kstooshnov
Thank you for taking part in the poll: Which handheld device would work best in the K-12 classroom? Kindle leads the way, catching 6/15 votes, and discussion on this topic shows that price and ease of use are two of the most attractive features, while on-line tools added to the latest version, Kindle Fire, make […]
Continue reading Results of eReader poll Posted in: Week 06: eBooks I just discovered this iPad 2 item while working with a colleague today on eBooks for her grade three class. We started looking a few weeks ago for good stories to read and be read by her class, and I immediately thought of this modern classic by Crockett Johnson. I still have vivid childhood memories of […]
Continue reading omg – Harold & the Purple Crayon app!! Posted in: Week 06: eBooks The eBook Emerging Market Team are pleased to present our findings on the electronic book. Two resources we would like to connect our classmates with are the Redefining Reading WordPress blog and the UBC wiki page we created. We have a couple of activities and discussion questions posted at these locations, but please feel free […]
Continue reading Welcome to the Realm of eBooks! Posted in: Week 06: eBooks We hope that everyone in Canada has a wonderful Thanksgiving, and for our friends in other countries, a relaxing weekend. The eBook Team will be posting our Emerging Market Analysis on Monday, October 10th, and we look forward to your comments and questions. Everton, Keisha & Kyle
Continue reading Happy Thanksgiving from the eBook Team! Posted in: Announcements, Week 06: eBooks
Happy Thanksgiving to you too! I’m looking forward to your presentation.
Deb
Professor David Crystal, OBE, co-founder of Crystal Semantics, designer of Shakespeare’s Words website, author and linguist Crystal Semantics Limited is an innovative Web marketing technology that makes use of Crystal’s research into semantics. The company, launched in 2001, ‘is the result of 8 years and $8 million investment in research and its ground breaking technology […]
Continue reading David Crystal & Shakespeare’s Words Posted in: Week 04: Entrepreneur Bootcamp
Interesting production. I like this idea of the site staving off bad commercials and yielding to the impact of multinational companies. The glossary idea is a great one as it facilitates the linguistic idea perfectly. Although this is a major investment, I think it’s a rewarding one even if profit is not gained. I strongly believe that once persons are educated from such a venture, it is a natural success.
Hi Everton,
Like you, I am not a big fan of advertising in any form, and the less cluttered a website can be, the better. Of course, not all of them are bad, but even the good ones are manipulative in some way. I like the idea of designing a fabulous website freely accessible by all, but like the Dark Knight’s Joker says “If you’re good at something, never do it for free.” David Crystal seems to have found the ideal balance between commerce (selling off Crystal Semantics and Reference System to ad pepper media) and his passion for linguistics, going back to Shakespeare’s contributions to the English language.
Interesting concept. I wonder how he got $8 million dollars rounded up by his investors?!
Great marketing campaign though and I am sure the payoff is well received. English has always been the language of business, but never thought of it as the language of the internet. Wonder if they put Spanish McDonalds ads together in Spanish websites?
Hi Deb,
Thanks for your comments, and something I learned while teaching English in Japan is the mercurial qualities of my native language. More than just adapting to other languages (sushi, kamikaze and otaku are familiar enough imported words), English takes almost every noun, adjective and some conjunctions can be made into a verb, for instance. I also found this great article by David Crystal explaining how Shakespeare’s words are not so far off from modern English, only 15% of his words are not commonly used today.
Interesting site… I think I’d prefer cursor-driven popups vs. searching in the sidebar.
Thanks David,
I agree, there are still lots of thing that could be improved with the website. Some interesting things are happening with Internet Shakespeare Editions published for the Internet by a team at the University of Victoria, with introductions, choices between different editions, and other clickable features, but there is no glossary at all. Hopefully both the Crystals and UVic keep tinkering with their sites.
The two pitches I’d like to deconstruct are Phil Libin’s Evernote and Conor McCreery and Anthony Del Col’s winning Pitch This! project Kill Shakespeare. Evernote elevator pitch 2010 Toronto International Film Festival’s Pitch This! Out of all the elevator pitches I have viewed so far, this one seems most likely to take place in an […]
Continue reading Evernote and Kill Shakespeare Posted in: Week 03: Analyst Bootcamp
At first I was a little put off as well by the ‘gateway drug’ comment; okay, maybe not exactly put off, but a little voice saying ‘this isn’t for the classroom’. It wasn’t until I was going back through the criteria for a good pitch that I remembered the audience types. That statement isn’t intended for the learner, but instead the end-user (the teacher). It connects us to a statement that is cliché, but gets the point across.
I liked your analysis of both products. I felt the same about the EverNote presenter– he seemed genuine and confident in his product, like someone that I could trust and seek further information from.
