How Hypothesis Transformed Learning: Successful Case Studies from Leading Institutions

Education is continuously evolving, and tools that improve engagement and learning are becoming increasingly more needed. Hypothesis social annotation is a leading solution in this space, as it enables the students and educators to connect with content in a more meaningful way. It transforms your learning experiences by letting you annotate texts, add context, and develop deeper discussions. 

Let’s explore three successful case studies that truly highlight how exactly Hypothesis transformed learning. 

Case Study 1

Increased Engagement for UT Austin and UMN Using Hypothesis with Bookshelf by VitalSource

The University of Texas at Austin and the University of Minnesota turned to Bookshelf by VitalSource to provide affordable and accessible digital course materials. Both institutions faced a common challenge: students were not fully engaging with the assigned readings. To foster deeper interaction and participation, both universities integrated Hypothesis with Verba Collect, allowing students to annotate and engage with texts more effectively.

Addressing Challenges

. Viranga Perera, Assistant Professor of Physics at UT Austin, found that many students weren’t reading, which made classroom discussions and problem-solving more difficult. Similarly, Allison Brenneise, Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Minnesota, wanted her students to engage more deeply with the texts to set the tone for the rest of the course.

“Making annotations, even a small percentage of the grade, is enough to get students to pay attention and do the readings,” said Perera, highlighting the importance of incentivizing engagement.

Solution: Integrating Hypothesis with Bookshelf by VitalSource

Both institutions saw an opportunity with the integration of Hypothesis into Bookshelf by VitalSource. This integration allowed students to annotate and interact with the their eTexts, making learning more interactive and collaborative.

At UMN, Brenneise began by having her students annotate the syllabus, ensuring they became comfortable with the tool before moving on to textbooks. Perera, at UT Austin, appreciated the seamless integration of Hypothesis with Canvas, the university’s LMS, and encouraged student participation by including annotations as part of their course grade.

Student Feedback and Results

The integration of Hypothesis led to measurable improvements in student engagement. At UT Austin, students using Hypothesis engaged with the text 3–5X more often than students in sections that did not. This allowed Perera to focus class time on deeper discussions and problem-solving.

At UMN, data showed that students using Hypothesis engaged with the text over 10 days during the semester, compared to only 4 days in sections without it. Brenneise observed that students were more comfortable expressing opinions and engaging in respectful disagreements, which led to improved critical thinking and writing skills.

Both universities saw Hypothesis not only boost student interaction with course materials but also foster stronger peer collaboration and engagement. Learn more 

Case Study 2

Indiana University: Transforming the First-Year Experience with Hypothesis

Indiana University Bloomington is home to nearly 43,000 students, which makes it one of the largest universities in the U.S. Like many other institutions, Indiana University faced challenges when transitioning to online courses, particularly in ensuring student engagement. In Fall 2020, the university introduced Hypothesis to its first-year composition writing seminar to boost their engagement, improve reading comprehension, and build a sense of community.

Led by Justin Hodgson, who is the associate professor of English, the initiative expanded rapidly and brought positive changes to students and faculty. Over the next three years, hypotheses became a critical part of the learning process in many courses.

Addressing engagement challenges

Engagement took a hit when courses moved online. He and his team wanted to solve two major problems. The initial goal was to encourage students to read the prescribed texts, followed by a more profound interaction with them. They also noticed that personal connections between students became less frequent in an online environment.

“Hypothesis promised to help us achieve both of our main objectives,” Hodgson said. “The tool allowed for a deeper engagement with texts and helped foster student interactions, creating a stronger sense of community in the online classroom.”

Student feedback and results

To measure the impact of Hypothesis, Indiana University collected data over several semesters. Students made nearly 79,000 annotations in three semesters, with a growing word count of over 4.6 million. More importantly, students responded positively to the tool by exceeding the minimum requirements for annotations. In some cases, students left more than 200 annotations on a single reading that showed how fully they embraced the platform.

The benefits were equally significant for the faculty. “You could see that students had meaningfully engaged with the material before class,” Hodgson noted. The increase in reading comprehension and student preparation allowed the teachers to get directly into meaningful discussions, which improved both student and faculty experiences.

Thanks to its success, the use of Hypothesis at Indiana University expanded from first-year courses to upper-level classes, and it became a staple in the university’s learning programs. Learn more 

Case Study 3

University of California, Santa Cruz: Utilizing Hypothesis with JSTOR

At the University of California, Santa Cruz, Professor Minghui Hu faced a common problem: how to get students to engage with challenging scholarly content. Hu’s courses, as part of the university’s humanities department, usually required students to read dense academic articles from JSTOR, which is a digital library of scholarly content. These materials were valuable, but they were also difficult for undergraduates to understand.

