ETEC 522

Assignment 1

Analyst Report

• Due October 18
• Worth 25%
• 2,000 words or 8 minutes maximum

Author and publish an original competitive analysis of an existing real-world learning technologies product, service, venture or market of special interest to you.

It can be any relevant (to you) component or cross-section of the global learning technologies marketplace.

Think of your work as an ‘opportunity audit’: a critical review of your chosen topic designed to support an investment decision (not a buying decision) by a prospective investor (not a customer). 

This is not an academic paper. Design a presentation format consistent with prospective investors making a sound decision based on your recommendation. Enhance your analysis with real-world data and original consultations if such are feasible.

Employ a medium or media of your choice. If your OER is hosted in an external platform or application please ensure it can live there reliably for at least a few years, and that it is self-contained there. 

To publish your Assignment #1:

• create an informative, inviting launchpad post
• post it into this blog using the Category “Analyst Reports (A1)”
• notify your instructor via email that you are ‘live’ and include any links and self-reflection.

RUBRIC:

• Rationale for Analysis (8/25): A compelling rationale for the choice of subject matter that clearly conveys its resonant value within the learning technologies marketplace and to the author’s professional stance as analyst.
• Critical EVA (8/25): An engagingly credible analysis that uses criteria and/or methods that are relevant, comprehensive, and incisive to the substance and conclusions.
• Resource Value (4/25): Creative and effective design together with excellent presentation for engaging and serving the target audience (primarily professional educators everywhere).
• Reflections (5/25): The proponent clearly outlines the relevance of their analysis and the EVA role in relation to their emerging thinking about their own upcoming opportunity pitch (Assignment #3).

Assignment 2

Opportunity Forecast
Group Project

• Due Assigned Week
• Worth 25%

To complete Assignment #2:

• Produce an Open Educational Resource (OER) that serves to explore and understand the dynamic nature and opportunities of one of these emerging markets
• Create launchpad post to share with cohort.
• Deliver and moderate an engaging, interactive week-long experience for the whole class featuring your OER that gathers feedback from peers to improve the OER.
• Compile a peer participation report listing all peers who completed all activities and a separate list of specific peers who contributed an exceptional level of thought leadership.
• Refine and finalize your OER incorporating peer feedback within one week of completion of cohort experience.
• Publish a final OER enhanced by cohort response to the Emerging Markets category that better “pitches” this category for future cohorts.
• Send your peer participation report to your instructor via email to signify your completion

RUBRIC:

• OER Design (6/25): Compelling, coherent, grounded research and analysis with highly effective pathways for active learning, understanding, and further development. Teamwork is clearly evident.
• Experience Design (7/25): Professionally organized material and activities designed for an engaging and effective learning experience. Teamwork is clearly evident with individual efforts defined and noted.
• Engagement Hosting (6/25): Graciously and expertly hosted materials and activities for effective cohort exploration and examination of the topic and OER. Teamwork is clearly evident.
• Published OER (6/25): Professional-quality OER enhanced via cohort interactions, published and ready to serve the target audience. Teamwork is clearly evident.

Assignment 3

Venture Pitch

• Due Nov 29
• Worth 25%
• 1 minute maximum “elevator pitch”
• 2,000 words or 8 minutes maximum “venture pitch”

Assignment #3 Option A:

• create a compelling pitch that champions the future of an original real-world venture.
  • Your venture can be a dramatically new direction for an existing enterprise 
  • or it can be an imagined initiative or possibly a start-up or true-life enterprise that you’d like to launch.
• Create pitches using any medium or tools that most persuasively conveys the essence of your venture
  • a short, media-rich “elevator pitch”
  • a longer “venture pitch” 
• Your objective is to be credible, well researched, and very convincing to your instructor and peers.
• Post to the Venture Pitch category
• Send a copy to your instructor via email to signify your completion
• Submit your reflection to your instructor via email

Option B:

• Prepare your pitch(es) for actual posting in a crowdfunding site such as Kickstarter. In this case you may submit the final draft of what you’d like to post, or a link to the actual posting.

Please remember that we’re looking for a pitch that focuses on persuading investors to invest in your venture, not a pitch that convinces customers to buy your product or service.

RUBRIC:

• Elevator Pitch (5/25): Highly engaging elevator pitch would capture attention of potential investors or decision makers. The student’s passion and ability to carry out the venture are easily evident.
• Venture Pitch (10/25): High-impact, comprehensive and compelling proposition that would engage investment interest and cogently demonstrates the student’s ability to lead the venture.
• Critical EVA (5/25): The pitches use arguments that are relevant, comprehensive, and incisive to the substance and the proposition.
• Reflection (5/25): The proponent clearly and accurately outlines the strengths and weaknesses of their pitch and their entrepreneurship inclinations.

Assignment 4

Participation Portfolio

• Due Dec 6
• Worth 25%
• 500 words maximum Word document

Complete Assignment #4:

• Keep track of your most important postings and reviews you contribute during the course so that you can
• Submit a list of between 5 (min) and 10 (max) of your most important contribution posts and reviews to the cohort.
• Evidence insightful participation during every stage of the course.
• Send your instructor an email entitled “A4 Submission” with the attached MS Word document describing your active involvement in the course liking to 5-10 of your most important contribution posts. This should also include:
  • an introduction,
  • examples of posts with explanatory narrative,
  • a summary statement of your involvement with peers,
  • a final statement of your overall experience and/or contribution to 522 through your participation in the course.
  • An objective rating of your overall contribution relative to the cohort (e.g. “top 25%”).
• (Optional) If you have specific constructive suggestions for what might be changed in future iterations of the course to improve everyone’s participation, including your own, please include these here.

RUBRIC:

• Presence (7/25): Establishes and maintains a consistent and valuable presence in the conversational flow of the materials covered in the course.
• Original Voice (6/25): Consistently raises the discussion to new levels with creative and original interventions, and starts new discussions that carry the discourse.
• Constructive Response (6/25): Actively follows discussion threads to provide constructive responses that celebrate, elaborate, and encourage the contributions of peers.
• Demonstrated Knowledge (6/25): Always on topic, well-researched & well-reflected concerning immediate questions under consideration and the broader objectives of the course.