Thanks for the thoughts,
Kristopher
Thank you, Kristopher,
Regardless of how the pitch plays out in the media, I also had to get over my issues over using graphic novels to teach literature. Some of the students I tutor have teachers assigning The Watchmen, Maus and other classic comics for English, and it took a while for me to warm up to the idea of presenting graphic novels to the class. With most other manga editions of Shakespeare, the focus is all on the images, and too much of the text is crammed into speech bubbles, thus making it a pointless way into understanding the play. The creative team on KS took a more thoughtful and engaging route with their design (modeling their character on movie stars they’d cast in their film) and has at least raised my interest in graphic novels in the classroom.
Kyle
As result of Evernote elevation pitch several times, I think your analysis this pitch is very good. I concur with you that wearing the company logo of by Phil is a simple gesture which adds to the experience he is evoking. Good point.
Thanks, Conroy,
It wasn’t until I downloaded EverNote on my iPhone that I realized what the image is: an elephant with part of its ear folded over, like an “earmarked” paper note. Very impressive how much attention to the slightest details went into this project. It would be silly to wear anything but the company logo when pitching to prospective investors.
Kyle
Thanks, Conroy,
It wasn’t until I downloaded EverNote on my iPhone that I realized what the image is: an elephant with part of its ear folded over, like an “earmarked” paper note. Very impressive how much attention to the slightest details went into this project. It would be silly to wear anything but the company logo when pitching to prospective investors.
Kyle
I think I generally agree with your thoughts on Evernote. Like WeBook, I appreciated the fact that he had a logo (and wore it). That gives at least an air or being established and serious. Edufire’s pitch, in front of a world map, did almost nothing for me. I decided in the first second that the pitcher was also a little crazy. While he got better, I couldn’t shake that first impression.
It is a beautiful thing, seeing text evolve from print to PDF to Web version, and the New Media Consortium played a large part in upping the ante while presenting these appealing predictions. The fact that users can download this report in other languages such as German and Japanese, with an (even riskier) option to […]
Continue reading New Media consorts on Horizon Report Posted in: Week 02: The Edtech Marketplace My name is Kyle Stooshnov, and I am starting my second year as a student in the MET program. Currently I am a Teacher On Call for the North Vancouver School District, and hope that I will get a few days work before the inevitable teachers’ strike Seeing that there may be some down time […]
Continue reading How now, masters? Posted in: Week 01: Introductions
My husband is a Shakespeare nut as well. He will be excited to see what you develop. Great meeting you, and look forward to working together!
Emily
Hey, Kyle. Nice to see you here and very nice work on the Shakespeare! Still very odd to be in courses with you electronically when it’s been (a lot) of years since we were in the classroom as band geeks.
Ick. Strike. Let’s not talk about that here. Cheers. Hope to actually see you soon.
Michelle
Hi Michelle,
Great to see you again on-line, and looking forward to your posts. Cool gravatar, and can’t wait to read how you introduced yourself, as well as the project you have in mind.
Kyle
Hi Kyle, your project looks very interesting! Congratulations and I wish you all the luck with it. Looking forward to learn with you in this course.
Cheers,
Angela
wow! Great Project Kyle! Such an amazing idea – I certainly would have LOVED to have access to something like that studying Shakespeare in both University and High school. I’m kind of hoping there is a strike 😉 so we can see this project!! 😀
Hello Wongte,
Thank you for the enthusiastic response, and I look forward to learning more about you and your educational experience when you post your introduction. Sounds like we are in the same boat when it comes to BCTF’s current job action, so let’s hope the turnaround time from designing a project to receiving our first million – lol – will be quick so that we can continue with our MET studies.
I also got to observe some of the frustration of learning Shakespeare at university when I signed up for a 300-level on-line course this summer. Many students went into the course with only a vague memory of learning a few of the plays in high school. The data I collected make for an intriguing case study when it comes to ETEC 522’s assignment #1.
All the best with your studies,
Kyle
Band geeks unite!
Kyle, my brother is also a Bill fan… to the point where, in university (since he hated the ending of “Hamlet”), he wrote the sequel to “Hamlet”, “Horatio”. In iambic pentameter. And had it turned into a local play. Nowadays he writes for Marvel among other things… I’ll be curious to see your technologification (my new word for the day) of Shakespeare.
Hi Steve,
Has your brother seen “Hamlet 2”, Steve Coogan’s attempt to one-up Shakespeare by bringing the dead prince back from the dead with the help of his friend, Jesus? Would be great to see the script for McQuaid’s Horatio, especially as it is iambic pentameter.
As for the technologification of Shakespeare’s plays, much of it will rely on the talented design skills of the numerous video game studios around Vancouver. Kind of like the multimedia experience of Kill Shakespeare (graphic novel, feature film, possible video game), with more of a focus on the plays’ text rather than the characters alone. Looking forward to any feedback you can provide.
Kyle
To be honest, I don’t know if he did or not. I did, though – “Rock Me, Sexy Jesus” was a highlight. “He’s totally the man, the man with the plan. He traveled through time in an awesome custom van…”
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Deb Giesbrecht 6:37 am on October 16, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Thanks for the update on the poll. Definitely will help me on my quest for my own eReader!