Spring has sprung, so our schools’ summer break isn’t far behind. It brings to mind the importance of education, which should be one of our nation’s top priorities; however, many states continue to struggle to provide quality learning experiences to students.
Our ever-changing communities and mobile societies contribute to educational challenges…but Seattle startups are offering some intriguing platforms and products to alleviate educational roadblocks. Here’s a look at just a few of them:
Enlearn’s focus is to deliver a platform that enables a personalized curriculum for each student. It allows publishers, school districts and teachers to work together to meet the needs of underserved populations, giving every child his or her best shot at success. Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Seattle, the Enlearn platform combines classroom data and machine learning to deliver personalized instruction plans for each student in real-time. The startup is funded by grants from organizations such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and New Profit.
In today’s world, mathematics is a critical skill…and Bellevue-based DreamBox Learning aims to radically transform how children learn it. The company’s Intelligent Adaptive Learning™ technology helps change the education paradigm by offering engaging and challenging tasks where students actually have fun. By creating the right learning environment, every student can achieve mathematical skills. The company was founded in 2004 and is venture-backed.
Another critical component of a good education is reading, and the ability to comprehend and retain what has been read. Actively Learn offers an online literacy platform that works with educators to ensure students are thinking while reading. Through Actively Learn’s platform, reading is transformed from a passive activity to one that is collaborative and provides a rich environment for positive reinforcement. The company was founded in Seattle in 2012.
And finally, we turn our spotlight to one of the most creatively named tech companies in the Puget Sound: Zombie-Based Learning. Yes, you read that correctly. ZBL offers a project-based learning approach to geography for grades 4-8 tied to the theme of a zombie apocalypse. Not only is it aligned to National Geographic standards, it uses a graphic novel/comic book format to push a geography curriculum out of the classroom. The Bellevue-based company was initially funded through a Kickstarter campaign in 2012.
Have you discovered other education tech companies that deserve some attention? Let us know!
