Marathon raises $1.5 million to revolutionise after-school learning for Vietnamese students

Marathon raised $1.5 million to revolutionise after-school learning for Vietnamese students

The funding round was led by Forge Ventures, with participation from Venturra Discovery, iSeed SEA, and angels with deep industry expertise. Marathon joins established Southeast Asian edtech players such as Ruangguru, Topica, and Zenius to democratise access to quality education.

Co-founders Pham Duc and Tran Viet Tung started Marathon to address the pain points of Vietnam’s after-school tutoring experience that they felt first-hand as students. Accordingly, Marathon empowers the best tutors to teach thousands of students nationwide while providing a small-class atmosphere and personalised guidance.

Tutors on the Marathon platform must pass a stringent selection process covering their experience, track record, and ability to deliver engaging lessons. Partner tutors are then paired with teaching assistants who provide hands-on guidance to students. Classes will be delivered in an interactive live format interspersed with breakout sessions that keep students engaged. All of this is supported by analytics that help tutors and teaching assistants provide personalised support to ensure every student meets their academic goals.

With Marathon handling the operational aspects of the tutoring business and enabling its partner tutors to teach even more students, Marathon will also be transformative for its tutors, who will earn a significantly higher income and get to focus on what they do best – teaching. For the first time, tutors will be free to spend all of their time on teaching, preparing lesson plans, and improving their pedagogy.

At launch, Marathon will offer Math and Science courses covering grades 6-12 of the National Curriculum developed by the Ministry of Education and Training

. In the near future, Marathon will provide tutoring for the full range of subjects and enable every student in Vietnam to get the education they deserve from the comfort of their homes.

Kaspar Hidayat, partner at Forge Ventures said, “We are very excited to partner with Marathon to democratise access to the best teachers and educators in Vietnam. The best offline tutors deliver proven results but are only able to teach a few students. We believe Marathon, with their deep experience in education and technology, will enable these star tutors to teach thousands of students while keeping that same high bar. Now, every student in Vietnam, even those living outside major cities, will have the opportunity to learn from the best and achieve their academic goals. ”

Raditya Pramana, partner at Venturra shared that, “Whilst the demand for quality education in Vietnam is one of the highest in the region, the access remains limited to the majority of the student population. We truly believe in Marathon’s vision, that by empowering students and top Vietnamese teachers with technology, we can enable nation-wide access to quality and affordable education. We are excited to back founders with not only strong execution track record and extensive industry understanding, but also deep passion for social impact.”