Boston-based social annotation company Hypothesis has announced some of its growth figures in its latest End of Year Impact Report.
Founded in 2011, Hypothesis is an online annotation tool that enables sentence-level note-taking and critique across a diverse array of texts, including blogs, legislation, articles, and news. The company partners with leading universities to help improve understanding and engagement with students studying digitally.
“The stories coming from our partner institutions are incredible—reductions in failure rates, improved grades, and more engaged classrooms. It’s proof that when we invest in tools like Hypothesis, we’re investing in student success,” Joe Ferraro, CEO of Hypothesis, said in a statement.
According to the report, the organization celebrated a 22% increase in annotations, a 12% rise in student users, and a 27% growth in courses utilizing the Hypothesis tool. This includes millions more student annotations compared to 2023, demonstrating the power of collaboration and active engagement in learning.
The data from partner institutions showcase tangible results, as well as inspiring stories of engagement, community building, improved academic performance, deeper thinking, and transformative classroom experiences.
Engagement and Community Building
In 2024, Hypothesis built meaningful connections through collaboration and increased engagement. In bringing instructors and students together, the company created an interactive learning experience. These results at partner institutions included:
- A 1400-2100% increase in RSI at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF).
- 95% of students found social annotation useful in the classroom at Allan Hancock College.
- Over 1,300 annotations were created over YouTube assignments at Chabot College.
Improvement in Grades and Academic Performance
Students experienced a boost in grades and academic performance because of Hypothesis. Because social annotation supports better comprehension of course material, it plays a direct role in reducing failure rates. In a statement from the company shared with StartupBeat, Jennifer Young, Finance Officer at UAF, said, “Only two students failed the Income Tax course this spring, which is unheard of.”
- CUNY Kingsborough: A+ grades surged to 26%.
- University of Alaska Fairbanks 5–33% fewer failures, 4–24% grade improvement.
- Allan Hancock College: 60–67% reported better comprehension in English courses.
Critical Thinking and Analytical Skills
Hypothesis fosters deeper analysis of course content, thoughtful discussions, and critical thinking across various disciplines. A student from Allan Hancock College noted, “I analyzed texts more intimately and in-depth after using it.”
- Allan Hancock College: 67% improved comprehension in English courses.
- University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee: 86 annotations per assignment in OER courses.
- Moravian University: 6,000 annotations by 500 freshmen during summer reading prep.
The impact of Hypothesis in 2024 has been extraordinary. Through it, institutions continue to foster key pillars of education and find ways to enhance instructors’ and students’ experiences.
