The Knewton Blog

Ask students why they don’t like school, and you’ll get several answers: it’s “hard,” “boring,” “disconnected from reality” or “only for smart people.” The real answer is of course more complex than any of these responses would suggest. To get a deeper understanding of the matter, I recently read one man’s investigation: Daniel T. Willingham’s Why Don’t Students Like School: A Cognitive Scientist Answers Questions About How the Mind Works and What It Means for… Read more

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Recently, David Kuntz (our VP of Research), Jose Ferreira (our Founder and CEO), and Len Swanson (the former Executive Director of ETS and the man behind Knewton’s testing algorithm), sat down for an in-depth talk on all things adaptive learning. In the fifth video installment of the discussion, David, Jose, and Len discuss how the data collected by Knewton’s Adaptive Learning Platform will help us understand more about how students learn and progress over time…. Read more

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In the fourth video installment of our Adaptive Learning Roundtable, David Kuntz (VP of Research at Knewton), and Len Swanson (former ETS Executive Director and the designer of Knewton’s testing algorithm) talk about how adaptive testing can improve K-12 statewide testing. Furthermore, as David points out, when adaptive tests are used along with an adaptive engine that monitors variables about individual students, the result is full-fledged adaptive learning. As a reminder, a few definitions before… Read more

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It’s easy to see how online adaptive learning can be used to improve the teaching of quantitative subjects such as math, a subject we perceive to be defined by drilling, discipline, “right/wrong” answers, and skills which build neatly upon one another. Subjects such as English, art history, and music seem to lend themselves less naturally to adaptive technology, whether it’s the “expressive” nature of the subject or the complexity of assessment (i.e. paper-grading) that lies… Read more

Posted in Adaptive Learning, Knewton | 7 comments

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In the third installment of our Adaptive Learning Roundtable, David Kuntz, Knewton VP of Research, and Len Swanson, former Executive Director of ETS and the designer of Knewton’s adaptive testing algorithm, discuss the role of real-time skills profiling in adaptive learning. Watch the video to learn more about how skills profiling helps Knewton’s Adaptive Learning Platform™ identify the most effective learning path for each individual student.

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In Part 2 of our Adaptive Learning Roundtable, Knewton CEO Jose Ferreria, Knewton VP of Research David Kuntz, and Len Swanson, the man behind Knewton’s testing algorithm (and the former Executive Director of ETS) discuss what makes adaptive tests different than paper and pencil tests. Adaptive tests are widely credited as being more reliable — but why? Before you watch the video, a few definitions: adaptive tests adapt to a test-taker’s ability level, yielding more… Read more

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Recently, our CEO Jose Ferreira and VP of Research David Kuntz sat down with Len Swanson, the former Executive Director of ETS and the designer of Knewton’s testing algorithm, for a wide-ranging roundtable on all things adaptive learning. We’ve broken the discussion down into six parts, all of which we’ll be sharing on our blog in the weeks to come. The first topic: why adaptive testing? Adaptive tests do just what their name suggest: that… Read more

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Ever wondered what “adaptive learning” really is? So did Brianna, our resident seven-year-old, on a recent Bring Your Child to Work Day at the Knewton offices. Watch as we teach her about adaptive learning, using adaptive learning, of course! What do you think? Is this the future of education? Video Starring: Brianna Miron as Herself Jason Siegel as The Computer Filming: Ian Parker and Jess Nepom Production: Stephen Johnson

Posted in Adaptive Learning, EdTech, Education & Technology, Inside Knewton, Knewton | One comment

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Photo © Chronicle of Higher Education In an article released today titled “The Rise of Learning Machines,” The Chronicle of Higher Education profiles Knewton’s partnership with Arizona State University. (This fall, Knewton’s Adaptive Learning Platform™ will power ASU Online’s College Algebra and College Math courses). The article discusses some key features of Knewton’s Adaptive Learning Platform™ (“programs like Knewton can pace an entire math course using sophisticated tracking of skill development, instant feedback, and help… Read more

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There’s a scene in “Minority Report” you might remember that’s meant to depict the future of advertising: as people walk through a crowded mall, banners scan their retinas to beam them targeted sales pitches. While retina-scanning is extreme, this kind of customization doesn’t seem like science fiction anymore. Almost every aspect of our day-to-day lives can be personalized.  A world where radio and magazine ads adjust to each individual listener or reader isn’t so hard… Read more

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