ETEC 522 Analyst Report – O’Connor
I decided to do my analysis on Glogster. Glogster is a platform that I have used a few times in the classroom and I wanted to know more about its product. I currently use the free subscription and have had great success with it in the classroom. It was interesting to learn through my research that they are attempting to phase out/limit their free platform in hopes of promoting their paid premium accounts. Additionally I didn’t know that they had closed their public account in hopes of promoting their education website. The ability create a poster online requires different thinking from creating a poster using the traditional method with pen and paper. I like that the product appeals to the web 2.0 generation and allows students to express their creativity and understanding in a new medium.
While working on this analyst report I found that I caught myself numerous times trying to sell the product. I had to remind myself that this was not the task and that instead I needed to provide a critical review of the topic. While an analysis seems like an easy task to do, it is easy to become an advocate for these technological learning ventures as you use them in your classroom and believe in the success and usefulness of the product. I’ve realized that it becomes difficult to separate being a teacher and an educational venture analyst. However, the ability to think critically from both positions provides a new opportunity to analyze learning technologies and products.
Given that Glogster is a company that has been around for seven years, it was very difficult to find any information about their founders and current management team and the potential to invest. Their “about us” page was short and did not go into too much detail. It was frustrating that very little information was shared about the company. In preparation for my Opportunity Pitch I will consider this information and make sure it is included.
I too, have used Glogster with my students. I find it interesting to see what other people think of the resources I am familiar with using. It was also interesting to learn that they were phasing out their free subscriptions to focus on paid options and GlogsterEdu. Does this mean that teachers and students that have already registered will be able to keep their subscriptions for free, I wonder.
Your paper was easy to read and I found that the icons gave it some interest and broke up all the writing, making it easier to read. I empathize with your feelings of wanting to sell the platform, rather than critique it. I found myself doing this a number of times with my evaluation also. Something for both of us to keep in mind for our final project. Thanks for giving a succinct evaluation.
Thanks Anne. I wasn’t expecting to find out that information when I started the project. It was my understanding that they were keeping free subscriptions for students to use individually but that it would be limited on what you could do with the product. They offer a free 30 day trial of the paid subscription.