Research
Cognitive ToyBox was founded in 2015 out of a National Science Foundation I-Corps for Learning grant at NYU. Co-founders Tammy Kwan and Dr. Brenden Lake are committed to developing evidence-based technology solutions to support early childhood educators, parents and children.
Assessment Platform
The assessment platform enables teachers to conduct standardized and structured observation-based and direct assessments for children ages birth to five. The platform is aligned to the goals described in the Head Start Early Learning Child Outcomes Framework: Ages Birth to Five and supports assessment of the five central developmental domains: Approaches to Learning, Social and Emotional Development, Language and Literacy, Cognition, and Perceptual, Motor and Physical Development.
Please see below for research on the reliability and validity of Cognitive ToyBox's assessment platform and on its usability for instructional adjustment and individualization. More research is forthcoming in this area, and this page will be updated on an ongoing basis.
Cognitive ToyBox Labs - Research Projects
Cognitive ToyBox Labs is developing evidence-based digital interventions for language and math for children ages 18 months to five years of age. The core principle behind our platform is guiding children to learn-to-learn (L2L) — teaching high-level principles so children learn more efficiently outside of the app. L2L is a foundational principle of cognitive science and neuroscience, and there is compelling research demonstrating that teaching children L2L concepts, earlier than children discover them on their own, can accelerate early learning.
Through research with our academic partners, we study the impact of our apps on performance in standard language and math assessments. We are especially interested in understanding the impact of these scientific advances for children with developmental delays and children from linguistically poor environments, who acquire L2L principles later than their typically developing peers.
Assessment Platform
The assessment platform enables teachers to conduct standardized and structured observation-based and direct assessments for children ages birth to five. The platform is aligned to the goals described in the Head Start Early Learning Child Outcomes Framework: Ages Birth to Five and supports assessment of the five central developmental domains: Approaches to Learning, Social and Emotional Development, Language and Literacy, Cognition, and Perceptual, Motor and Physical Development.
Please see below for research on the reliability and validity of Cognitive ToyBox's assessment platform and on its usability for instructional adjustment and individualization. More research is forthcoming in this area, and this page will be updated on an ongoing basis.
- Flynn, K. & Patel, R. (2019). Cognitive ToyBox Subject Matter Expert Review. San Francisco, CA: WestEd.
- Hull, S. & Kwan, T. (2019, October 4). Measuring school readiness through games: A focus on reliability, validity and outcomes. New York, NY: Author.
- Lewis, M., Cristiano, V., Lake, B. M., Kwan, T., & Frank, M. C. (2019, January 2). The role of developmental change and linguistic experience in the mutual exclusivity effect. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/wsx3a
- Subramanyam, A. & Kwan, T. (2019). The Promise of Game-Based Assessment in Early Childhood Education. New York, NY: Author.
- White, J. (2018, August 23). Cognitive ToyBox: Data-based assessment tool to accelerate progress in early childhood literacy. Mocksville, NC: Mebane Charitable Foundation.
- White, J. (2019, May 24). Cognitive ToyBox: Achieving early literacy in Davie County. Mocksville, NC: Mebane Charitable Foundation.
Cognitive ToyBox Labs - Research Projects
Cognitive ToyBox Labs is developing evidence-based digital interventions for language and math for children ages 18 months to five years of age. The core principle behind our platform is guiding children to learn-to-learn (L2L) — teaching high-level principles so children learn more efficiently outside of the app. L2L is a foundational principle of cognitive science and neuroscience, and there is compelling research demonstrating that teaching children L2L concepts, earlier than children discover them on their own, can accelerate early learning.
Through research with our academic partners, we study the impact of our apps on performance in standard language and math assessments. We are especially interested in understanding the impact of these scientific advances for children with developmental delays and children from linguistically poor environments, who acquire L2L principles later than their typically developing peers.