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ETEC 522 – Ventures in Learning Technologies
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The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

By Noan on July 26, 2016

Hey all, please enjoy my Venture Pitch, which I decided to do through the creation of a website. My proposal is something which I have pined for in many of the iterations of Game Based Learning I have experimented with. I call it GENgine, and it connects teachers with creative and modifiable content which allows classes to enjoy many elements of Game Theory without being glued to a screen.

Update – **Here is a Link which has been recently tested: http://gengine.miraed.org/ **

Here is the Full Pitch in its own Website

If you are feeling in the mood for the Elevator Pitch only, click below!

Update – **Here is a direct link to the youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XGjKT4xVRU **

YouTube Preview Image

 

Personal Reflection (added August 5th, 2016)

So after reading comments throughout the week, I feel that my Elevator pitch was well received. It was complicated to get the meat of what I wanted to communicate into less than a minute, so I avoided details and focused on the pain point and how we can address it as quickly as possible. I am very happy with that outcome, and will continue to work on concise and bold statements in the future as well.

A common concern that came up in the feedback was that I was low balling the initial ask. It is quite interesting for me, because when I did this I thought I was being conservative in the other direction. I have hosted my own eLearning tools on a shoestring using shared hosting, and while this is not a super service it does work well for the MVP model I would pursue. I also have made apps through eLance that do very specific things, and it is quite surprising what you can get for under a thousand dollars these days. At my school, Mauricio (part of my team) was able to build a transcript writing app which allowed students to input their grades and have them checked by admin for $500. Yeah, it is bare bones, but it does work and amazingly gets the job done. That said, the costs of our advice to the eLancers was incurred by the school through payroll. I have created plugins for Moodle that do similar things (database of students with multiple levels of access) for much less  than our ask of $84K, but feel that if we were really to get this job done well, we would need to commit to a bit more cashola. I also would create agreements with my partners about stock options rather than pay initially, like many startups do. Since this project is a side project, even depending on our primary jobs to help develop it, I know that all are happy to oblige.

Some concerns I had were that some of the language I used in my pitch did not necessarily make sense to the reader… I talk about changing variables such as food and energy in the game without necessarily providing context. I think I could rewrite parts of this so that the reader does not have to infer anything, and it is crystal clear.

A surprise for me was that one of my concerns in this pitch was never realized: I felt that the mechanics I discussed were too vague for an EVA, but perhaps that was thinking too much from a technical perspective. Most people seemed satisfied with the amount of technical detail I provided, and could clearly relate to how the product would be delivered.

This final exercise was a great culmination to the class. It demonstrated applied learning for all members, and provided feedback that made me check the site far more than needed. I found myself rate many more than the 10 required projects, largely because I was curious how the project manifested itself in our cohort.

Rating
Average: 4.5/5 Stars
 
 
 
 
 
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8 Aug Posted on The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

Noan, that was a great idea and something I want to start using (based on your rivalries you introduced, I think I'm going to use Classcraft until GENgine comes out) ASAP. The site was very easy to navigate and fluid as well, and your goal schedule is realistic too. I hope this actually comes out so I can try using it at my schools and maybe get you into the Japanese education market too!

8 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
onctomek @onctomek

Noan, that was a great idea and something I want to start using (based on your rivalries you introduced, I think I'm going to use Classcraft until GENgine comes out) ASAP. The site was very easy to navigate and fluid as well, and your goal schedule is realistic too. I hope this actually comes out so I can try using it at my schools and maybe get you into the Japanese education market too!

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7 Aug Posted on The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

Hi Noan. As others have mentioned, your elevator pitch was engaging and had me curious to find out more about your product. I have not used a lot of game based learning in my practice and am very interested in how it works. Your website is put together well and you have a great team behind the Gengine. I, too, think that you should probably ask for more money. After reading through the information, I have a good general idea what your product offers, but I have to admit that there are some aspects that aren’t clear to me. The core idea seems to be a platform for the company and ”freelance” teachers or other content authors to make GBL units for sale to teachers. I am wondering why an app is required for this - there exists sites such as https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/ that facilitate the sale/exchange of lessons and study units. There may be more of market for your product than I am estimating due to ignorance on my part.

7 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
rstpierre @rstpierre

Hi Noan. As others have mentioned, your elevator pitch was engaging and had me curious to find out more about your product. I have not used a lot of game based learning in my practice and am very interested in how it works. Your website is put together well and you have a great team behind the Gengine. I, too, think that you should probably ask for more money. After reading through the information, I have a good general idea what your product offers, but I have to admit that there are some aspects that aren’t clear to me. The core idea seems to be a platform for the company and ”freelance” teachers or other content authors to make GBL units for sale to teachers. I am wondering why an app is required for this - there exists sites such as https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/ that facilitate the sale/exchange of lessons and study units. There may be more of market for your product than I am estimating due to ignorance on my part.

