Education Platform Development
Education platform development covers the full range of EdTech software: learning management systems, course marketplaces, virtual classrooms, student information systems, and corporate training tools. StepTo builds these platforms for EdTech startups, training companies, and institutions—handling everything from video delivery and assessments to SCORM/LTI standards and student data privacy. Our Serbian engineers deliver at $35–75/hr, typically 40–60% below Western European and US rates.
EdTech Products We Build
- Learning management systems (LMS): Course authoring, curriculum paths, enrolment rules, gradebooks, certificates, and admin dashboards for academies, corporates, and institutions.
- Course marketplaces: Multi-instructor platforms with revenue sharing, instructor onboarding, reviews, search, and payment processing (Stripe, PayPal, local gateways).
- Virtual classrooms: Live video lessons with chat, breakout rooms, whiteboards, screen sharing, attendance, and recordings—built on LiveKit, Twilio, Zoom SDK, or Jitsi.
- Assessment engines: Question banks, timed exams, auto-grading, plagiarism and proctoring integrations, adaptive difficulty, and detailed performance analytics.
- Student information systems: Admissions, scheduling, attendance, communication with parents and students, and reporting for schools and training providers.
- Mobile learning apps: iOS/Android apps (React Native or native) with offline content, push reminders, and spaced-repetition features to drive completion rates.
Technology & Standards
- Modern web stack: React/Next.js frontends, Node.js or .NET backends, PostgreSQL, and CDN-backed video delivery (HLS with Mux, Cloudflare Stream, or AWS MediaConvert).
- E-learning standards: SCORM 1.2/2004 players, xAPI with a Learning Record Store, and LTI 1.3 for interoperability with university and corporate ecosystems.
- Engagement mechanics: Gamification (points, streaks, leaderboards), cohort-based learning, discussion forums, and notification systems tuned for retention.
- Accessibility: WCAG 2.1 AA compliance—required for public-sector and US higher-education buyers—including captions, keyboard navigation, and screen-reader support.
- Analytics: Learner progress dashboards, funnel and completion reporting, and exports to BI tools for institutional customers.
Engagement Models, Timelines & Pricing
- MVP build: 3–5 months, $50,000–$120,000 for a launch-ready platform with courses, video, quizzes, and payments.
- Full platform: 6–12 months, $150,000–$350,000+ for live classes, mobile apps, standards compliance, and institutional admin tooling.
- Dedicated product team: From $13,500/month for a cross-functional team (developers, QA, DevOps) that owns your roadmap—see pricing.
- Staff augmentation: From $4,500/month per engineer to extend your in-house EdTech team via staff augmentation.
Why StepTo for EdTech Development?
- Product engineering, not body-shopping: We design for learner retention and completion—the metrics EdTech businesses live on—not just feature checklists.
- Video and real-time expertise: Streaming, WebRTC, and real-time collaboration are core competencies, not integrations we learn on your budget.
- Privacy-first delivery: GDPR, FERPA, and COPPA requirements built into architecture and documented for institutional procurement reviews.
- CET timezone: Full working-day overlap with European clients and morning overlap with US teams.
How We Build Education Platforms
- Discovery with educators (2–3 weeks): Workshops with instructors, learners, and administrators to map the learning journey, content formats, and the completion metrics that define success.
- UX prototyping: Clickable prototypes of the core learning flow tested with real users before development starts—course UX mistakes are far cheaper to fix here.
- Iterative build: Two-week sprints delivering working features; video delivery and assessment engines are proven early because they carry the most technical risk.
- Pilot cohort: A limited launch with a real class or customer group, instrumented for completion and engagement data that drives the next iterations.
- Launch & scale: Full rollout with load testing for enrolment peaks, plus app-store submission for mobile apps.
- Ongoing evolution: Feature development, standards certification, and institutional onboarding support from the same team.
FAQ: Education Platform Development
- How much does it cost to build an e-learning platform?
- An MVP learning platform—courses, video lessons, quizzes, progress tracking, and payments—typically costs $50,000–$120,000 and takes 3–5 months with a small dedicated team. Full-featured platforms with live classes, mobile apps, SCORM support, and institutional admin tools range from $150,000 to $350,000+. At StepTo’s $35–75/hr rates this is usually 40–60% less than equivalent Western European or US development.
- Should we build a custom LMS or customise Moodle or an off-the-shelf platform?
- If standard course delivery is all you need, configuring Moodle, Canvas, or a SaaS LMS is cheaper. Custom development makes sense when the learning experience is your product—marketplaces, cohort-based courses, unique assessment logic, white-label reselling—or when per-seat SaaS licensing becomes more expensive than owning the platform. We build both custom platforms and heavy customisations of open-source LMSs.
- Do you support live classes, webinars, and virtual classrooms?
- Yes. We integrate WebRTC-based video (LiveKit, Twilio, Zoom SDK, Jitsi) for live lessons with chat, breakout rooms, whiteboards, hand-raising, and session recording, plus scheduling and attendance tracking tied into the platform’s gradebook and notifications.
- Can the platform support SCORM, xAPI, and LTI content?
- Yes. We implement SCORM 1.2/2004 players, xAPI (Tin Can) statements with a Learning Record Store, and LTI 1.3 integration so your platform can consume or provide tools within university and corporate learning ecosystems. This matters for institutional sales, where procurement teams expect standards compliance.
- How do you handle student data privacy (GDPR, FERPA, COPPA)?
- Privacy requirements are designed in from the start: data minimisation, consent flows and parental consent for under-13 users (COPPA), role-based access for teachers and administrators, data export and deletion tooling for GDPR requests, and EU or US data residency depending on your market. We document data flows so schools and district buyers can complete their vendor reviews quickly.