Gamified learning app wins higher education award
In Summary
- Quitch mobile learning app wins education technology category at Australian Financial Review higher education awards
- Trials show improvement in student performance and retention in courses using Quitch
A gamified learning app developed by Swinburne researchers, Quitch, has won the Education Technology Award at the 2017 Australian Financial Review Higher Education Awards.
The Quitch platform was a 2015 initiative of senior accounting lecturer at Swinburne's School of Business and CEO of Quitch, Dr Grainne Oates, who saw the platform as a way to tap into students’ “addiction” to their mobile devices.
For the first time, this year The Australian Financial Review Higher Education Awards included a category for education technology to recognise the major changes digital innovation is making to education.
The principal criteria for assessing the entries in this category include: demonstrated positive impact, innovation, value for investment and sustainability and scalability.
“The Quitch team are absolutely delighted to accept this prestigious award on behalf of Swinburne,” says Dr Oates.
“Quitch has now reached 114 universities across the world and has moved into the corporate space for compliance training. We could not be happier with the growth prospects and the scalability of Quitch.
“This would not have been possible without the support of the Swinburne community.”
Trials at Swinburne of the app have shown a significant improvement in student retention and performance in courses using Quitch.
In addition to engaging students and improving their grades, the app also provides lecturers with real-time analytics on how their students are doing with the subject.
Dr Oates developed the Quitch app together with Dean of Swinburne’s Law School, Professor Dan Hunter, who is also an expert on gamification in education.
“We are greatly honoured by our recognition at the AFR Awards. It is a testament to the hard-work of a large number of people, and an indication of the kinds of innovations coming out of Swinburne,” Professor Hunter says.
Quitch was launched with $50,000 seed funding from Swinburne with a further $350,000 raised from private investors. The university receives royalties from licensing fees.
A new partnership with Wiley Australia to deliver Wiley’s educational content has recently been announced.
The mobile learning platform also won the American Accounting Association’s 2017 award for Innovation in Accounting Education and the Mobility Innovation of the Year and Startup of the Year awards at the Victorian iAwards.
Now in their third year, the prestigious Australian Financial Review higher education awards recognise innovation and achievement in Australia's higher education sector.