In the world of early math education, Trapezium Math is a beacon of innovation and dedication.
Founded by Angela McIver, PhD, a former middle school math teacher, Trapezium Math works with schools, districts, and families to make math engaging and exciting for young math learners. It has evolved from a local, after-school math club to a nationally recognized K-5 math content provider.
"We're shaping the future of elementary math education.” - Dr. Angela McIver, Founder of Trapezium Math
Before 2020, Trapezium Math was a mission-driven small business focused on providing learners with a highly engaging and rigorous math curriculum, making math accessible to everyone, especially students traditionally underrepresented in math and science fields.
Through her research and work, Dr. McIver proved that children learn best when engaged with their teacher and other math learners doing “hard math”. Thus, she founded Trapezium Math on the principle of utilizing technology-free activities and lessons as the cornerstone of effective early math education.
Then, the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated bringing the program online.
"When the pandemic hit, we had to reinvent ourselves," Dr. McIver recalls. Trapezium initially resisted technology but embraced it to survive. "We had to move online," she explains, highlighting the challenge of maintaining engaging math experiences in a digital space.
The Challenge: Finding content on Trapezium’s portal took a lot of time and effort
After setting up their online platform, Trapezium ran into a problem. "We had created the platform using an off-the-shelf product, but we realized there were a lot of flaws," Dr. McIver recounts.
They experienced growing pains, lacking a systematic way to digitally categorize and organize their vast pool of content — Trapezium instructors found it hard to navigate a web of portal links to find the content they needed.
The Solution: A customized, streamlined search experience
In late 2023, Dr. McIver met Daniel Crook, School Harbor's founder and CEO, at an ed tech conference and immediately connected over Trapezium’s mission.
Dr. McIver quickly realized that “Dan understood the educational landscape,” and their collaboration became transformative. Together, they revamped Trapezium's online portal, empowering instructors with a new search experience.
The School Harbor team got to work immediately. They redesigned and rebuilt the online resource portal from the ground up, collaborating closely with Trapezium leaders to create custom categories and tags to organize their content for searchability.
Designers, front-end developers, and back-end developers then worked together to craft a modern, intuitive search experience. Now, Trapezium instructors can quickly find resources through the portal, saving time to focus on what matters most — facilitating engaging and joyful math education.
Reflecting on The Project: Meaningful education experience as a key ingredient to technical success
"Our journey taught us the importance of agility and perseverance," Dr. McIver reflects.
Trapezium's success lies in its commitment to quality education. By partnering with School Harbor, the Trapezium team streamlined the user experience of their new online portal, reducing friction points and empowering instructors to dedicate more time to delivering the exceptional standard of education that distinguishes them in the field.
"You need someone who understands the regulations and certification that you need as an education company. - Dr. Angela McIver, Founder of Trapezium Math
Dr. McIver highlighted Daniel and the School Harbor team's invaluable expertise in the education sector, emphasizing their unique perspective in the portal's reconstruction. The collaboration was not only characterized by the technical skills necessary to complete the rebuild but also a deep understanding of the project's contextual nuances.
Looking ahead: A brighter future for elementary math students
"Thanks to School Harbor, we're poised for further growth." Dr. McIver envisions enhancing interactive learning tools and progress monitoring features to serve her mission of improving math education.
"Every day, our goal is to empower students with mathematical skills," Dr. McIver asserts.
Trapezium Math's journey exemplifies the power of innovation and mission-driven collaboration in education technology. By embracing tech industry best practice and leveraging meaningful education experience, School Harbor helped Trapezium scale their impact on elementary math students nationwide.
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