by Karen Lien
At Imagine K12, our big-picture goal is to see technology enrich and transform education as it has the business and consumer experiences. Technology is not the silver bullet for education, but we know that it can have a meaningful, positive impact on the education system and learners.
We work with startups, and while it’s incredibly rewarding to spend our time with smart, motivated entrepreneurs, sometimes we can feel very far removed from the teachers and students who inspire us to do this work. Every now and then I like to take a look at what educators are saying about our portfolio companies, as a reminder of the very real impact they have.
Here are a few quotes from teachers talking about the transformative power of the edtech products they use:
ClassDojo is a behavior management tool that emphasizes positive behavior and provides a behavior record for each student.
We work with startups, and while it’s incredibly rewarding to spend our time with smart, motivated entrepreneurs, sometimes we can feel very far removed from the teachers and students who inspire us to do this work. Every now and then I like to take a look at what educators are saying about our portfolio companies, as a reminder of the very real impact they have.
Here are a few quotes from teachers talking about the transformative power of the edtech products they use:
ClassDojo is a behavior management tool that emphasizes positive behavior and provides a behavior record for each student.
Not only has ClassDojo improved my classroom behavior, but it has helped improve their math and reading scores as well! I don’t know of any other behavior management site or system that is this versatile and effective. The days of needing to call home about my students’ behavior have passed…but, I sure have made a lot of ‘Compliment Calls.'
Angela West, 4th grade teacher (source)
Remind101 allows teachers to communicate with their students and parents via text message in a simple, safe environment.
My students are still talking about how awesome it is to receive messages from their teacher. They come to my class prepared and on time more regularly than I have ever experienced. Parents have told me that they enjoy feeling more “in the know” of what their student is doing in my class.
Catherine Flippen, high school teacher (source)
Socrative is a student response system (like clickers) that works on any web-enabled device.
Socrative saves me time, gives students immediate feedback, helps me to make better, more informed decisions and is helping me easily gather the data that the job demands.
Shawn McCusker, high school teacher (source)
Goalbook makes it possible for every student to have a personal learning plan that connects all of the key players in their education: teachers, parents, and other specialists.
During the day, when my student is facing a challenging moment, I’m now able to share in Goalbook a play-by-play of the steps and actions I’ve taken with the student... The parents love this. They’ve told me, ‘When we hear which strategies have been successful, what’s been working for you, this information helps us be more successful with our child at home. We appreciate the communication we get from you.’
District Post-Secondary / Transition Coordinator (source)
InstaGrok is a research tool that displays any topic in a visual, interactive concept map.
Teachers of every subject area will see students of almost every skill level benefit from what instaGrok has to offer... instaGrok isn’t designed to feed users simple answers; rather, it fosters customizable levels of inquiry that will help your students learn how to be critical thinkers and creative problem solvers, instead of mindless button pushers. And that’s transformative learning!
Shawn Jacob, high school teacher (source)
This list covers just a handful of Imagine K12’s startups, which are part of a larger ecosystem of great edtech companies working hard to support students and teachers.
Are you thinking about starting an edtech startup? How will you make life better for educators and learners?
Are you thinking about starting an edtech startup? How will you make life better for educators and learners?