Katy Gunter

11/11/13

ITEC7445 – Fall 2013

Dr. Goetzel

Emerging Technologies Project

itslearning is a digital learning management system that allows teachers to better facilitate instructional delivery in a more engaging way for our “digitally wired” students.

A “one stop shop” for developing lessons, distributing and collecting assignments, assessing quizzes, and engaging with parents

Vision To incorporate 21st century digital tools with student-centered

instruction Students are information producers, not consumers, of

technology Focus on the four C’s of Transformational Learning –

Creativity, Critical Thinking, Communication, and Collaboration

How does itslearning support our vision? Teaching and learning is supported anytime, anywhere, and

on any device Teachers have the flexibility to allow students to create,

communicate, collaborate, and think critically on this learning platform

The platform is designed for students in grades K – 12. The interfacing is a little different in the primary grades.

Students have the option of changing the design Princess Theme Space Theme

Necessary Equipment Computer with internet access Microphone for audio recording Camera for video recording Adobe Flash Player

All students and teachers will be given a user id and password. Parents can sign up for access through the front office.

School-based ITS

County-based ITS

Professional Learning Communities twice a year

Faculty Meetings to highlight parts of itslearning

itslearning website Learning Circles

On-demand professional development videos

Not all students have computer and internet access at home. If an assignment was given to use itslearning at home,

teachers should designate some time during the school day for students to use school computers to complete the assignment.

Teacher should communicate with parents that students will need to be accessing itslearning in order to receive full suport.

Younger students might have difficulty logging into their account (practice makes perfect!)

“The projects will be funded through a 2010 Investing in Innovation Fund (i3) grant, worth $4.7 million over five years, that the district received from the United States Department of Education. Forsyth County Schools is one of 49 recipients of the i3 grants and was chosen from a pool of more than 1,700 applicants” (itlearning.net/forsyth-county-schools).

Teachers have the flexibility to use itslearning to meet content & technology standards in a variety of ways. Simple – Teacher can take a quick check of students’

understanding of a concept by inserting a poll onto the course page. Intermediate – Students can share book reviews by posting videos

in a discussion board. Peers can access the reviews and leave comments.

Complex – Students use platform to create an e-Portfolio to share with their peers and family. They will use a variety of tools such as a video-recorder, images, and even a stop-animation tool called J2Spotlight.

Promotes specific student learning goals

Differentiate instruction

Promotes communication locally and globally

A personal workspace to collect assignments and reflect on quality of workmanship makes it easy for students to access past work and make improvements for the future.

A collaborative environment is a way to share ideas with peers (cloud-based computing)

A full suite of Web 2.0 tools is available for students to demonstrate their knowledge (digital storytelling, creating a video, or building a website)

Students can share and discuss ideas outside of the classroom by publishing blogs or contributing learning modules to an instructional community around the world

Assessment portfolios provide students with timely feedback and support as they strive to reach their goals

No more "one size fits all" instruction! Customize instruction to fit skills and interests of each learner

Content provided in many forms of media (text, audio, video, interactive)

Teacher builds a course in which a student can participate at a class, group, or individual level

13 types of assessments are provided, 11 with real-time feedback Individual Learning Plans can be created to motivate students to

improve their learning Progress reports and grade books are provided Collaboration tools make it easy to work with a large number of

students

Computer-assisted instruction recognizes learner's pace and ability and provides challenging lessons

Students become empowered to take responsibility to actively shape their own learning

Real time information helps parents be active participants in their child's education

The platform shows what the child needs to learn, how to learn it, and why

Creates the ability to support, motivate, and engage in child's schoolwork

Parents can log in and view multiple children under one name and have full visibility of each child's progress

Some information parents can see is: list of due dates, how well the child is keeping up with class work, the teacher’s planner, and a messaging system to communicate with the teacher

Pre-Teaching Warmer

Discussion forums in itslearning provide a place for students to collaborate and share their ideas on a topic

One teacher decided to post a question about a topic PRIOR to teaching it get the students’ initial responses (i.e.- a digital KWL chart)

Students are assigned to log on to their itslearning account the night before to post their response to the discussion question. This engages the students in the next day’s lesson by activating their prior knowledge

Fluency Idol

Students practice fluency by engaging in this digital assignment

While logged into the itslearning platform, students can record themselves reading a short poem

The audio is saved in a folder that can be reviewed by the teacher and the student

Who can read the most fluently?

