Woodland about his experiences disrupting the edutech industry.
Tell us about the App?
The Educator App is designed to streamline compliance requirements for the Australian childcare sector. Traditionally, childcare operators have used paper-based checklists to record daily attendance, rostering, children’s medication, allergies and other compliance information. Instead, the Educator App provides a one-stop platform to monitor daily occupancy, incident and accident reporting, and a range of other compliance matters. Now available for free to Australian childcare operators – the Educator App will streamline and simplify compliance requirements, and set a new benchmark for the sector.
What impact do you plan to make?
I believe that Aussie childcare operators should not have to pay in order to meet national compliance standards. For this reason, Xplor is offering their Educator App absolutely free of charge to industry operators. The Educator App incorporates a range of additional features, all designed to save educators time and money. For example, the App allows childcare operators to monitor the health and status of every child, along with setting timers for programs such as rest periods and nappy checks.
Why does compliance have to be streamlined for Australian childcare?
The Educator App will leapfrog the Australian childcare industry from paper-based data entry, to a more secure and accurate standard of compliance technology. There are currently 18,000 childcare centres in Australia – and demand for quality childcare solutions is growing, as our workforce includes a greater number of working parents. Xplor aims to develop the technology necessary for this sector to optimise occupancy and enhance operational decisions, whilst providing families with excellent educational outcomes.
How did you fund this?
The Educator App has been self-funded using Xplor’s existing resources, and no additional capital was required.
What reception have you had so far?
The App has only just been released, and already downloaded by educators in thousands of Australian childcare centres. Xplor anticipates a further boost when the free Educator Programming & Planning platform is released this month.