About OpenStax Kinetic

In this article you will find answers to the following questions about OpenStax Kinetic:

• What is Kinetic?

• Who is Kinetic for?

• What steps is Kinetic taking to further DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion?

• How does Kinetic Work?

• Who are the people behind Kinetic?

• What are the benefits for Researchers, Research Participants, and the Research Community of using OpenStax Kinetic?

What is Kinetic?

Kinetic is a research platform where real learners connect with research activities that gives them a better understanding of:

1. The characteristics that might affect their learning
2. Study techniques and strategies that could be promising for online learning
3. Research studies in human learning and key findings shared by Kinetic researchers

More importantly, we have taken important steps to ensure that everything learners share with us is anonymized, and that their privacy is protected at all times. Read more on Privacy here.
 

Who is Kinetic for? 

Kinetic is a place for both learners as well as for researchers. With Kinetic, learners can not only access learning techniques backed by science, but more importantly, can earn prizes while doing so. We welcome all higher-ed learners pursuing formal or informal education.

Researchers, on the other hand, are able to connect with leading research and educational institutions like Rice and OpenStax to help further scientific understanding and answer key questions in learning and education research.
 

What steps is Kinetic taking to further DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion)?

At OpenStax Kinetic, we continuously strive to understand the learners we serve and more importantly, diagnose systemic inequities in education. We believe that those who are closest to the process know the most about key opportunities and challenges that characterize their learning context and resources. Therefore, we continuously seek out diverse and representative perspectives internally with our staff and externally with our end users (students, educators, and researchers). And with everything we do, we take concrete steps to analyze and attend to the learning impacts of our products on learners of diverse identities, so that we can be a part of the solution.
 

How does Kinetic work? 

In partnership with a team of dedicated researchers in the field of learning sciences and allied disciplines, Kinetic connects real students to ongoing learning research.

Learners can easily find new studies published on the platform, choose the ones they’re interested in, and complete these studies in a few minutes. Each time they participate, learners earn points for a chance to win prizes like gift cards from Apple, Nike, Amazon, etc. Moreover, they are able to access feedback on learning techniques being studied by Kinetic researchers.

Researchers are able to quickly and easily build out their research activities in Qualtrics and publish their research within our platform. Within Kinetic, they’ll be able to access real learners in their authentic learning environments within OpenStax, all with the support of our dedicated in-house researchers.
 

Who are the people behind Kinetic? 

Part of Rice University in Houston, Texas, OpenStax was founded by Professor Richard Baraniuk in 1999 with the mission of improving educational access and learning for everyone. As the newest member of the OpenStax product suite, Kinetic was launched in January 2022 to help answer the most critical questions in human learning and further our efforts to build more equitable learning experiences for all. 
 

What are the benefits for researchers, research participants, and the research community of using OpenStax Kinetic?

• For Researchers, Kinetic creates a connection with real learners in their authentic learning environment, while providing secure access to vast amounts of data that can be used to conduct large-scale studies and generate nuanced findings about what works for who, when, and in what context. 
   

• For Participants, Kinetic provides personalized insights intended to help participants grow as learners, as well as the opportunity to earn rewards in the process. Moreover, it connects them to the opportunity of contributing  to cutting edge research studies directed at furthering the development of learning strategies and outcomes for all learners. 

• For the Research Community as a whole, they can benefit from the increased collaboration and sharing of data and resources, leading to more impactful research and advancements in the field of digital learning. Explicitly built for researchers, Kinetic promotes sharing of promising research findings with product teams as well as higher-education institutions to ensure that research goes beyond peer reviewed publications and effectively translated into changes in instructional practice. 

Overall, OpenStax Kinetic aims to be a valuable tool for advancing the understanding of how technology can be used to improve educational experiences for every learner.

For more information about the roles in Kinetic, please visit the help articles linked below.
Kinetic Learner/Student FAQs
Kinetic Researcher FAQs