SciQuiry: Intelligent Tutoring Platform
- United States
- For-profit, including B-Corp or similar models
Globally, the demand for STEM skills continues to grow, with projections indicating millions of new STEM jobs emerging in the next decade. Despite this, there are significant disparities in access to quality STEM education, especially for underrepresented groups such as women, minorities, and those from low-income backgrounds.
The core issues SciQuiry aims to address include:
- Global STEM Education Gap: Despite progress in gender equity and growing interest over the last decade in computer science, engineering, math, and statistics among both men and women, the underrepresentation of women in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields continues to persist. In 2024, the gender gap in STEM remains significant, with women making up only 28% of the STEM workforce.
- Lack of Personalization in STEM Learning: Traditional STEM education often follows a one-size-fits-all model that fails to cater to the individual learning styles, speeds, and interests of students. This issue is worsened in regions with limited resources, where educational materials and approaches are not aligned with the diverse needs of learners.
- Access to Quality STEM Education: The shift to remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the significant digital divide affecting students globally. The United Nations noted that at the peak of the pandemic, nearly 1.6 billion learners were out of school, with many lacking access to the technology needed for online learning, significantly impacting the continuity of STEM education.
SciQuiry's solution, leveraging AI for personalized and accessible STEM learning, directly tackles these issues by offering an adaptive, inclusive platform that goes beyond geographical, socio-economic, and physical barriers to learning. Our online platform serves as an intelligent tutor, customizing content for each student to provide a personalized learning experience. This approach not only makes STEM subjects more engaging and understandable but also aims to increase retention and interest in STEM careers among diverse student populations, including girls and underrepresented students.
As an immigrant who moved to the United States in 2001, my life has been profoundly influenced by the transformative power of education, specifically STEM. My background in Computer Science didn't just provide a new life in the States; it laid the foundation for my dreams and ambitions. Volunteering with the Immigrant and Refugee Outreach Center (IROC) in the Washington DC area, I witnessed firsthand the educational disparities faced by women in underrepresented communities. Inspired by a strong belief in the power of STEM education, I co-founded SciQuiry. My vision is to use technology and AI to make STEM education accessible and engaging for all students, regardless of their background, with a special emphasis on girls and underrepresented students.
I strongly believe education is key to progress and empowerment. While not a new concept, this belief deeply resonates with my personal journey and fuels my professional aspirations. STEM education, in particular, holds the potential to transform lives by fostering self-esteem, and independence, opening up a multitude of opportunities.
SciQuiry is a question-based eLearning platform designed for independent science learning, allowing students to learn at their own pace. It integrates artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies to function like an intelligent tutor, adapting educational content to individual student needs.
SciQuiry uses our proprietary AI algorithm, SmartSeqQ (Smart Sequencing of Questions), which is based on the Deep Knowledge Tracing (DKT) algorithm. This algorithm dynamically selects the next question for a student based on their previous responses, ensuring a tailored educational experience that continually adjusts to their learning curve. This technology not only fosters deeper understanding and retention but also promotes engagement by challenging students at the appropriate level.
For inclusivity, SciQuiry incorporates AI accessibility features such as text-to-speech and speech-to-text technologies, making the platform usable for students with disabilities, including those with visual impairments, dyslexia, and motor impairments. These features help in creating an equitable learning environment for all students.
The content on SciQuiry is generated using generative AI, which speeds up the production of educational materials while maintaining high pedagogical value. All content undergoes rigorous review by subject matter experts before integration to ensure accuracy and relevance.
As SciQuiry operates entirely online, it is accessible via any standard web browser on different devices and screen sizes like desktop computers, tablets, and smartphones. Its compatibility with various devices ensures that it can be easily integrated into school systems or other educational setups with minimal effort.
The platform supports both formal education and informal self-guided exploration, fitting seamlessly into existing educational frameworks for in-class and remote learning.
