kdurny
A3- VIVIDWORKS app
By kdurny on November 30, 2015
This fictitious creation, is an app that would augment a child’s world using printed vocabulary layer over the objects around them. The idea came primarily from the second language classroom, which always labels furniture, posters, items, with the second language text. Taking that for learners who have verbal knowledge of these words and then having […]
W12: Infographics Creation: Online Identity
By kdurny on November 25, 2015
This was my first ever attempt at an infographic. It was relatively easy to use, items were easy to manipulate and many options were provided. Using a template is a great first start. The template was simple to customize. It was somewhat difficult to ‘tell a story’ with data in a compact way. It is […]
Week 9 -Assignment 3- Need for Assessment
By kdurny on November 8, 2015
The largest identified gap seems to be under the umbrella of assessment. Largely this gap has been addressed by the human element of the teacher. Peer and self-feedback are increasing in quantity and quality in many classrooms. How can the technology also be maximized to provide feedback. Thinking to the language learning app I studied […]
Duolingo: Free language education for the world
By kdurny on October 19, 2015
For my report I chose the language learning software Duolingo. My son is in a French immersion school and so I am personally reminded on a daily basis of the benefits of learning a second language. In an effort to learn with him, I sought out a solution that would provide me with interactive lessons, […]
Luis von Ahn: Entrepreneurial Watch List
By kdurny on October 4, 2015
Luis von Ahn CEO and Co-founder – Duolingo Duolingo is a mobile app designed for language learning. Learners, either basic or intermediate level speakers, are provided short 5-20 minute daily lessons. A series of multiple choice, matching, speaking or translations appear as challenges that are awarded points for successful completion. The lessons are recorded in […]
Greetings from Calgary
By kdurny on September 10, 2015
Hello all, I’m Kim Durnford. I have been extremely fortunate to have been granted a Professional Interim Fellowship beginning this week! This allows me a year out of the classroom to complete my masters program. I have currently completed 4 courses and am looking forward to the new learnings […]

Review: Starting from the strategic name, your pitch was well planned and executed from beginning to end. Your venture pitch addressed the pain point, provided rationale for the product and emphasized its link to curriculum. Your research was presented in an engaging manner and the graphs were especially effective in displaying projections and research. Showing the growing market and the sharp rise above predictions was motivating as an investor. Your example of the avitar and student page made clear your design. The research of numbers of students potentially included and the potential investments at each participation level was easy to follow and thought provoking. Emphasizing the minimal fee as an educational or individual fee gave more flexibility to your target audience. Providing a clear growth and revenue model increased my confidence in the venture. Your team of experts is highly varied and distinguished. Explaining how you would market, ie. Teachers' Conventions, was an unexpected but valuable addition to your pitch. A student testimonial would be the only element I feel could be added to your pitch, in particular the elevator pitch. Great job.
Review: Starting from the strategic name, your pitch was well planned and executed from beginning to end. Your venture pitch addressed the pain point, provided rationale for the product and emphasized its link to curriculum. Your research was presented in an engaging manner and the graphs were especially effective in displaying projections and research. Showing the growing market and the sharp rise above predictions was motivating as an investor. Your example of the avitar and student page made clear your design. The research of numbers of students potentially included and the potential investments at each participation level was easy to follow and thought provoking. Emphasizing the minimal fee as an educational or individual fee gave more flexibility to your target audience. Providing a clear growth and revenue model increased my confidence in the venture. Your team of experts is highly varied and distinguished. Explaining how you would market, ie. Teachers' Conventions, was an unexpected but valuable addition to your pitch. A student testimonial would be the only element I feel could be added to your pitch, in particular the elevator pitch. Great job.
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- in reply to MotivatEd – Taking Game-Based Learning to new levels

Feedback: Essay writing is certainly a skill that students can use assistance with improving. I especially like the split screen idea and the use of color coding. I am wondering if apps such as Google Docs can essentially create a similar effect? Having a visual example of what the program would look like would increase engagement and understanding. The stats and layout of your elevator pitch were of interest. Adding a voice over in some areas or student testimonials may break up the slides and add authenticity. I think the Stickynotes program could also support other areas of education which would increase the potential market.
Feedback: Essay writing is certainly a skill that students can use assistance with improving. I especially like the split screen idea and the use of color coding. I am wondering if apps such as Google Docs can essentially create a similar effect? Having a visual example of what the program would look like would increase engagement and understanding. The stats and layout of your elevator pitch were of interest. Adding a voice over in some areas or student testimonials may break up the slides and add authenticity. I think the Stickynotes program could also support other areas of education which would increase the potential market.
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- 0 Replies
- in reply to StickyNotes