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5 Aug Posted on The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

REVIEW: GBL is hot at the moment. My biggest critique is the massive market that has already been tapped into and dominated by the big ventures out there right now. You'll be competing against Google, Microsoft, Sony and the likes, including all the other startups backed by major donors. I like your website and I think it is well presented. Your interface is neat and I think what would make you stand out is the real, authentic topics tackled in your games. These are important and these matter. This is where your work would stand out from the rest. It is however a very competitive market and would need major funding, quick.

5 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
Dominic Maggiolo @maggiolo

REVIEW: GBL is hot at the moment. My biggest critique is the massive market that has already been tapped into and dominated by the big ventures out there right now. You'll be competing against Google, Microsoft, Sony and the likes, including all the other startups backed by major donors. I like your website and I think it is well presented. Your interface is neat and I think what would make you stand out is the real, authentic topics tackled in your games. These are important and these matter. This is where your work would stand out from the rest. It is however a very competitive market and would need major funding, quick.

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5 Aug Posted on The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

REVIEW: Hello Noan. Your elevator pitch hooked me in. I really enjoyed watching it. I need to learn how to use videoscribe! I looked over your venture pitch and I can tell you researched a lot and found your competitors. I liked the idea of finding games for teachers and then being able to use them in the classroom. I think learning through gaming is becoming huge nowadays in the classroom, so I can see how your venture would be applicable. Students learn and retain more when they are playing. Teachers can easily acquire game pieces off your website and then implement them in the classroom. I was wondering the same thing about the money about your venture and how did you arrive at that number. I can't wait to see where this goes! Great job!

5 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
Martina @martinaseo

REVIEW: Hello Noan. Your elevator pitch hooked me in. I really enjoyed watching it. I need to learn how to use videoscribe! I looked over your venture pitch and I can tell you researched a lot and found your competitors. I liked the idea of finding games for teachers and then being able to use them in the classroom. I think learning through gaming is becoming huge nowadays in the classroom, so I can see how your venture would be applicable. Students learn and retain more when they are playing. Teachers can easily acquire game pieces off your website and then implement them in the classroom. I was wondering the same thing about the money about your venture and how did you arrive at that number. I can't wait to see where this goes! Great job!

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4 Aug Posted on The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

Hi Noan, I loved your presentation and your concept. I think your elevator pitch does a great job in gaining the attention of the investors. Your website is concise and to the point. You have addressed major questions of any investor so a plus there as well. You also have an experienced and passionate team with a space to start off your venture. So as an investor, I would definitely consider it. one thing that i would love to see is how you arrived at the ask? Do you think that money is enough for starting your firm? Maybe you did a rough calculation and would like to showcase the major headers? As someone in the comments suggested, I think partnering with Hunters World peace game will be a smart move. And finally : Great job! -moumita

4 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
moumita chakraborty @mou2005

Hi Noan, I loved your presentation and your concept. I think your elevator pitch does a great job in gaining the attention of the investors. Your website is concise and to the point. You have addressed major questions of any investor so a plus there as well. You also have an experienced and passionate team with a space to start off your venture. So as an investor, I would definitely consider it. one thing that i would love to see is how you arrived at the ask? Do you think that money is enough for starting your firm? Maybe you did a rough calculation and would like to showcase the major headers? As someone in the comments suggested, I think partnering with Hunters World peace game will be a smart move. And finally : Great job! -moumita

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4 Aug Posted on The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

Noan, to start with, what a great elevator pitch! Definitely did the trick of relaying some basic info and getting me hooked. The basic functionalities of the platform are direct and, as you note, overcome the biggest challenge of GBL; management of resources. I think you're marketing strategy is very well poised for today's (and the future's) landscape of educators, but I wonder how suitable it is for students/teachers that are not necessary Digital Natives; I know it's a ever-growing minority, but there are still those who grow up with little to no exposure to video games. Again, when it comes to your Plan/Ask, I think you did an exceptionally professional job in explaining the breakdown of costs, timelines and schedule of return (certainly important to the investors themselves). I like the actual business model itself too, in that the content creators can set the price - I think it's also smart to advise a general cost of $20/package; this makes it very reasonable for educators to use the product. I think, as some others noted, your ask is probably too small for the work required; I work in IT and I can definitely say that an annual budget of $15000 USD is minimal, at best. All in all, I'm thoroughly impressed with what you've created here, and although not an educator myself, think there would be tremendous value in the platform. I look forward to seeing what else you come up with in the future - great job!

