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FreshGrade, a local education tech company, has received a big financial boost that has co-founder Steve Wandler excited about what’s in store for the future.
After raising $4.3 million in seed funding, Wandler, along with co-founders Mark Payne and Lane Merrifeld (founder of Club Penguin), sees big things on the horizon for the Kelowna based company. “For the last year and a half, we’ve been focused on creating a good product rather than building a large user base. With the money we raised, we’re still investing a lot of it into the product, but now we’re focused on getting the word out and letting people know about FreshGrade.”
FreshGrade is currently in a number of schools across the country as they continue to focus on perfecting their product. Locally, Wandler says that FreshGrade has recently garnered interest from Okanagan schools. “We are working with local schools and actively working with teachers locally to get their feedback and help them to communicate student learning.”
Photo Credit: Facebook (FreshGrade)
FreshGrade connects teachers, school administrators, students, and parents or guardians as easily as a social network. The FreshGrade app can be downloaded and used for free by teachers in their classrooms. There is also a premium version that provides schools with a larger view on the collective progress of students and teachers in real time. The price is decided on a per school basis, though the cost generally averages less than $10 per student. “The benefit is that you get to know about a student’s learning progress far quicker, rather than waiting for a note to come home stuffed in a student’s backpack that a parent may or may not ever see. More so, homework that your child was supposed to do tonight that was conveniently forgotten can now be seen right away.”
“Rather than waiting two months to get a report card, the school, parents, or teachers can intervene immediately when a student is either struggling or exceeding, instantly providing the students with the specific resources that they need.” Wandler also emphasized the importance of catering to unique learning situations and deficiencies. “We can deliver resources to the students that are specific to that student, not simply just one math problem for everyone. It’s about where you’re at in your learning.”
Photo Credit: Facebook (FreshGrade)
As FreshGrade continues to expand both within Canada as well as internationally, don’t expect it in universities anytime soon. “Kindergarten to grade 12 and post-secondary are two very different animals. Our focus right now is definitely kindergarten to grade 12.”
For more information on FreshGrade and the men behind it, visit their website.
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