As a former Special Needs educator I have always admired the hard work and dedication of the Educational Assistants (EAs) that I worked with. Many of them really made a difference in the lives of the students that they worked with and many of these students would have had a very difficult time in school without the support from these workers. Unfortunately, I also saw a lot of frustration and burnout with EAs because their job can be both mentally and physically demanding. Yes, I think they are undervalued and underpaid so helping them in these areas could make a big difference but I also think that if they had the right skills and strategies to work with special needs students it could help make a big difference with their overall job satisfaction as well. I always thought it was a bit backwards that EAs are tasked with working with some of the most challenging students yet are usually the ones with having the least amount of training. EA Assist is mobile app that I think can help EAs become more confident and successful in their jobs.
See the following link for more information about EA Assist in my Venture Pitch.
https://sites.google.com/view/a3assignmentetec522grant/ea-assist
REVIEW: EA Assist elevator pitch was multimodal, easy to follow and identified the pain points that EA Assist hopes to address. I really enjoyed following along with the content as well as the images and music selected.
I thought the venture pitch was thorough in stating the products purpose. It identifies who it’s supporting and how. Provides a thorough market analysis and introduces me to EA Assist. I would suggest placing your Elevator Pitch somewhere on the landing page, as many potential investors may not aim to interact with your content unless they’ve been captivated by your elevator pitch first. Also, although I wouldn’t expect too much detail in a venture pitch, I would have been interested to know more about how the learning resources found in EA Assist are created and maintained. You mention that they will be built by educators and educator assistants, but I wonder if they reflect a specific curriculum and if they do, can the app be used outside of that curriculum (ie. Outside of British Columbia, outside of Canada, outside of English speaking learning scenarios).
The Elevator and Venture pitch has sparked my interest, but I would hesitate to invest in EA Assist until I’ve obtained more information on the App’s content creation and educational strategies.
Hi Julio,
Thanks for your feedback. I have a list of topics in mind for the content and strategies which I should have included on the website to provide a bit more context and understanding for potential investors. For example for the category of behaviour management I would have short microlessons on how to give instructions, how to use prompting, using positive reinforcement, using the extinction method, collecting data, recording data, de-escalation, behaviour planning, the functions of behaviour, avoiding breakdowns, etc. I am not sure if we can modify our venture project right now but I think I will do so anyway. As far as having the app work outside the Canada or English speaking countries, I think that would be a great long term goal but starting off I would like to focus on the local market here in Canada. However, the app could be used by other countries if the the strategies line up with the countries cultural practices/language/education standards, etc. The idea is that these strategies will be the best practices for working with any student with special needs or developmental challenges. For this venture, I would start by working with local education administrations and local licensing boards to develop the content reflecting on their standards/curriculum. But I would also look at standards/curriculum from other provinces to hopefully find some synergies. Although most provinces have different curriculums, there should be similarities in the strategies that EAs are using with their students.
Thanks again,
Grant
Hi, Grant,
It sounds like you will launch this as a real venture?
Apparently we are permitted to revise – a few of our classmates asked about that. It’s not necessary, but if it helps with learning, all good. How and which version David will accept is up to him, though, as we were to have emailed our pitches after posting.
Here’s my review:
I too was wondering what content you were going to develop for the app, since teachers create the lesson plans while EA’s offer assistance, not additional curriculum. Your response above which outlines strategies for behavior management and other microlessons for EA professional development and support make total sense. And I like the badges. Maybe include a section on EA stress management and self-care strategies? Their job is definitely not easy.
As others have already stated, your pitches are well-done – smart, relevant, focused and are visually appealing that makes it easy to follow. You basically covered off most of what an investor would need to move forward, and I, too, thought it very clever how you integrated microlearning into your venture.
There is one thing only and its so small that I wasn’t going to mention it, but if you’re going or revise anyways, I recommend enlarging the logo in the top left corner of your website. Again, its such a small thing, but I keep noticing it and it makes the appearance of your menu/webpage unbalanced to me. I’ll leave that to you whether you feel it worth the trouble to edit – it does not detract from your presentation.
Hi Alice,
No, I haven’t really considered launching this as a real venture, it was just an idea. Having done the research though, I think it does have some potential.
The idea is not to train them in developing new curriculum, but provide them with training in how to work with/support students needs. I have a list of content that I think could be very valuable to them and some of the topics are like I mentioned in my response to Julio. For example when an Autism specialist wants to implement a behavior plan with a student, an EA might not understand the terminology or support methods that the specialist is planning to use. They might not understand how students with Autism need to be supported and this limits there chance of successfully implementing a plan. A couple of microlessons on these topics could really help the EA understand what the specialist requires.
