Framework: An App that Redefines Homework

Hi Aaron, your elevator pitch was very convincing! Your confidence is a really good selling point. Well done! Your venture sounds like a good idea, with the Pokemon Go concept in mind to engage students. As you said, students will need their own smartphones, which could be a drawback... Overall, excellent presentation!

Hi Aaron, Right off the bat -- I was so impressed by the quality and professionalism of both of your pitches. Throughout this experience, I've discovered how insanely difficult is is to convey credibility and trustworthiness in these brief clips, but you made it seem effortless. I think the idea behind Framework -- to reimagine homework so so students can do it on their phones in a more fun and engaging manner. But, as others have noted, the applications seem rather limited, and I would want to see added versatility built into Framework so that students have more options for demonstrating their understanding of concepts. Your marketing strategy, offering free use initially, seems like a smart way to grow and establish a strong user base, but I would have some serious reservations about how well the product would sell -- especially once the novelty has worn off. At this stage, I would need to see Framework build in more student tools before I would consider investing.

Hi Aron, Your venture is great and definitely identifies one of the pain points that teachers experiencing with ever-developing technologies. Your execution of the venture is well-planned, and I am confident that you will succeed in the future. However, I am in doubt that your app will gain similar popularity as gained by Pokemon Go and snapchat. You will have to have a very good student engagement plan in place to achieve that goal. Once you justify this part of your marketing plan, I am sure that an EVA will lay his eyes on it!

Hi Aaron, This is a very strong venture pitch. You are very credible - I am was extremely impressed with the concept and your presentation and I would certainly entertain an investment. Your phased approach to roll out is very smart. Offering the freemium model on year 2 is also a good way to allow for trying out the app before committing. I am wondering, however, if teachers are the most desirable buyers for this app. Would there be more benefit to targeting a higher level buyer instead? Also, what about outside of schools such as publishers, libraries and museums? Had you thought about these markets instead of or in addition to schools? You've left me with little fault to find. Many thanks for sharing your idea. I am keen to know if you plan to pursue it. Regards, Esther

Hi Aaron! Let me start of by saying that I thoroughly enjoyed both your elevator and long pitches. Both were very refined and truly made me understand your concept very quickly. From my interactions with teachers and students, I totally understand your feelings about homework and the challenges in making it engaging, fun, and authentic. From the standpoint of an EVA, I would have some difficulty investing in your concept for a couple reasons. The feature set of the Framework app seems somewhat lacking; teachers assign concepts and students respond using pictures and video. Learning Management Systems and some of the more advanced assessment/ePortfolio apps can do the exact same things and then some. Most educators that I talk with are looking for tools that either "do it all" or have strong LTI integration. That being said, your strategy to offer it free for the first year is a smart strategy to create interest. But as an EVA, I could not invest in Framework until the results of the first year are known.

Aaron, you had me sold after the Elevator pitch. As an educator in Ontario I am always looking for new and exciting ways to assign and keep track of Assessments 'For' Learning (homework, quizzes, formative learning, etc.) and Frameworks would provide a great solution. The use of social media-like design and terminology makes the application appealing to students and is simple enough for any user to implement. My only concern centres on students who do not have access to a mobile device and their ability to complete the assignment. I have some questions about licensing and how students are enrolled, however I feel strongly that as an EVA I would invest in your venture.

Aaron, both your elevator pitch and venture pitch were very well crafted and bring a lot confidence in your product. I am a huge fan of multi-modal methods of demonstrating knowledge so from a teacher's point of view, I love it. As an investor, I appreciated the detailed descriptions of the launch phases (Phase 1 and Phase 2). The question that I have is as most secondary teachers have multiple classes, does a license need to be purchased for each student in each class or does the licence get purchased once, and that flows through from teacher to teacher. As an investor, I would absolutely consider investing!

Hi Aaron, I loved this concept even though I don't have experience with secondary learners. I love the idea of motivating students to participate using the devices they already have, although as Dan Boone has stated below, and as I've stated in another venture review, I am hesitant to support any venture which relies on BYOD, no matter how useful I think it is. BYOD relies so heavily on students having a smartphone that supports the app as the first step. I live in a community where I know that students, even at the post-secondary level, regularly do not have access to a smartphone, and particularly have limited access to wifi at their homes. For students without these services available this type of homework would be impossible to complete, causing potential embarrassment and frustration. So, unfortunately, as a teacher/instructor, I'd have to say no to this product. As an EVA, I see enormous potential in this product, and I think you may have more uptake in schools that already mandate some form of technology (e.g. those schools who hand out iPads, Chromebooks, etc as "school supplies") and I think that by focusing your efforts to get this product in those schools, there is good possibility of market integration and meaningful use.

This sounds like a truly great app! I see the pinch point, i.e. motivating students by letting them use technology they’re already using, and the price point is very attractive. The appearance of the app interface is simple and very appealing. It looks and sounds simple to use for both teachers and students and this will have appeal to educators. As an EVA, one of my reservation would be that some educators might argue that they can create photo and video assignments without the need for an app. I can’t recall if you mentioned this, but if the app can collate assignments into a sort of ePortfolio and even prompt students for a reflection on their work, this would be a value added feature.

REVIEW: (Reposted to meet week 13 guidelines....need to read instructions)- Hi Aaron, Your product taps into the major trend of multiple means of representation as well as constructivist learning. This would make it easier for teachers to gather funding for a purchase. Excellent presentation skills. The polished look of your video makes me think, whether true or not, that it is you personally who could design and implement this platform. It is important in a tech based business that the person at the top have the necessary technical skills and the elevator pitch made me suspect that you do. My biggest concern would be that you seem to be relying on the BYOD model and all students having access to devices and connectivity. Incorporating a web portal separate from the mobile app where students can link in web content or other laptop/desktop created content might help to boost participate as between mobile and home computing you would have much higher potential participation rates and could leverage more school owned devices. Your pricing seems to be right in line at $1/student for similar types of products that I have seen. Again, very engaging presentation and excellent confidence. The use of educational and technological buzz words really builds your credibility. Bottom line: As an investor, I would invest!