SBIR/STTR Award attributes
Project Summary The overall objective of this Phase II research and development work is to commercialize of a new software product called MATH TEAM GAMES (MTG). MTG is being developed to enable the playing of collaborative math games on mobile tablet and touchscreen devices by students of high school algebra in rapidly emerging one-to-one (1:1) e-learning environments. In e-learning, 1:1 refers to both teachers and students using networked mobile devices in either a traditional classroom where they are co-located or in a virtual classroom where they are not (distance learning). In this proposal, the term “tablet” refers to any device with a touchscreen where users write directly on the screen with a stylus or fingertip. Fluidity’s goal is to build MTG using recently patented novel features designed specifically to broaden the use of their award winning product, FluidMath, currently being used in traditional classrooms. Fluidity’s recently patented and patent pending technology transforms the GUIs of networked tablets into a common work page (a virtual whiteboard) on which students can collaborate using handwritten math notation to play math games. Teachers monitor student performance on a teacher’s tablet connected in the network. Unlike any other game application, MTG understands math input and enables participants to enter and collaboratively modify handwritten math notation and/or hand drawn sketches on its common work page. Currently, there are no team games which can be played on networked tablets that provide an intelligent shared workspace for handwritten math input. MTG solves this problem and optimizes the significant investment in tablet computers that is being made by educators for use in 1:1 e-learning environments. MTG provides first-of-a-kind collaboration functionalities for use on a common intelligent workspace upon which participants can interactively collaborate playing games using handwritten math notation and wherein teachers can teach, observe, and evaluate their students’ collaborative problem solving (CPS) skills.