Creating a Business Card

Students in a marketing class use the itlearning platform to learn how to create a business card using Adobe

The teacher uploads how-to videos on using different areas in the software. Students can access these videos at their own pace

The project is self-led. While the teacher is available for questions and support, the students have access to tutorials for all aspects of the project.

Professor Rune Johan Krumsvik conducted a survey of 17,500 students in Norway and shared his discoveries in the article, “Education researcher to teachers: Use available technology to improve student achievement”

He noted that using technology needs to be rooted in solid pedagogical practices in order for learning outcomes to be positive. Teachers should not be using these learning platforms solely for attendance and grading.

“Using technology such as learning platforms in school increased student prosperity, encouraging [students] to graduate and thus increasing career options and allowing them to steer away from developing social problems later in life” (Krumsvik, 2013).

Itslearning supports the following pedagogies: Blended Learning – Michael B. Horn from Innosight

Institute, has identified this as a 21st century model for teaching. It blends online and face-to-face teaching, which is fully supported by itlearning.

Personalized Learning – Tailoring pedagogy, curriculum, and learning environments to meet the needs of individual students – Aligns with Howard Gardner’s theory of Multiple Intelligence

Flipped Classroom – A new concept of learning and reviewing materials outside of the classroom. Record & embed video in itslearning to increase learning outside the classroom so you can maximize interaction in the classroom

Professional Learning (timeline) May 2013 – introduced to idea of new platform August 2013 – first presentation of itsLearning September 2013 – professional development led by

county ITS October 2013 – professional development led by school

ITS November 2013 – first itsLearning lesson to be

implemented in classroom

Scaffolded lessons for ITS Set expectations (1 lesson before Thanksgiving, 1 lesson

per month for the rest of the year) Submit assingments via itslearning

What did you learn while selecting and evaluating the ET? Prior to deciding on itslearning for the ET project, I discovered

there are several technologies with a similar feel. For example, Symbaloo is a site where students can login once and access a variety of website that will aid in their schoolwork. I decided to research itslearning, however, because this is a tool that we will be implementing in the future. I wanted my research to be helpful not only for myself, but also for my colleagues at my school, in my county, and potentially educators around Georgia.

Our county has already purchased this amazing learning platform, and several schools have been implementing it. However, CES has had very little exposure to the breadth of possibilities. I was interested in researching more so that I could be another source within the school who can provide information to the teachers. With the research I have discovered, as well as currently implementing the platform in my school, I will be a good person to travel to other counties around Georgia to advocate the itslearning platform.

While evaluating this ET, I learned that online platforms, such as itslearning, are a convenient place for all members of a school community. When we first were told about itslearning, I imagined it would be another tool to take attendance and record grades. However, I now know that it is way more than these administrative actions. Students can use their itslearning account to collaborate, communicate, create, and think critically. A teacher is able to use itslearning as a basic poll or as a complex project. Parents can use itslearning to stay up-to-date with their child’s progress in school (something I have heard from parents could be increased at our school). Itslearning is beneficial to everyone. Because it is such a broad technology, it will not be the easiest thing to implement immediately. But with appropriate professional development and support, teachers can feel successful and students can feel engaged.

How did this experience improve and strengthen your professional practice? As Parent Involvement Coordinator, I must be prepared to share

information to our parents. One area that parents have had many questions in is technology, specifically the new itslearning platform. Because of this experience, I now feel confident in explaining to parents what the learning platform is, how it will benefit the teachers, students, and parents, and what they can expect when itslearning is used in (and out of) the classroom.

This experience also strengthened my professional practice because I have gained knowledge in an area that my peers are hesitant about. Because I have a greater understanding of this ET, I can share the information with my colleagues and help them implement this tool in their classrooms. I am excited to start creating and sharing lessons and ideas that use itslearning as a platform. itslearning is our future, and Forsyth County is lucky to have it in our present.

itslearning (2013). Retrieved, November 5, 2013 http://www.itslearning.net/

Krumsvik, Rune Johan. (2013, November 3.) Education researcher to teachers: Use available technology to improve student achievement” Retrieved, November 5, 2013, from itslearning http://www.itslearning.net/krumsvik