METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADVANCING THROUGH A DECK OF DIGITAL FLASHCARDS

• US 20160225272A1
• Filed: 11/12/2015
• Published: 08/04/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/31/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: USA Life Nutrition, LLC
• Original Assignee: USA Life Nutrition, LLC
• Inventors: Shea, Ronald Raymond
• Granted Patent: US 10,699,271 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0639 Performance analysis of employees; Performance analysis of enterprise or organisation operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/10 specially adapted for electronic funds transfer [EFT] systems; specially adapted for home banking systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40 Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentials; Review and approval of payers, e.g. check credit lines or negative lists
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/20 Education
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/205 Education administration or guidance
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/00 Teaching not covered by other main groups of this subclass teaching or practice apparatus for gun-aiming or gun-laying F41G3/26
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/06 with both visual and audible presentation of the material to be studied
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/08 providing for individual presentation of information to a plurality of student stations
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/02 of the type wherein the student is expected to construct an answer to the question which is presented or wherein the machine gives an answer to the question presented by a student
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/06 of the multiple-choice answer-type, i.e. where a given question is provided with a series of answers and a choice has to be made from the answers

Abstract

Parents and entities incentivize students to learn using pledges of cash, goods, and services. Students earn incentivized rewards by interacting with lessons on a digital computing device, such as a desktop computer, notebook, tablet, or “smart phone.” The lessons may include digital flash cards, text, pictures, figures, audio and video recordings ranging from classroom lectures, to classical music, to animation of scientific principles. In flashcard embodiments, the accuracy of each answer is recorded on a histogram corresponding to a particular flashcard, or the principles taught therein. The application generates performance metrics from histogram data. The performance metrics are used to generate control parameters that control the frequency and order flashcard presentation. Statistical analysis, adaptive learning and/or artificial intelligence programs refine the control parameters governing flashcard review, thereby optimizing the functionality. As a student satisfies various performance metrics and/or courseware requirements, incentives are released to the student.

Claims

1. A method for selecting a digital flashcard for review on a digital computing device;

the method comprising;

a) calculating, through a first equation, on a digital computing device, a first performance metric relating to a strength of learning of a first student with respect to a first digital flashcard; and

,

b) determining if the first performance metric falls below a predetermined threshold.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the performance metric depicts a probability that the first student will correctly answer the first flashcard.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the probability has at least three gradations of accuracy.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the probability has at least five gradations of accuracy.

5. The method according to claim 2, wherein the probability has at least ten gradations of accuracy.

6. The method according to claim 2, wherein the probability has at least one hundred gradations of accuracy.

7. The method according to claim 4, wherein, in the step of determining, the first performance metric is determined to fall below the predetermined threshold, the method further comprising:

a) presenting to the first student, through the digital computing device, a first question corresponding to the first flashcard;

b) providing, by the first student, a first answer to the first question;

c) updating a histogram of the first flashcard in a data file corresponding to the first student, wherein an update of a histogram includes a value representing an accuracy of the first answer; and

,

d) recalculating the performance metric of the first flashcard in the data file of the first student, wherein the step of recalculating is based, at least in part, on data in the histogram.

8. The method according to claim 4, wherein the first performance metric does not fall below the predetermined threshold, the method further comprising:

a) presenting to the first student, through the digital computing device, a first question corresponding to a second flashcard;

b) providing, by the first student, a first answer to the first question;

c) updating a histogram of the second flashcard in a data file corresponding to the first student, wherein an update of a histogram includes a value representing an accuracy of the first answer.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the second flashcard was a new flashcard that had not been reviewed by the student prior to the step of presenting a first question corresponding to a second flashcard.

10. The method according to claim 7, further comprising:

a) reviewing, the first flashcard a plurality of times over a corresponding first plurality of review cycles, each review cycle including the steps;

i) answering, by the first student, the first flashcard question;

ii) scoring each answer by the first student with a score corresponding to a quality of a respective answer;

b) storing each of the respective scores in a histogram corresponding to the first flashcard in a data file corresponding to the first student; and

c) recalculating, according to the first equation, the performance metric of the first flashcard in the data file of the first student.

11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising the steps:

a) reviewing, the first flashcard, by a second student, a plurality of times over a corresponding second plurality of review cycles, each review cycle including the steps;

i) answering, by the second student, the first flashcard question;

ii) scoring each answer by the second student with a score corresponding to a quality of a respective answer;

iii) storing each of the respective scores of the second student in a histogram corresponding to the first flashcard in a data file corresponding to the second student; and

,

iv) recalculating a performance metric of the first flashcard in the data file of the second student according to the first equation.

12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising the steps:

a) comparing a rate of accuracy of answers to the first question by at least one student against a probability of accuracy predicted by the first equation, wherein the step of comparing encompasses a plurality of review cycles; and

,

b) quantifying, for the first flashcard, a predictive accuracy of the first equation.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the step of quantifying comprises a calculation of a standard deviation.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein the step of quantifying comprises quantifying a linearity of a graph.

15. The method according to claim 12, further comprising the steps:

a) calculating, by means of a second equation, a second plurality of performance metrics corresponding to the first flashcard, each of the second plurality of performance metrics corresponding to a respective cycle from among the first plurality of review cycles;

b) comparing a user'"'"'s accuracy, over the first plurality of cycles, to an accuracy predicted by the second equation over the first plurality of cycles;

c) quantifying, for the first flashcard, a predictive accuracy of the second equation; and

,

d) comparing the predictive accuracy of the first equation to the predictive accuracy of the second equation.

16. The method according to claim 15, further comprising the step of selecting a superior equation from a group of equations including the first and second equation.

17. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first performance metric is derived from a time and date of an answer.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the first performance metric is further derived from a time stamp of a future time and date.

19. A method for selecting a digital flashcard for review by a student on a digital computing device, comprising:

a) for each flashcard in an active flashcard queue, calculating a probability of a correct answer by the student;

b) if the probability of a correct answer falls below a predetermined threshold for at least one flashcard in the active flashcard queue, selecting for review, a flashcard having a lowest probability of a correct answer; and

,

c) if the probability of a correct answer does not fall below a predetermined threshold for at least one flashcard in the active flashcard queue, selecting for review, a new flashcard that has not been previously reviewed by the student.