steve

Hi Tod, It remains to be seen if the paradoxical name to the final intent will be a attention-getting marketing success or if it will be a colossal mistake. Is it the "new Coke"? As you feared, I believe that many students would get tired of it. That is part of the transient nature of nagU. It allows for students to try it out, perhaps change their behaviour/perspective, and then opt out. In my experience as a personal trainer, clients are motivated and work hard to achieve their goals; a few stick with it, most 'tire' of pursuing goals after a time. But they always return to try again for a while. Motivation wanes based on what is going on in our lives, nagU can always be there when they need/want it. I have considered revenue streams, but I think that before exploring profit I need to prove the nagU concept through actual implementation. nagU is an original concept and prone to plenty of skepticism unless it can prove its effectiveness through actual real-world successes. TBD.

Hi Chava, I don't really see a negative or positive in social media as a concept, I just think that with some forethought, we can more tap into the positive aspects. I doubt nagU will have the same appeal as Instagram etc, its benefits are different; unique. With experience using nagU, people may benefit and it may gain popularity for its positive influence on peoples' lives. As for the added stress of being responsible for others' work, I think that a lot of people enjoying sending out messages. I wonder how people will feel about sending quick text messages that will make real positive influences on others? There will be an automatic reminder system to nag other nagI if a nagE (nag event) reminder deadline is coming. Gamification is an interesting idea. I will see how people work with a simpler version of nagU first. I am not a big fan of gamification for adults, it seems demotivating and dated.

Hello Ying, I am working on a rewards system for users who users who are good nagI. It will most likely be based on feedback from other nagI in the same group. Keeping deadlines seems to be more about the will to take positive action when needed. I find that sending out a quick message is almost natural nowadays, unlike working on assignments, taking time to do class readings etc. There will be an automatic reminder sent out to nagI who are reaching their deadline to remind other nagI of their responsibilities.

Hello Ian, Lots of great questions! Users will form their own groups of three based on what they deem important filters: age, location, major etc. If a user finds their group is not working for them, they can easily change into or form other groups. In a sense, it is both a mixed and not mixed user base. For school institutions who license nagU, they would have their own secure access portal for their students. nagU is meant for adults and not kids, but in the etiquette guide it will explain that users should maintain anonymity and report users attempting to find identities. I hadn't considered the images vs text issue. I think at this point that their will be no avatars. After establishing a user base, I will see if there is an interest in having an avatar gallery to choose from. There will be an emoticon image gallery to choose from for messages. The current vision of nagU is to create social returns, aka no profit. That is why I am currently on a crowdfunding platform. In the future, nagU might have targeted advertisements to sustain operations when it reaches an operational threshold. I will keep working on nagU at nagu.ca and we will see what happens ;-)

Michael, thanks for the engaging elevator pitch. I would have liked to see a more graphical venture pitch, but the content of the venture pitch was so compelling! You have a great way with words that pulls me through the text, effectively mixing informal communication, technology revelations and realistic aspirations. I think that an effective pitch should inspire the investor throughout and leaving them wanting more. This pitch makes me think about how an effective startup CEO must be a master of communication; a virtue you exemplify!

I liked your vision for this pitch. I felt that the elevator pitch could have used more ‘sizzle’, but the venture pitch infographic balanced that out. I particularly liked how you connected technology to identity building, offering a way that technology can be used for constructive purposes. I was quite impressed by the expected massive increase in augmented reality value in the next few years. I had to bookmark your well-designed venture pitch for my future inspiration. Appreciated!

Thanks for your pitch Sarah. You have great presence on camera. I felt that it was well researched and interesting. Your presentation clearly explained the pain points, the relevance of your idea and a clear picture of how your venture could be achieved. I would have liked to see how the $100,000 requested investment would be spent on the venture. My favorite parts were when you gave examples of existing ventures that proved how your venture could be successful. Great pitch!

Hi Brogan, Thanks for the question. The squads of 3 are the students themselves. Any other questions welcome!

Hello Neuroscience team. Thank you for your OER. I really enjoyed the section on neuromyths. I was thinking that perpetuated neuromyths really hurt the integration of neuroscience findings into education long-term. How many education fads do educators have to put up with in a year!? Like others, I found the infographic on the Educational Neuroscience impossible to read. Even on my desktop when I zoomed in the text was too blurry. I felt that most of the resources were too dated to be worth my time as neuroeducation is a new and quickly changing/developing field. Generally, I would have liked to learn more about the venture landscape for this field, what area would be a good investment and why? I also liked the interactivities where I could try out learning utilizing neuroscience findings. My favorite part was the paper on Zondle, it seemed authoritative, contemporary and balanced.

Hi Adaptive Learning Team. Thank you for your OER. I am definitely an Anthony. I think that educational innovation and its impact is fleeting and based on cultural biases. I really enjoy playing with new ideas and implementing beneficial change, but I am wary of the concept of “lasting change.” I see that challenges of using adaptive learning akin to those of social constructivism and most of all the recent popular learning theories. Although students desire freedom and their own responsive pathways of learning, they also desire guidance and limited structure. I see adaptive learning as potentially being quite effective for corporate learning, especially for employees required to upgrade their soft skills on their own schedule.