Game On

When I went to school in Austria, my exams were mostly long-form word problems. Whether in Math, Language learning, or Science, tests and exam problems were given to me in long paragraphs.

When I studied for the SAT, I was surprised that most of the questions were multiple choice. Then at UCLA, the big majority of my tests and exams were all in multiple choice format. At first I thought the American system was easier as answers were basically “provided” to you. But over time I realized that answering multiple choice questions can require just as much study preparation.

Multiple choice quizzes can also be more effective given their gamification component. If done right, quizzes can increase retention of students by 12% higher and overall learning outcomes by 7%, according to the International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education. More specifically, quizzing with paced repetition is the most effective way to learn.

Gamified learning has been an emerging trend for sometime but is now accelerating in the post COVID reality. A wide range of popular study services apply gamification to drive higher engagement and better outcomes; from quizzing services such as Quizlet, Quizizz, Kahoot, to Q&A marketplaces like Course Hero and Chegg, to gaming platforms such as Minecraft and Roblox — they all help students be more engaged and learn more effectively. (Disclosure: GSV owns shares in Course Hero, Quizizz).

Today, students use gamified quiz apps to prepare for test and exams. These apps are popular because they are mobile-first and have highly relevant and engaging content. In many cases, students contribute quizzes or flashcards that can be tagged to specific teachers. This aspect drives content longevity as students in future semesters are likely to use the flashcards tagged to specific classes and teachers.

Quizlet has a flashcards and quizzes model that is becoming very popular among students. With over 75M MAUs, the app is among the top-ranked education apps in many geographies. Some local players such as StudySmarter in Central Europe are also showing impressive early traction.

Similarly, learning platforms like Course Hero, Chegg, or Brainly are focusing on Q&As and flashcards to help students prepare for exams. Meanwhile, Kahoot and Quizizz are tailored for teachers to use in-class and gaining strong tractions from the teachers’ side.

Last summer, we hosted Quizizz CEO Ankit Gupta at our ASU GSV Summit (watch panel here). As I was listening to Ankit’s overview of Quizizz and his vision for where he wanted to take the business, I was immediately hooked. I went straight to Quizizz website and spent hours taking random quizzes…it was addictive!

Quizizz is a learning service used by teachers and students around the World. Teachers can find and contribute gamified quizzes instead of using old-school worksheets or paper-based assessments. They can create their own materials or use content from the existing library. Currently, the platform is used by over 60 million Monthly Active Users globally and is present in over 65% of U.S. schools. In 2020, students answered more than 13 billion questions on Quizizz, which at 60M MAUs is over 200 questions answered per student — that’s engagement!

Last week we also saw the direct listing of Roblox — one of the leading gaming platforms with 33M Daily Active Users (most in the age group 10–20) who spend 2.6 hours per day, on average. It is likely the most engaging kids games ever, and it has a very powerful learning component — users play in a virtual world where they create, collaborate and compete with each other. Strategy and critical thinking are at the core of the games. Roblox allows users to learn coding concepts such as strings or arrays, in order to create traps, powerups and other in-game actions.

RBLX shares had a strong debut on the public market, surging 55% and lifting the company at a $40 billion market cap. The combination of the rapidly growing user base and its high engagement rates is a key reason why RBLX trading at a significant premium vis-a-vis its comps.