Nolan Amy is the founder and CEO of the formative assessment tool, Plickers.
Plickers facilitates quick check-ins with students. Unlike popular alternatives, only the educator needs an electronic device to run the Plickers App. Learners use printable Plickers Cards to respond to questions, the orientation of their card corresponds to their response. Each card can be assigned to a specific student, which allows the educator to track their answers and offer specific feedback. Plickers markets itself as always free for teachers. However, it has a Pro version that enables additional services. Interestingly, all of the pro services are things that a teacher could do already with a bit of added time.
Nolan Amy was a math teacher with the Teach for America corps when he created Plickers. He was motivated to find a means of quickly gauging his students’ understanding and providing real-time feedback. He was working in a low-income school at the time and so was likely also motivated to create a tech-based learning tool that did not rely on students’ having their own devices. After developing a prototype in-class, Nolan took his venture to Imagine K-12, a startup accelerator that he also founded along with Alan Louie, Geoff Ralston, and Tim Brady.
Nolan continues to work on Plickers as CEO. Today his team consists of two others, Ali Torres and Satoko Lom. Ali provides over 10 years of experience in executive support and customer service. Satoko is a software engineer and helps with front end development. She, along with two previous team members (Dianna Faulk and Jenn Kim), built the Plickers grade dashboard which allows educators to dynamically view student responses. Plickers’ strength is in its simplicity, and its small team reflects just that.
I am inspired by Nolan’s story and the rise of Plickers. From a humble classroom prototype, it has become an educational tool used in millions of classrooms around the world. I would classify it as a triple-bottom-line venture. Its pro-service and pre-made cards provide a channel for income. It enhances learning on a global scale. And the use of simple cards reduces the need for mobile devices in the classroom. A laminated set of cards could last many years’ worth of students.
I like the fact Nolan was teacher not looking to make a start-up per se, but was motivated to have a tech-based tool for the classroom that did not rely on kids having device, levelling the field for delivering quality education regardless of the income, access and resources of his students – an inspirational founder. Online assessments is also an area I am developing a greater interest in, so I appreciate the introduction to Plickers.