Researcher Spotlight:
Jacobs Foundation
Curio Awarded Two Research Grants by the Jacobs Foundation
Curio has been selected to participate in two research studies funded by the Jacobs Foundation — the largest education-focused foundation in Europe. These grants, each valued at $250,000, are awarded in collaboration with WestEd and focus on evaluating how immersive virtual reality (IVR) can deepen learning in biology and math classrooms.
Project Overview
The first grant supports the development and classroom testing of Curio’s VR dissection tools, starting with our cow eye dissection. This work will help educators align VR dissections to learning standards, especially where traditional methods fall short—such as helping students visualize how anatomical systems work together in three dimensions.
The second grant supports a new initiative to build and study VR-based algebra tiles, designed to assist teachers in making foundational math concepts more intuitive and engaging.
Teacher using Algebra Tiles in Curio during a lesson
Research Design
These research studies are designed to go beyond general usability—they will examine how Curio’s tools perform in real classrooms and how they can be adapted to meet both teacher needs and learning standards. These grants provide a rare opportunity to collaborate with education researchers and teachers across the country to refine and extend our tools based on meaningful feedback.
Together, these projects reflect a shared commitment to building better learning tools—grounded in research, driven by classroom needs, and built with teachers and students in mind.
A student explores anatomy firsthand during a cow eye dissection in a biology class