4 Aug
1 Thumbs Up!
jesse mayer @jamayer

Noan, to start with, what a great elevator pitch! Definitely did the trick of relaying some basic info and getting me hooked. The basic functionalities of the platform are direct and, as you note, overcome the biggest challenge of GBL; management of resources. I think you're marketing strategy is very well poised for today's (and the future's) landscape of educators, but I wonder how suitable it is for students/teachers that are not necessary Digital Natives; I know it's a ever-growing minority, but there are still those who grow up with little to no exposure to video games. Again, when it comes to your Plan/Ask, I think you did an exceptionally professional job in explaining the breakdown of costs, timelines and schedule of return (certainly important to the investors themselves). I like the actual business model itself too, in that the content creators can set the price - I think it's also smart to advise a general cost of $20/package; this makes it very reasonable for educators to use the product. I think, as some others noted, your ask is probably too small for the work required; I work in IT and I can definitely say that an annual budget of $15000 USD is minimal, at best. All in all, I'm thoroughly impressed with what you've created here, and although not an educator myself, think there would be tremendous value in the platform. I look forward to seeing what else you come up with in the future - great job!

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3 Aug Posted on The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

Feedback You have presented a very professional venture pitch. I have to admit that I am not very familiar with RLGPL but after reviewing your site and elevator pitch I can see the potential that this approach to learning, through GBL, can provide. Your development team structure compliments your venture nicely. There are a couple of items that as an EVA that I would ask 1) what is the price to play? You state that revenue would be generated through the sale of user generated content, but can school's, teachers initially just sign up and play for free? 2) Do you think your ask of $$ will provide you enough resources to gain market traction? I think you will require much more to get a critical mass buy in from teachers in using this approach to learning. This venture pitch is something as a EVA that I would invest in but I think you will need more money than you think and the ROI model you have set out may not generate enough $$ to cover that ask. Great work!

3 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
mlamey @mlamey

Feedback You have presented a very professional venture pitch. I have to admit that I am not very familiar with RLGPL but after reviewing your site and elevator pitch I can see the potential that this approach to learning, through GBL, can provide. Your development team structure compliments your venture nicely. There are a couple of items that as an EVA that I would ask 1) what is the price to play? You state that revenue would be generated through the sale of user generated content, but can school's, teachers initially just sign up and play for free? 2) Do you think your ask of $$ will provide you enough resources to gain market traction? I think you will require much more to get a critical mass buy in from teachers in using this approach to learning. This venture pitch is something as a EVA that I would invest in but I think you will need more money than you think and the ROI model you have set out may not generate enough $$ to cover that ask. Great work!

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3 Aug Posted on The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

Great presentation Noan! The elevator pitch was concise, easy to follow, and directly addressed the problem with screen time. I like that you share links to blog posts detailing implementations and their challenges as well. It demonstrates your experience as well as your reflections and take aways. The ability to login as a guest to the green school hive is very cool, I’ll be bookmarking that! Quotes from students on your web page are a nice reminder of the direct impact that you can have on individual students in the classroom. I think your growth plan and features such as the marketplace you mention for teachers to sell materials could lead to a successful long term monetization of the app. Well done!

3 Aug
0 Thumbs Up!
Jordan @triplej

Great presentation Noan! The elevator pitch was concise, easy to follow, and directly addressed the problem with screen time. I like that you share links to blog posts detailing implementations and their challenges as well. It demonstrates your experience as well as your reflections and take aways. The ability to login as a guest to the green school hive is very cool, I’ll be bookmarking that! Quotes from students on your web page are a nice reminder of the direct impact that you can have on individual students in the classroom. I think your growth plan and features such as the marketplace you mention for teachers to sell materials could lead to a successful long term monetization of the app. Well done!

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3 Aug Posted on The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

Noan,
From what I have come to know of you over this course, I believe that you can make anything happen. I also fully expect to see you at TED in the next five years (less?).

Game-based learning. Fun and educational and I agree that all ages are engaged in game play whether digital and online or even with board games around the table. I liked your stats about how many hours students play. I saw Richard Van Eek (https://members.educause.edu/richard-van-eck) speak about game-based learning a few years ago and it is really amazing the research that has been done on this area of education; his work might be interesting to you. One component that really struck me was how differently men and women play, I can't remember the specifics, but I do want to point this out to keep in mind incorporating different elements to appeal to all students.

I like how you are integrating the table game as well as the digital. It makes sense to bring this together. That you are leveraging a system that has worked in RLGBL means that you have worked out some of the game flow issues so you can better program for digital. That being said, I am sure you will try to avoid the trap of a simple digitalization. I have seen great F2F lessons that are put online but this fails to then capture the affordances of digital capability, and just becomes something too flat and text heavy. Just a caution, only because your excellent team is so immersed in the product, would hate for you to fall to a group-think mentality. Maybe try to bring in someone from outside to input and question your product.

