Frustrations in packed lecture halls. Anne van Harten (24) ran into this during her job as a student assistant during her Computer Science study. Anne: “I see UT students who have questions, but lecturers and student assistants have lost the overview.” It must change, Anne thought. In 2018 she started working on a prototype where students could indicate online that they had a question. This tool is now widely used at the University of Twente. In the Novel-T Advanced Program, Anne is working on the professionalization of her product. Its main purpose? Introduce more educational institutions to its tool: TA-Help.me.
HOW DOES TA-HELP.ME WORK?
“Raising your hand in class is no longer necessary. Students can go to a link of TA-Help.me via Canvas to press “I have a question.” Here, they have the option to add a subject,” says Anne. Answering a question is easy with TA-Help.me, which means Teaching Assistant Help.me. “The pop-up ‘it’s your turn’ helps students with a personal answer,” says Anne. The link from TA-Help.me works in any Learning Management System (LMS), so any educational institution can use it.
THE UNIVERSITY OF TWENTE AS A SATISFIED CUSTOMER
“I noticed that teachers and student assistants from my study program were immediately enthusiastic about the tool,” says Anne. It didn’t stop there. Various teachers and study programs soon showed interest in Anne’s product. “I managed to roll out TA-Help.me widely at the University of Twente. Since more and more students are attending a lesson, the UT thought it was a good long-term solution,” says Anne.
A PERSONAL EXPLANATION EVERYWHERE
“There was a lot of interest in the tool at the start of the lockdown,” says Anne. That is why she made sure that people could use the tool online. “You can now indicate whether you participate physically or online in the class, which makes TA-Help.me suitable for classes that take place in lecture halls, online or in hybrid form.” Students are always shown who will act first and when they can expect a personal answer. Anne: “That personal explanation is so important. That’s why students come to the lessons.”
THE SOLUTION FOR EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS
“When I notice how happy students and teachers are with TA-Help.me, I think it’s a shame that no more educational institutions are aware of the product,” says Anne. She is currently working in Novel-T’s Advanced program on ways to make the product known to new parties. “The tool can make lessons so much better and take away frustration, which is why I want to deploy TA-Help.me to as many educational institutions as possible,” says Anne.
TA-Help.me works with licenses and subscriptions. Curious about the tool? Then contact Anne van Harten and ask her for a trial subscription. If you want to start your own business, the START program is the next step for you.
