PenPal Schools enrolled more than 20,000 students from more than 100 countries in March.
The Austin-based startup offers an online platform that connects students from across the world through project-based learning. With schools closed because of the coronavirus pandemic, more parents and teachers are signing children up for the program.
“Enrollment from parents has increased over 10 times,” said Joe Troyen, founder and CEO. “Kids are isolated now. If you’re under age 13, you can’t legally use Facebook or Instagram or TikTok or any of those.”
PenPal Schools is giving its product away for free for parents and teachers through the remainder of the school year. Normally a subscription is $9.99 a month for parents and $5 per student per month for schools, although there are free trials and ways to earn credits for free months.
Troyen started PenPal Schools in 2012 and moved it to Austin in 2014. The company now has close to half a million students from 150 countries learning together online.
The platform has become a good homeschool resource and helps students deal with missing their classmates, Troyen said.
“Learning is better together. Students learn more and are more engaged when they are connected,” he said.
PenPal Schools offers dozens of different topics such as the solar system, robotics, world religions, immigration and mammals. Topics are sorted by age — 8 and up, 10 and up and 12 and up. Students must be invited by a verified parent or teacher, Troyen said. They only share first names, he said, and the site is monitored.
Within 10 minutes, students “can connect with peers in over a dozen countries,” Troyen said. “For many kids, it’s just so eye-opening. They’re getting exposed to so many different perspectives, especially during these isolating times.”
Growth during the pandemic has been highest in the United States, which typically has the biggest number of participants.
“Turkey is one of our top countries as well,” Troyen said. “We’ve seen plenty of activity from Spain and from Russia recently. Students are talking about illness and diseases and how cells are affected. Students have been writing a lot about how coronavirus is affecting their communities.”
PenPal Schools — recognized by President Obama for creating social impact — has partnered with National Geographic and Oxford University Press for some projects.
Students don’t take tests on the site.
“There’s a big transition of education away from testing toward students being creative and collaborative,” Troyen said. “They demonstrate what they learn not by passing a test but showing it. Not only are we helping kids make friends, we’re bringing out their best work.”