SciQuiry's core engine, based on neuroscience and educational psychology, leverages active recall and spaced repetition. This method strengthens memory retention and promotes cognitive engagement, requiring students to actively retrieve information to answer questions. The Skill Tree feature utilizes Socratic questioning to progress learners from basic to more complex topics, boosting their problem-solving skills and reinforcing content mastery.
SciQuiry is designed to elevate science comprehension, spark interest in STEM, and enhance academic performance through adaptive learning experiences. Personalized questions and immediate feedback increase student motivation and confidence in science, leading to improved knowledge retention and subject appreciation.
User Case Example: Two middle school students, Student A and Student B, explore the concept of "Distance and Displacement" in Physics through our platform. Both students start with a question that tests their existing knowledge. The platform then customizes the following questions based on their responses, providing a tailored learning experience. Student A quickly grasps the concepts, answering correctly and moving on to more advanced questions. Meanwhile, Student B faces challenges, requiring additional support. The platform adapts, offering detailed explanations for incorrect answers and cool facts for correct answers. Hints are also available for those who struggle. This personalized approach ensures that while Student A progresses faster, Student B receives the guidance needed to build understanding and ultimately grasp the same content as Student A.
SciQuiry serves upper elementary and middle school students, grades 3-8, with plans to expand to all K12 levels. Our online platform is designed to be fully accessible via standard web browsers on desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones, ensuring that students can engage with learning materials from virtually anywhere, without being limited by their type of hardware.
The primary beneficiaries of SciQuiry are students who are often underserved in traditional educational settings. This includes students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, who may not have access to high-quality educational resources, and those with disabilities, who require more tailored learning experiences that accommodate their needs.
Our platform's freemium model ensures that no student is excluded due to financial barriers. Every student has the opportunity to access core educational content at no cost, with the option for enhanced features available through a subscription model. This approach is particularly beneficial for underrepresented students, providing them with resources that might otherwise be inaccessible.
SciQuiry incorporates advanced accessibility features, such as text-to-speech technology, making the platform usable for students with visual impairments, dyslexia, or other learning disabilities. This inclusive design ensures that all students, regardless of their physical or cognitive abilities, have equal opportunities to learn and succeed.
The use of AI in SciQuiry allows for a highly personalized learning experience. Our AI algorithms adapt the content to the individual learning pace and style of each student, simulating a one-on-one tutoring experience. This personalized approach helps to maintain student engagement, cater to individual learning needs, and improve educational outcomes by addressing the specific challenges and strengths of each student.
Teachers also benefit significantly from the platform. They have access to detailed analytics for each student, enabling them to track progress and identify areas where students may need more support. Additionally, educators can utilize SciQuiry’s extensive library of questions to enhance their teaching materials and methods, further tailored to the needs of their students.
SciQuiry aims to transform how education is delivered to young learners. By making high-quality, adaptive, and inclusive education readily accessible, SciQuiry not only improves academic performance but also fosters a love for learning in students who might otherwise disengage from education. Our platform empowers teachers to deliver more effective instruction and supports students in building a strong foundation in STEM, setting them up for future academic and career success in these critical fields.
Rashin Taheri, the co-founder and CEO of SciQuiry, immigrated to the United States in 2001 as a woman in STEM. Her firsthand experience with the educational barriers faced by women in underrepresented communities has shaped her commitment to making STEM education accessible and inclusive. While volunteering at the Immigrant and Refugee Outreach Center (IROC) in the DMV area, Rashin witnessed the educational disparities that affect these groups. This insight drives her vision for SciQuiry: to enhance STEM education through technology and AI, with a particular emphasis on supporting girls and underrepresented students.
SciQuiry was founded in 2021 by Rashin and Dr. Hamid Taheri, combining their deep passion for education with extensive expertise in technology, healthcare, and entrepreneurship. Rashin brings more than two decades of experience in IT, application development, and management, having previously developed Koantum.com, an award-winning science platform for young learners. Dr. Hamid Taheri contributes his entrepreneurial skills and operational experience from establishing a successful cardiology practice and a clinical research program.
