Educational technology : Quality label for EdTech products
PH Zurich has received funding for an innovative project in the field of educational technologies as part of the second founder call of the Digitalisation Initiative of the Canton of Zurich (DIZH). The project, led by Mathias Decuypere, aims to develop an educational quality label for what are known as EdTech products – from apps to learning platforms. The initiative aims to help school leaders, teachers and students select appropriate technologies, while also making it easier for EdTech developers to access the education market.
The “Equipping Swiss EdTech with Pedagogical Terms and Conditions” project aims to provide a not-for-profit service that contributes to greater transparency and higher quality in the Swiss EdTech landscape. Mathias Decuypere stresses the need for such a label: “These days, there is a huge variety of educational technologies, but schools are losing track of what good technologies are and what could be educationally useful for them. With this project, we want to change that.”
Founder call
The DIZH innovation programme’s founder call provides initial funding to support start-up ideas, with the aim of validating the technical and economic feasibility of the projects. The eleven funded projects, including the one from PH Zurich, were presented and selected in a pitch final in front of a jury consisting of members of the DIZH Innovation Panel and experts from the start-up scene.
The approved projects are characterised by their innovative strength and their contribution to digital transformation. Funding amounts to a maximum of CHF 75’000 per project and enables the teams to develop a proof of concept within 12 months.
DIZH innovation programme
The Digitalisation Initiative of the Canton of Zurich (DIZH) promotes collaboration between Zurich’s universities in the area of digitalisation in order to strengthen Zurich as a centre for research and business. The DIZH innovation programme turns research findings into practice and addresses the needs of practical application partners in research. Funding is awarded through transparent, competitive processes, with a willingness to take risks, disciplinary diversity, value creation and collaboration being key criteria.