Feedback: Data management is becoming a more and more critical field in education. Accountability continues to be at the forefront and teachers need a strategic way to manage this. Your blurb about the project included information that would be excellent in the elevator pitch. A sample of the program, the fact that it is based off of Google Apps platform and the explanation of the spreadsheet are certainly features of interest. The music was effective as an upbeat way to increase engagement. The educational/tech backgrounds added credibility. I would like to feel that I had more information about the venture from the elevator pitch. Your passion is clearly evident.
Feedback: Data management is becoming a more and more critical field in education. Accountability continues to be at the forefront and teachers need a strategic way to manage this. Your blurb about the project included information that would be excellent in the elevator pitch. A sample of the program, the fact that it is based off of Google Apps platform and the explanation of the spreadsheet are certainly features of interest. The music was effective as an upbeat way to increase engagement. The educational/tech backgrounds added credibility. I would like to feel that I had more information about the venture from the elevator pitch. Your passion is clearly evident.
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- 0 Replies
- in reply to A3 – Stringwood Student Information System

Feedback: I agree from personal experience, it can be extremely difficult to manage all of the groupwork spaces available and used throughout a project. This becomes even more relevant when you have multiple projects on the go. Your graphics representations in your elevator pitch were engaging, however I had difficulty hearing your audio track, due to feedback. Adding an example of the programs and how they connect would help to follow the pitch proposal. You have a large potential market audience for your venture. I am wondering if students have as much difficulty managing multiple programs as our generation?
Feedback: I agree from personal experience, it can be extremely difficult to manage all of the groupwork spaces available and used throughout a project. This becomes even more relevant when you have multiple projects on the go. Your graphics representations in your elevator pitch were engaging, however I had difficulty hearing your audio track, due to feedback. Adding an example of the programs and how they connect would help to follow the pitch proposal. You have a large potential market audience for your venture. I am wondering if students have as much difficulty managing multiple programs as our generation?
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- 0 Replies
- in reply to A3 – GroupWork App

Feedback: Your elevator pitch was engaging and you blended the voice over with visuals that maintained that engagement. Your confidence helped gain viewer confidence as well. Using AR as a way to construct knowledge for training is big market opportunity. Simulations are a growing field in training and what better way than AR. I would like to see an explicit example of how the venture would work start to finish and how it could be accessed.
Feedback: Your elevator pitch was engaging and you blended the voice over with visuals that maintained that engagement. Your confidence helped gain viewer confidence as well. Using AR as a way to construct knowledge for training is big market opportunity. Simulations are a growing field in training and what better way than AR. I would like to see an explicit example of how the venture would work start to finish and how it could be accessed.
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- 0 Replies
- in reply to Asseticity

Feedback: The idea of having a more strategic method of digital education for post secondary teaching staff is certainly a market worth exploring. As I am not familiar with the Ontario education system, I am wondering if your market could be expanded outside of the provincial market. Referencing current projects and the fit with your venture gives credibility to the pitch as does your professional standing. I felt the technical nature of the pitch left me a bit confused about the project again primarily due to the geography barrier I believe.
Feedback: The idea of having a more strategic method of digital education for post secondary teaching staff is certainly a market worth exploring. As I am not familiar with the Ontario education system, I am wondering if your market could be expanded outside of the provincial market. Referencing current projects and the fit with your venture gives credibility to the pitch as does your professional standing. I felt the technical nature of the pitch left me a bit confused about the project again primarily due to the geography barrier I believe.
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- in reply to TALO – Faculty Development for Our Digital Age