Our team’s vision is supported by guidance from esteemed advisors like Prof. Bruce McLaren from Carnegie Mellon University and Dr. Larry Medsker from George Washington University. Their expertise in artificial intelligence, educational technology, and the societal impacts of AI ensures that SciQuiry’s developments are not only cutting-edge but also ethically responsible.
SciQuiry has earned recognition and support, including a 2023 Department of Education SBIR Grant and microgrants from the VELA Education Fund and 4.0 Schools in 2022.
Our team's close connection to the communities we serve ensures that their needs and aspirations deeply influence our design and implementation. We maintain a diverse team and engage a broad cohort that includes both high-performing and low-performing students, along with teachers and schools actively involved in shaping our design and content. This collaboration helps ensure that our platform is unbiased and universally relatable, making it more relevant and effective for all users. By consistently gathering and integrating feedback from this wide range of stakeholders, we ensure that our solutions accurately reflect the diverse experiences and challenges of its users.
- Use inclusive design to ensure engagement and better outcomes for learners with disabilities and neurodivergent learners, while benefiting all learners.
- 4. Quality Education
- 10. Reduced Inequalities
- Pilot
SciQuiry is currently in the Pilot stage of development, having transitioned from MVP to active testing in educational settings.
The initial concept for SciQuiry was significantly shaped by insights gathered from over 100 interviews with secondary students and science teachers through the Virginia-based Innovation Commercialization Assistance Program (ICAP). 80% highlighted a lack of early science exposure, potentially leading to diminished STEM interest; 90% affirmed the importance of science in academic progression, emphasizing the value of comprehensive science education for university admissions; and 70% pointed out the inadequacies of traditional learning resources, with many students turning to private tutors, YouTube videos, and online platforms for supplementary learning.
Leveraging insights from ICAP, a minimal viable product (MVP) was developed, targeting middle school students with a series of physics micro-lessons.
Acceptance into the 4.0 Schools Fellowship in Fall 2022 marked a pivotal step for SciQuiry, initiating a pilot study with 200 middle school students attending public, private, and charter schools. We collected real-time data on user engagement, including login frequencies, time allocation on specific questions, and overall lesson completion rates. Findings revealed that over 70% of students found SciQuiry beneficial for understanding complex Physics concepts, and 80% desired more topics. Additionally, more than 90% of teachers expressed a need for a dedicated dashboard to track student progress and to easily navigate and assign a diverse set of scaffolding questions for class assessments.
SciQuiry received a Department of Education SBIR Grant in 2023, which facilitated the creation of our proprietary Smart Sequencing of Questions (SmartSeqQ) algorithm. This innovation was driven by the need to more accurately predict and respond to individual student learning progressions, enabling personalized learning paths that adapt in real-time to each student's understanding and skills.
The DOE Phase I Pilot Study in February 2023 involved 115 students from Basis Independent McLean and DC International School. This study assessed our SmartSeqQ algorithm’s effectiveness compared to alternative adaptive algorithms. More than 70% of students found SciQuiry effective in demystifying science concepts, and about 30% suggested enhancements like adding videos and animations for better understanding.
To date, SciQuiry has directly engaged over 315 students in its pilot programs, providing them with an innovative platform to enhance their STEM education.
We are applying to MIT Solve because it offers a unique platform for collaboration, mentorship, and access to a broad network of experts and partners who can help us overcome several key barriers in scaling and refining SciQuiry. While funding is essential, our primary goal in joining Solve is to leverage the mentorship, technical, market, and strategic support that the community provides.
As a growing educational technology platform, broadening our user base and entering new markets pose significant challenges. We aim to reach more diverse educational settings, including schools in low-income and underserved areas that may benefit most from our technology. Through Solve, we seek to connect with partners and collaborators who have experience navigating educational technology markets and can provide strategic advice on effective scaling and distribution, particularly in under-resourced areas.
- Monitoring & Evaluation (e.g. collecting/using data, measuring impact)
- Product / Service Distribution (e.g. delivery, logistics, expanding client base)

Founder and CEO