Stanford Learning, Design and Technology Students to Showcase Master's Projects
Students from the Stanford Graduate School of Education's Learning, Design and Technology master's program will showcase their master's projects on July 29 at the LDT Expo on the Stanford campus.
This
year's LDT Expo will feature 16 projects, from web apps to teaching
kits, which were developed by individuals or teams of students in the
program. As part of the expo, the students will present their projects
to experts, potential investors, peers and the general public.
One
of the projects, called "SuperGenerational," developed by LDT students
Alex Barker and Lucas Longo, is a "video-based platform designed to
connect young learners with a curated network of seniors who would act
as an audience and give feedback on student work," according to the
news release. Barker and Longo tested a prototype of their app at a
senior services agency in Palo Alto, CA, and refined it at a retirement
community in Menlo Park, CA. They said they hope to partner with senior
organizations to establish a network of seniors to support the network.
Another
project, called "CollegePath," developed by Shelley Williamson,
"provides interactive video vignettes from graduates who were the first
in their families to go to college or who had good grades but doubted
their college prospects," according to the news release. Williamson
developed the software platform with the goal of demystifying the
process of getting into college.
A third project, called
"Releaf," developed by Mingming Jiang, "is a social networking
application where people can seek help from their friends during
stressful periods," according to the news release. Stressed out
students can use the app to post anonymous messages to their existing
online network of friends. The friends can then recommend a
research-based coping mechanism from a list and write a personalized
message, and then the stressed out student can choose whether to "love"
the recommendation.
The year-long LDT master's program at
Stanford is currently in its 19th year, with students entering from a
variety of disciplines and professional backgrounds. The program
prepares students for careers as learning technology specialists
developing technological solutions to educational challenges. "Their
projects are grounded in learning theories and empirical research, and
then combined with human-centered design strategies," according to the
news release.
"The idea is not to start with a cool technology
but to start with the problems we need to address, looking at who needs
help and why," said Karin Forssell, director of the LDT master's
program, in a prepared statement. "Then you can use the technology as
appropriate to solve real problems."
About the Author
Leila Meyer is a technology writer based in British Columbia. She can be reached at [email protected].