When you review your competition, I wonder, when looking at Hunter's World Peace Game, why GENgine would not just approach them and design the digital component to it. Seems like it would be a great partnership? If you are already doing this for the games you have developed in your classes, try to capture a bigger game and do it for them. Instant client base. Maybe?

Overall the ask seems small for what you are going to accomplish in 6 months. Might want to add a software architect not just programmers, you will need a much bigger platform as you are developing a fully system with multiple functions (game, learner roles, assignments) and you will need some kind of database for all of the information too; a specifications document and system design before the UI. Also Webhosting seem exorbitant, what else does this include? Whereas IT support seems too low, way too low. (lol from my experience anyways...ugh).

You use the term Digital Natives, I get it and I think the population outside of academia gets it and it makes sense. I wonder though because the term is dated, and the concept criticized, you might want to seek out a different term. I would hate for GENgine to be seen as ill informed when it comes to pedagogical considerations just because one term amongst all for your good work make the product seem more play and populist than pedagogy.

Love the idea and can't wait to download the app!!

Sincerely,
Briar

3 Aug
1 Thumbs Up!
Briar Jamieson @briarjamieson

Noan,
From what I have come to know of you over this course, I believe that you can make anything happen. I also fully expect to see you at TED in the next five years (less?).

Game-based learning. Fun and educational and I agree that all ages are engaged in game play whether digital and online or even with board games around the table. I liked your stats about how many hours students play. I saw Richard Van Eek (https://members.educause.edu/richard-van-eck) speak about game-based learning a few years ago and it is really amazing the research that has been done on this area of education; his work might be interesting to you. One component that really struck me was how differently men and women play, I can't remember the specifics, but I do want to point this out to keep in mind incorporating different elements to appeal to all students.

I like how you are integrating the table game as well as the digital. It makes sense to bring this together. That you are leveraging a system that has worked in RLGBL means that you have worked out some of the game flow issues so you can better program for digital. That being said, I am sure you will try to avoid the trap of a simple digitalization. I have seen great F2F lessons that are put online but this fails to then capture the affordances of digital capability, and just becomes something too flat and text heavy. Just a caution, only because your excellent team is so immersed in the product, would hate for you to fall to a group-think mentality. Maybe try to bring in someone from outside to input and question your product.

When you review your competition, I wonder, when looking at Hunter's World Peace Game, why GENgine would not just approach them and design the digital component to it. Seems like it would be a great partnership? If you are already doing this for the games you have developed in your classes, try to capture a bigger game and do it for them. Instant client base. Maybe?

Overall the ask seems small for what you are going to accomplish in 6 months. Might want to add a software architect not just programmers, you will need a much bigger platform as you are developing a fully system with multiple functions (game, learner roles, assignments) and you will need some kind of database for all of the information too; a specifications document and system design before the UI. Also Webhosting seem exorbitant, what else does this include? Whereas IT support seems too low, way too low. (lol from my experience anyways...ugh).

You use the term Digital Natives, I get it and I think the population outside of academia gets it and it makes sense. I wonder though because the term is dated, and the concept criticized, you might want to seek out a different term. I would hate for GENgine to be seen as ill informed when it comes to pedagogical considerations just because one term amongst all for your good work make the product seem more play and populist than pedagogy.

Love the idea and can't wait to download the app!!

Sincerely,
Briar

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30 Jul Posted on The GENgine – A Hybrid Game Based Learning Tool

“FEEDBACK” Hi. After watching your elevator pitch, I would like to offer you my feedback. Firstly, I think that you have provided an interesting venture that could be a worthwhile investment for investors. The video presentation was informative and appealing. The information included in the video is helpful and provides excellent insight into the pain point and a possible solution. However, I would have liked to have seen some more information as to what exactly GENgine does and how it does it. After exploring the venture page my questions were answered, so the elevator pitch was successful in creating enough interest to look beyond. Will everyone (particularly investors) take that step? I guess that would depend on the individual but it did so for me. Overall, as an investor, I could see how this would be a product worth consideration. Nice work!

30 Jul
0 Thumbs Up!
dan edwards @dkeddy74

“FEEDBACK” Hi. After watching your elevator pitch, I would like to offer you my feedback. Firstly, I think that you have provided an interesting venture that could be a worthwhile investment for investors. The video presentation was informative and appealing. The information included in the video is helpful and provides excellent insight into the pain point and a possible solution. However, I would have liked to have seen some more information as to what exactly GENgine does and how it does it. After exploring the venture page my questions were answered, so the elevator pitch was successful in creating enough interest to look beyond. Will everyone (particularly investors) take that step? I guess that would depend on the individual but it did so for me. Overall, as an investor, I could see how this would be a product worth consideration. Nice work!

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