McGraw-Hill and Alchemie to Co-Develop Augmented Reality Learning Tools for General Chemistry Courses

NEW YORK (May 21, 2019) – McGraw-Hill today announced a new collaboration with Alchemie, a Troy, Mich.-based educational technology startup, on a National Science Foundation grant to research the development of three-dimensional (3D) and augmented reality (AR) learning tools for teaching college-level general chemistry.

Over the next year, a team of McGraw-Hill authors, along with McGraw-Hill instructional designers and product managers will work with the Alchemie team to co-develop and test mobile AR tools for the general chemistry curriculum. These tools, to be available  on a range of mobile devices including phone and tablets, will be designed to help students go beyond memorizing facts to develop an understanding of course content at a deeper, more conceptual level.

The goal is for the tools to ultimately be embedded into digital courseware on the McGraw-Hill Connect® or ALEKS® learning platforms, making them available to millions of learners. The project is part of McGraw-Hill’s focus on creating learning solutions that are affordable, provide high value and improve learning outcomes for students.

“Today’s students want to engage with advanced technologies that make the learning experience more dynamic and effective,” said Scott Virkler, Chief Product and Operating Officer for Higher Education at McGraw-Hill. “As a global leader in digital learning, we’re constantly searching for new ways to apply emerging technologies to drive more active learning and better learning outcomes.”

College-level chemistry concepts can be particularly challenging for students to master, and colleges report a relatively high fail rate for entry-level general chemistry courses, especially among under-served student populations. The ultimate objective of the collaboration is to help millions of students successfully complete these gateway courses each year and to improve equity in student success rates, broadening the array of students who pursue in-demand STEM careers.

“By creating mobile-enabled, game-based learning tools, we are providing an innovative method for students to succeed in some of the toughest courses in college,” said Alchemie’s CEO, Julia Winter. “Through this collaboration, McGraw-Hill and Alchemie will focus on researching how these tools can improve student learning in chemistry, and continue to address educational equity within STEM courses.”