One other idea I had in addition to the microlessons, was a chat forum for EAs to communicate and share their ideas. I know out here in Nova Scotia, especially at smaller schools, there could be just one EA at the school. If they are struggling with their student they might not have anyone to turn to for support. Having a chat forum for them to ask questions to more experienced EAs could be very beneficial. Anyway, just another idea.
Thanks for the suggestion for changing the homepage too. I though it looked a little off too.
Thanks for the feedback!
Grant
REVIEW: Your goal is very clear and easily understood. I think the solution to the problem you described is great. I like how in depth you were able to describe the content of the APP, which made it more appealing. You addressed not only the kinds of functions like videos, games, quizzes, but also listed out some topic areas, such as addressing the different kinds of diagnosis. The pricing strategy you listed seem very reasonable and affordable for your target users. You have clearly done a lot of research for the venture pitch, and given all the information, I think I would want to invest in this venture!
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the feedback Emily! Glad you enjoyed my venture.
FEEDBACK:
This is a very real problem and you did a great job explaining the pain points and the consequences of those pain points. Many EA’s that I have worked with get placed to work with some of the most challenging children, without having any formal training, background, or experience, with the disability or special need. I love how you incorporated microlearning into your venture! what a great way to give you EA’s the skills they need to help they support our learners. The only concern I would have is because EA’s are traditionally underpaid, I am not convinced that they would use their own time to complete the microlearning modules. Overall great venture and I would definitely consider investing in it!
Thanks for the feedback. I agree that EAs are traditionally underpaid and there a number of other issues with this profession. This is probably one of the challenges of a venture like this is, are school boards willing to invest in EAs and if they are will EAs actually have incentive to use the app? I would hope that an app like this could help make their jobs a bit easier and these might be all the incentive they need (especially the EAs who are really struggling with their students). But yes a monetary incentive or improved working conditions would definitely help as well. My idea is just one piece to the puzzle.
Thanks,
Grant
Hello Grant,
The elevator pitch does a very good job of identifying the problem, which I believe would encourage a potential investor to pay close attention to the venture pitch.
I loved the layout of your site. It had a simple but attractive visual appeal. The images contained were very well selected and added to the nice flow. I also think you hit on something that is both very true, and under-reported on. Very rarely do I hear about EA training and even more rarely with regard to online training.
With regard to Microlearning, I do like how you tied it in with the current context in education. It is true that across the board standards are not there and what you are proposing is not a revamped education system, which would be a difficult accomplishment as a business venture, but rather a means for individual districts to invest in practical training. It seems to me microlearning is a great choice given what the current situation is.
While an imperfect comparison the idea is similar to administrator training in British Columbia. Many would be surprised that there is no official requirement mandated by the MOE in terms of qualifying as a Principal. Every district I know of requires a master’s or at least an “in progress” of masters but no official requirement specific to BC. This differs from Ontario for example. The British Columbia Principals and Vice Principals Association offers a course, which I have taken, along with most principals, but this is not mandated by the MOE. However, most districts recognize how important this is and pay for up and coming administrators to attend.
While nothing about the BCPVPA course is particularly Ed Tech it illustrates how one need is served by an outside agency (the BCPVPA is an association that Principals can decide to join and pay into). “EA Assist” definitely pinpoints a need that is not being fulfilled and this alone I believe makes it attractive to investors.
Overall, I think the entire pitch was very concise and convincing. Perhaps more specifics on how the product would work could help, but at the same time the goal is pulling in the investors and it is hard to imagine their interest would not be peaked after seeing this.
Very impressive! I hate the fact that this is not real as I’d be looking to utilize it if it ever came to market.
Thanks Ryan, for the insight and feedback. Nice to hear a perspective from a Principal! Like I mentioned in another reply, there are other challenges with the job of an EA (poor wages, challenging work environment, student agression, a lack of standards, etc.). I think the the idea of EA Assist is just a piece to the puzzle and I think it would also help teachers and specialists as well because it will give them more confidence in their EAs abilities freeing up time they might spend training them. I think most EAs take up the job because they love working with kids and enjoy helping others. Its a shame that some have to quit just because they find the job too frustrating or difficult. I’m sure you can attest that EAs they are still undervalued but are extremely important in our schools. Hopefully, an app like this could help give them a bit more confidence and success.
Thanks,
Grant