To overcome this challenge, UC Santa Cruz implemented Hypothesis in combination with JSTOR to make the reading experience more interactive. This integration allowed the students to annotate scholarly articles directly within the Hypothesis platform, helping them to engage more deeply with the material.

Engaging Students in Scholarly Content

Professor Hu wanted to increase content interaction and ensure students weren’t just reading the material but truly engaging with it. With Hypothesis annotations, students could look up terms, ask questions, summarize sections, and even respond to their peers’ comments, turning what was once a solitary activity into a collaborative learning experience.

Hu discovered that Hypothesis transformed how students interacted with difficult texts. He explained, “These articles, designed for graduate students and scholars, challenge undergraduates and push them beyond their comfort zone.” The tool helped students break down complex articles, making them easier to understand.

Benefits for Faculty and Students

Hypothesis implementation provided many benefits to students and faculty. The social aspect of Hypothesis annotations turned reading from a solo experience into a more engaging activity for the students. They could see how their peers approached the reading and compare their understanding, which literally helped them improve.

For Professor Hu, the ability to track student engagement was a game changer. “I can see right in the LMS when students log in, how much time they spend with the text, and how often they’re engaging with each other.” Hu noted. This insight gave him more control over the learning process and helped him make sure that the students were actively engaging with the content. Learn more

Case Study 4

College of Pharmacy at an R1 Institution: Improving Comprehension with Hypothesis

At a College of Pharmacy at an RI Institution in the Midwest, faculty sought to help undergraduates better understand complex scientific research texts. These texts, central to the pharmacy, psychology, and cancer research courses, were often filled with dense jargon that made comprehension difficult for students. To address this, the institution implemented Hypothesis, a social annotation tool that allowed students to interact with the material more effectively, leading to significant gains in both comprehension and engagement.

The Challenge

Research papers are a crucial part of scientific education, but they can be particularly challenging for undergraduate students. Nicholas Denton, Senior Lecturer of Pharmacy Education and Innovation, described the issue: “These papers are full of complex jargon. It takes hours before students are able to grasp what’s novel or meaningful about them.” This struggle to understand the material delayed students’ ability to apply critical thinking and engage in productive discussions, hindering their learning process.

The Solution

To help students engage more deeply with research materials, Denton and his team introduced Hypothesis. This social annotation tool allowed students to annotate research texts directly, encouraging them to highlight important sections, pose questions, and discuss the content collaboratively. By interacting with the material in real time, students were able to break down complex concepts and apply their understanding in a more meaningful way.

The Results

The introduction of Hypothesis led to substantial improvements in student comprehension from his undergraduate students. According to Denton, “We saw a level of comprehension on par with what we’d expect from graduate students,” as students provided more detailed explanations and incorporated outside resources to support their understanding. Data from the courses revealed that the number of students demonstrating above-average mastery of the material more than doubled after the implementation of Hypothesis.

Over 88% of students agreed that using Hypothesis gave them a better understanding of the research literature compared to reading it independently. Notably, the gains in comprehension were equitable across all demographics, including BIPOC and 1st Gen students. “Students that have been systematically excluded from the research literature are catching up with Hypothesis more so than when we did traditional discussion boards,” Denton observed.

Increased Engagement and Persistence

In addition to improving comprehension, the use of Hypothesis significantly boosted student engagement. Denton and his colleagues saw near 100% participation in journal clubs and class discussions, with students responding more frequently to instructor prompts and engaging more actively with their peers. Denton noted, “We saw engagement in line with what we would expect to see at the graduate and postdoc levels after implementing Hypothesis.”

Hypothesis also provided a psychologically safe space for students, particularly those from underrepresented groups. “Hypothesis gave these students the psychological safety to speak up in cases where they might be wrong,” Denton said. “For students, it removed the intimidation factor. That’s huge.”

Moreover, the tool had a positive impact on students’ persistence in the sciences. Denton’s analysis revealed that students who used Hypothesis were more likely to continue their studies in STEM fields. “Hypothesis helped students model the authentic experience of a research scientist, which we believe is now contributing to students’ professional identity formation as scientists,” he remarked.

The most notable gains came in self-efficacy and science identity, key predictors of persistence in STEM. Hypothesis allowed students to see themselves as scientists, bridging the gap between underrepresented students and their majority peers. Learn more