WHAT’S THE BRIEF?
EduMove came to us with the goal of improving students’ health and learning, whilst also making education fun again! Having devised an effective system of movement-based learning, EduMove were aiming to produce a range of apps and software to help disseminate this to schools, organisations and the wider public. The apps needed to be fun and intuitive, and needed to appeal to a school-aged audience. An initial board game was provided as inspiration for the Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE) app, whilst the maths and English apps were to take a more traditional look. This would all have to be published to both iOS and Android, as well as being adapted for use as a class-focused teaching software.
WHAT WE DID
EduMove apps are built using Javascript and HTML5, allowing them to be used as part of the MoveClass web app. Additionally, these are built to be compatible with the CocoonJS compiler, allowing them to be packaged into iOS and Android apps which run at near native speed. The graphics are bouncy and colourful, with a soundtrack to match, making the apps instantly appealing to children. The initial PSHE app was built to mirror the initial board game designs, with custom touch controls and hidden Easter eggs, such as the keepy-uppy football game. However for future releases, a more traditional revision based approach was adopted, making it better suited for children who wished to revise on their own or at their own pace.
THE TOOLS WE USED
Construct
At the beginning of the project we were fresh into web game development, so we used a less code heavy approach and went with Construct 2, this was a node based scripting tool which allowed us to create apps fast, without code.
Although the engine is now outdated it was perfect for what we needed.
Unity
After several years we were tasked with refreshing EduMove and updating it for the stores, after breaking down the project we found that the previous engine ‘Construct 2’ became quickly outdated.
To get around this we remade the project in the ‘Unity’ which has proven to be a much more reliable engine for longevity.
THE RESULT
To date, EduMove’s apps have received over 2000 downloads and are now used in 35 schools and counting. They have also gone on to train more than seventy teachers in their Physically Active Teaching and Learning (PATL) course, and their movement-based learning approach is now being utilised and promoted by a range of primary and secondary schools, football foundations, universities, colleges and sporting companies. EduMove have also been developing their exciting new MoveClass technology which aims to bring physically active learning into the classroom. Schools using the system have reported improved test scores, more active students, improved concentration and better behaviour amongst students. Similarly, the students themselves, report that they prefer EduMove learning to traditional classroom lessons!
HOW IT LOOKS
