RESEARCH BY APP CATEGORY

What we found

We’re now years out from the global pandemic which shut down schools and brought learning online for most students around the world, and which pushed parents and guardians to encourage lockdown learning time on educational apps. For personal devices, this learning boom finally seems to have come to a close, with time spent on educational apps dipping by 14% over 2023 – kids averaged just 6 minutes a day on their favorite learning apps across the year, siphoning off a precious minute from their time in 2022. 

In schools, however, the story is very different – the last few years have been a chance to adopt new online systems, bring digital learning into the classroom, and develop a hybrid system that helps students work their way down a more personalized learning path, and which makes many aspects of classroom life much easier for teachers. In device-friendly countries like the US, 2023 showed heavy use of learning management systems (LMS), paving a new path for digital integration in education that many countries around the world may also choose to walk down.

I like to look up new things on the computer or find out new stuff that I didn’t know before.
– Girl, 11

I like to look up new things on the computer or find out new stuff that I didn’t know before.
– Girl, 11

THE MOST POPULAR APPS AND WEBSITES ON SCHOOL DEVICES IN 2023

In the UK, however, the focus was less on LMS: they made up just 2 of the top 10 apps and sites, with the remainder being dedicated to in-class activities, such as gamified tools like Blooket, Quizlet, and Quizizz, used to review and strengthen concepts. Game-based learning platform Kahoot! landed 2nd place in the UK, also featuring in Australia’s top 10, but missing out on 2023’s US ranking. STEM tools such as coding community Scratch MIT, and math platform Zearn were also used heavily in the UK, but didn’t fare so well in the US and Australia, where the heavier appearance of LMS reflects the fact that both countries are much further ahead in terms of device integration in the classroom.

I like that technology makes everything easier and that I can find everything that the class asks of me.
My mom sometimes asks me to look up words I don’t know.

– Boy, 10

I like that technology makes everything easier and that I can find everything that the class asks of me.
My mom sometimes asks me to look up words I don’t know.

– Boy, 10

Personal devices

For the first time, learning apps such as home­work helper Brainly entered the popularity lists, particularly in Europe, with France pla­cing the app 3rd in their ranking, and Spanish children helping it to come in 5th. Children in the UK and Australia also turned to apps for some homework help, particularly in math: problem-solving picture app Photomath came in 2nd in the UK, and 6th in Australia. Gauthmath, an AI calculator and math pro­blem solver, was a new entry in 5th place for the UK, while online math program Mathletics placed 4th down under.

In fact, several new educational apps came onto the scene for Australia’s 2023 rankings: Minecraft’s educational offering (Minecraft: Education Edition) placed 2nd, while home­grown digital literacy program Reading Eggs came in 5th.

I like that all the information is easy to get online but I don’t like having to look at a screen for a long time. Sometimes there can be a lot of information so I have to take my time to find the best.

– Boy, 12

– Boy, 12

– Boy, 11

I like it when we watch videos for science and history. I like the math game Prodigy. I don’t like when I have to type a lot for English class since I can’t type very fast and it takes a long time when I have to write a paper or story.

– Boy, 11

It’s easy to share my results with my mom and teacher and get lots of links to learn more.

– Boy, 12

It’s easy to share my results with my mom and teacher and get lots of links to learn more.

– Boy, 12

How much time did children spend on learning apps on personal devices in 2023?

While children were keen to download Duolingo to satisfy their language-learning curiosities, in terms of time spent, the app’s gamified approach didn’t hold their attention for as long as other educational apps could. Globally, Quizlet was where most children chose to spend their time, cramming in 10 minutes of daily study worldwide. In the UK, Duolingo tied with several other learning apps, sharing the top time spot of 8 mins/day with Quizlet, Gauthmath, and Kahoot!.

In other countries, however, children spent much more time on educational apps, such as in Australia, where kids spent 18 minutes per day on online math support program Mathletics, and another 18 going through lessons on Reading Eggs. Other apps that support a national literacy and numeracy curriculum, such as Spain’s Smartick, also racked up some significant use time, with children spending an average of 30 minutes a day on the platform, despite it coming lower in the popularity rankings.

I use technology to do my homework. Sometimes when I’m stuck on something I can Google the answer. I like it because sometimes I learn more about a subject if I look it up.

– Boy, 10

What we expect

EdTech is growing on a global scale, with countries consistently incorporating new technologies and learning systems set to transform education: but in 2023, some countries began to push back on digitalization. For the new school year in Sweden, kids went back to basics, writing largely on paper, practicing their handwriting skills, and cutting back on tablet time in the classroom.

Not every child around the world has access to digital devices in the classroom, and while for some nations this could gradually change in the future, it may be that other countries, already advanced in their digital education plan, begin to follow in the shoes of Sweden, pulling back over the next few years to achieve a greater balance.

Whether scaling back, or surging forward, we anticipate that the influence of parents and guardians will begin to play a more significant role in digital education, with schools and families working together to strike a better balance, forming a solid team that prepares children to enter the world as responsible digital citizens.

What we recommend

While access to a school device varies from country to country, it’s still incredibly easy for kids to make their entire learning process digital, no matter where they are in the world. Offline learning should still be a priority to help students consolidate ideas and build different thought processes. Wherever possible, get hands on and help your child go analogue again, swapping the Kindle for a real book, taking a trip to the library for some quality research time, or exploring a new topic together and talking it over at study time.

While time on educational apps is largely beneficial, it’s important to remember moderation is key. Screen time is still screen time, and while technology can help children learn and absorb concepts, it shouldn’t be the only place they’re able to do this. Even if educational, screen time and app use should be balanced, especially as many children are also spending increased amounts of time using devices in a school setting.