We’re always thrilled to see the diverse and impactful ways our users leverage Hype to bring their creative visions to life on the web. Today, we’re excited to highlight the Strategic Education Research Partnership (SERP) Institute, an organization dedicated to bridging the gap between educational research, practice, and design to tackle some of the most pressing challenges in schools. For example: How do you teach students in middle school how condensation forms on a glass? Where does the water come from?
Today, that experience may involve textbooks, videos, or if your teacher or school district has sought out additional resources: an interactive animation crafted by SERP:
SERP and their role in Curriculum Development
The SERP Institute brings together researchers, practitioners, and designers in education to improve the learning and engagement of all students while empowering both teachers and students with greater agency. Their task is huge. They achieve this by partnering with school districts to define and explore their biggest challenges; SERP then brings in researchers and designers to co-create a solution with the school district. Over 1,200 teachers and administrators have contributed to their research and design work, and their tools have reached over 40,000 registered teachers.
Hype as a Tool for Dynamic Learning
A key element of SERP’s design work involves creating engaging and interactive materials, and this is where Tumult Hype plays a significant role. I had the chance to chat with Matthew Ellinger, the Director of Design at SERP about their use of Hype. He told me they began experimenting with Hype after a designer who had just graduated from Stanford joined their team and suggested trying out a few animations in Hype as a way to move beyond static materials. Initially, Hype was used for basic math concepts, allowing for interactive demonstrations of division, for example.
This initial success paved the way for more complex animations. Artist and illustrator David Dudley joined SERP and further embraced Hype to create visually rich and interactive explanations of scientific concepts. These animations provide a level of engagement that traditional methods often struggle to achieve.
Showcasing Engaging Animations
SERP has developed a range of compelling animations using Hype. One notable project was for New York City’s Middle School Quality Initiative (MSQI), where teachers identified science concepts that were difficult to teach on paper. One such topic was on wave action, shown below:
This animation is one in a large set of interactive animations built for teaching wave energy you can check out here. These animations allowed students to dynamically explore concepts like pendulums and wave mechanics, fostering discussion and providing language for later written descriptions. Similarly, the “peppered moth” story, illustrating natural selection through changing tree colors and moth populations, is another example of a scientific concept beautifully brought to life through Hype animation.
Another fascinating example that Matthew also highlighted is the “lemonade” animation, which visually explains the phenomenon of condensation on a cold glass of lemonade. The animation meticulously shows water droplets forming and dripping on the glass, helping students understand the behavior of water molecules in a way that’s difficult to observe in a real-life experiment.
Check out a big selection of SERP’s Hype interactives at the bottom of this post.
Why Hype Works for SERP
The team at SERP reaches for Hype to convey these concepts for a number of reasons:
- Dynamic Visuals: Hype allows for the creation of much more engaging and understandable visual models compared to static alternatives.
- Student Agency: Unlike videos, Hype animations allow students to stop, start, and revisit content, fostering a sense of control over their learning. This encourages interaction and discussion among students.
- Facilitates Deeper Exploration: The interactive nature of Hype animations can inspire students to ask “what if” questions and explore the real-world phenomena being depicted.
We’re excited to stay on top of what Matthew and the team at SERP creates next! The gallery below shows off more awesome animations:
