AI-powered learning platform Quizlet announced an integration with TikTok last week that allows creators in the education space to link interactive flash cards directly to their videos.
The partnership supports TikTok's Creative Learning Fund, which aims to address the challenges of remote and hybrid learning during the COVID-19 pandemic by bringing educational programs to the platform through teachers and other relevant influencers.
Anyone with a TikTok account can view Quizlet flashcards on public content, but the tool is still in limited beta for creators.
“TikTok has identified several teachers and subject matter experts [that can] create content in a high quality pool of creators,” said Phil Carter, director of growth at Quizlet. “Quizlet similarly has been growing our own beta program and have qualified teachers on the platform to create academic content.”
Through the integration, teachers and educators can enhance their TikTok videos with links to Quizlet’s interactive flashcards, which users can engage with the same way they would on Quizlet’s website or apps.
The tie-up, the latest move by a tech platform into the education world, highlights just how much schooling changed for both kids and teachers over the past year. Sixty-five percent of households have shifted to remote learning using online resources during the pandemic, according to a survey by the Census Bureau.
For Quizlet, enabling a more interactive way of learning on a platform where kids are already spending their time has proven more effective for teachers while many schools remain closed.
“We hear from teachers all the time that it's really difficult teaching through Zoom. In many cases all of their students are muted and have their video feed off. It's like teaching in an empty room,” Carter said.
Quizlet has over 50 million monthly users and 400 million user-generated study sets. The platform recently launched an AI-powered learning assistant that it hopes can “help close the homework gap exacerbated by the pandemic” by being a “tutor in your pocket,” Carter said.
Big tech companies are increasingly making plays in the largely analog education world. Google Classroom has become a top app for teachers and students during the pandemic, and Apple and Microsoft are also selling products specifically for schools.
While teaming up with TikTok makes a lot of sense given its penetration with younger users, educators will have to be mindful of the platform’s child data privacy policies, which have come under scrutiny recently.