Feedback: Great idea to connect much needed career planning in a format that secondary students understand and feel familiar. With so many career options and institutions to offer programming, how will you compile the possibilities? Success is a variable term, depending on the definition, different skills will be required. Who would be consulted to give this advice? You presented a clear explanation of the problem being addressed with your app.
Feedback: Great idea to connect much needed career planning in a format that secondary students understand and feel familiar. With so many career options and institutions to offer programming, how will you compile the possibilities? Success is a variable term, depending on the definition, different skills will be required. Who would be consulted to give this advice? You presented a clear explanation of the problem being addressed with your app.
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- 0 Replies
- in reply to CareerPave

Feedback: Interesting concept. I love the idea of getting ahead of a new technology curve, in an education setting. We are often late adopters. Your idea would give teachers a central place to access cutting edge technology within a focus area that would fit well with content. Simulations are a great way to construct learning for students. Adding an example in your elevator pitch would help to ground the idea. Also, I didn't get a sense for how to access this VR universe. Excellent visuals.
Feedback: Interesting concept. I love the idea of getting ahead of a new technology curve, in an education setting. We are often late adopters. Your idea would give teachers a central place to access cutting edge technology within a focus area that would fit well with content. Simulations are a great way to construct learning for students. Adding an example in your elevator pitch would help to ground the idea. Also, I didn't get a sense for how to access this VR universe. Excellent visuals.
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- 0 Replies
- in reply to Assignment 3 – STEMverse

Review: Fantastic job! Your pitch clearly outlines your project, goals, purpose, investment opportunity and credentials. It is a unique idea and certainly a niche market from my experience. Your video had a professional feel, not rushed, highly informative. Referencing Kickstarter and very articulately explained the process of project development including cost analysis. Your product is collaborative and constructivist in nature, appealing to the student population. It involves multi-industries which is exciting but will require a great deal of management by your company. Crowd sourced, curated with rate, review and comments integrates an effective system to manage the workload. Your experience and confidence help sell the product. You were clear about where you want your project to go and how investors can be involved. I wonder how you are going to engage teachers in the project? Fantastic opportunity. I would definitely invest.
Review: Fantastic job! Your pitch clearly outlines your project, goals, purpose, investment opportunity and credentials. It is a unique idea and certainly a niche market from my experience. Your video had a professional feel, not rushed, highly informative. Referencing Kickstarter and very articulately explained the process of project development including cost analysis. Your product is collaborative and constructivist in nature, appealing to the student population. It involves multi-industries which is exciting but will require a great deal of management by your company. Crowd sourced, curated with rate, review and comments integrates an effective system to manage the workload. Your experience and confidence help sell the product. You were clear about where you want your project to go and how investors can be involved. I wonder how you are going to engage teachers in the project? Fantastic opportunity. I would definitely invest.
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- 0 Replies
- in reply to A3 – incentivED

Review: Your pitch was clear, decisive and easy to follow. You were able to gain the viewers attention with engaging graphics and a well executed voice over. Your confidence in the product added merit to the advertising. You address a market that shows room for development. You speak about the direct benefit to teachers. I believe many teachers would be interested in the product, although I have questions around the pedagogical grounding. If this became the primary accountability measure, are teachers missing out on much of the information gained from individual assessment. The 'why' of errors in comprehension. Your pitch addressed the benefits, primarily time, and the niche as compared with competitors in similar format yet lack reading comprehension as an option. Seems like an untapped market. I am wondering about the logistics of administering the test to all students at the same time. Is there reading research to back up the assessment? Who is team you would be working with? Your investment request was clearly outlined, both in what you wanted and what you would be able to provide in return. Additionally, you showed vision in what that money would work towards.
Review: Your pitch was clear, decisive and easy to follow. You were able to gain the viewers attention with engaging graphics and a well executed voice over. Your confidence in the product added merit to the advertising. You address a market that shows room for development. You speak about the direct benefit to teachers. I believe many teachers would be interested in the product, although I have questions around the pedagogical grounding. If this became the primary accountability measure, are teachers missing out on much of the information gained from individual assessment. The 'why' of errors in comprehension. Your pitch addressed the benefits, primarily time, and the niche as compared with competitors in similar format yet lack reading comprehension as an option. Seems like an untapped market. I am wondering about the logistics of administering the test to all students at the same time. Is there reading research to back up the assessment? Who is team you would be working with? Your investment request was clearly outlined, both in what you wanted and what you would be able to provide in return. Additionally, you showed vision in what that money would work towards.
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- 0 Replies
- in reply to Assignment 3-READgauge
