Rebound: Beating Concussions, a free app developed by Biological Sciences Professor Dr. John Pollock and The Partnership in Education, has been selected as a 2018 Parents’ Choice Recommended Award Winner by the Parents’ Choice Foundation, which recognizes quality children’s media and toys.
The new educational app for iPhone, iPad and Android devices teaches pre-teen audiences about concussions. It is estimated that 50-70 percent of concussions go unreported, which can potentially lead to prolonged or impaired healing and compromised brain health. Rebound addresses public misconceptions surrounding concussions, such as when to go to a doctor, how to treat concussions and when to leave or return to normal activities, like sports.
Produced and directed by Pollock, Rebound features a multi-chapter story that follows the adventures of Daniel Garcia as he searches for information to help his twin sister recover from a basketball-related concussion. The user-centered format lets readers craft their own story by choosing where Daniel goes and what he learns in a branched build-your-own adventure, picking places such as a neurobiology lab to discover how the brain works or a BMX tournament to get sports safety advice from a famous athlete.
“We are working to shed light on dealing with concussions. Rebound debunks commonly-held myths about concussions, while teaching users about some of the biology of the brain and the science behind concussions,” said Pollock, who also is director of The Partnership in Education, an Emmy Award-winning STEM and health literacy program at Duquesne funded largely by the National Institutes of Health’s Science Education Partnership Awards and the Hillman Foundation.
Rebound marks the second installment in the BiblioTech™ app series, an innovative interactive ebook (electronic book) platform that engages users in fun and enjoyable learning experiences. Rebound follows City Hacks: In Search of Sleep, which garnered Pollock and The Partnership in Education a 2016 Parent’s Choice Award and a 2016 International Serious Play Award.
Co-written by Pollock and his colleagues Danielle Commisso and Brinley Kantorski, Rebound allows for seamless learning experiences spanning grades four through eight. With Adaptive Reader™ technology, the reader can shift to make the text easier or more challenging.
In addition, Pollock has been recognized as an Apple Distinguished Educator, a program that recognizes K-12 and higher education pioneers who are using a variety of digital media products to transform teaching and learning in powerful ways.
Pollock’s team was jointly advised by Dr. Michael “Micky” Collins and Dr. Anthony Kontos of the UPMC Sports Medicine Concussion Program, who are global leaders in concussion research and treatment. In this way, the app was informed throughout development by the latest research on concussions.