Lightspeed Systems’ New ‘Digital Equity’ Module Provides Actionable Insight Into Students’ Internet Connectivity And School-Issued Device Health When Learning Outside of School

AUSTIN, TX –  Lightspeed Systems, the leader in safe, secure and equitable education technology, announces  Digital Equity—a module that provides robust and real-time connectivity and device health data on students’ school-issued devices. Digital Equity helps school and district leaders understand the challenges students experience while trying to study outside of school so they can ensure all students stay connected to learning. 

According to the  2022 Student Home Connectivity Study from the Consortium for School Networking (COSN), gaps remain nationwide in network performance and internet speeds at all grade levels for students connecting from outside a school, with approximately one-third of high school students experiencing “Far Below” or “Below Guidelines” for connectivity from home. In addition, large disparities exist among student subgroups, particularly by ethnicity and socioeconomically disadvantaged students.  

Empowering school and district leaders, Digital Equity provides a complete, real-time view of each student’s school-issued devices, including a device’s overall health, operating system, internet speed, service provider and more. Leaders can drill-down into specific data on each individual student and their devices, as well as view overall district-wide usage to help identify local communities that need additional support and resources. Digital Equity is customizable, giving leaders the option to turn on specific data and usage stats.  …Read More

eSchool News wraps up Celebrate 25! and spotlights winners

eSchool News is celebrating 25 years in 2023, and during a March contest, 25 winners took home Amazon gift cards, with one additional grand prize winner receiving an Apple iPad.

Winners in the Celebrate 25! contest included curriculum coordinators, school office managers, classroom teachers, principals, technology directors, and school library professionals.

From being among the first new outlets to bring awareness to edtech initiatives such as one-to-one device programs in K-12 schools, to covering the myriad ways the COVID-19 pandemic has changed what education looks like, eSchool News continues to bring new developments, ideas, and innovations to its audience of K-12 decision makers, IT leaders, and classroom educators.…Read More

With greater access to devices, teachers are folding more tech into instruction

This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters.

Before the pandemic, U.S. history teacher Travis Malekpour hesitated assigning his students work in the classroom that required a computer. He knew not every student had a laptop or tablet.

Three years later, Malekpour, who teaches in Queens, doesn’t think twice about assigning and grading in-class work that requires a device. …Read More

Discover how edtech makes your teaching more effective and efficient

Nearly every student has a device and internet access, but that doesn’t mean in-person instruction will magically improve. How can we use technology to maximize learning in the classroom, and how can we create the most efficient use of screen time while making teachers’ workloads more manageable?

Join Erica Hartman, a former district chief technology officer, during an eSchool News webinar to find out how to engage students, measure progress, manage online learning, and save valuable time with GoGuardian Teacher and Edulastic. Discover how they can support you in creating an ecosystem of actionable data, intentional feedback, and an instructional workflow for seamless differentiation.

Learn about classroom technology that helps:…Read More

5 ways tech helps create calmer learning environments

When I started as a school counselor more than 15 years ago, technology in the classroom looked much different than it does today. Only a handful of students had their own personal device and the concept of one-to-one models, meaning every student is given a school-issued laptop or tablet, had not yet taken hold. At that time, students were accessing the internet or using digital tools sparingly throughout the school day, and typically only in tech-focused classes. Today, most teens have access to a smartphone and more than 80 percent of K-12 students use a school-issued device as part of their learning. Students are clearly more connected than ever, both inside and outside of the classroom.

This increased access to technology in school has had both positive and negative impacts on students. For some, the internet has proven to be an incredibly engaging and useful learning tool, while for others, the constant stream of information can be overwhelming. Because of this, it is important for educators to help students use technology in a purposeful way that supports learning.

While it might seem counterintuitive, technology and certain digital tools can actually help provide students with a sense of calm while enhancing in-the-moment thinking.…Read More

Learn to align your communication strategies with school safety

Having a campus-wide communication ecosystem is imperative, and school district leaders have no higher priority than to create secure and informed campus environments.

Being able to initiate a controlled emergency notification protocol to alert, notify and monitor directly from a mobile device, classroom audio system, or interactive flat panel is essential.

An eSchool News panel of experts, including Brent Thrasher, Instructional Technology Coordinator at Overton County Schools and Todd Eddy from Galaxy Next Generation, offers insights into how to make better decisions, prevent risk, and strengthen communication between faculty, administration, and first responders during an active threat.…Read More

How your communication strategies create safe schools

School district leaders have no higher priority than to create secure and informed campus environments. Having a campus-wide communication ecosystem is imperative. Being able to initiate a controlled emergency notification protocol to alert, notify and monitor directly from a mobile device, classroom audio system, or interactive flat panel is essential.

Join an eSchool News panel of experts, including Brent Thrasher, Instructional Technology Coordinator at Overton County Schools and Todd Eddy from Galaxy Next Generation, on October 6 as they discuss how to make better decisions, prevent risk, and strengthen communication between faculty, administration, and first responders during an active threat.

Register now!…Read More

ReadSpeaker Announces Text-to-Speech Integration and Certified Partnership with Moodle, the World’s Largest Learning Platform

ReadSpeaker, the most trusted, independent digital voice and text-to-speech provider for educational institutions and innovative brands worldwide today announced that it is now a Certified Integration Partner with the world’s largest learning platform,  Moodle. With this partnership, students can listen to content on the Moodle LMS anywhere, any time and on any device and they can select from hundreds of different voices in over 50 languages.  Tweet this news.

As of September 1, ReadSpeaker’s accessibility and engagement tools are fully integrated into Moodle LMS, expanding learning opportunities for more than 200 million learners. ReadSpeaker is the first text-to-speech provider to become a Certified Integration Partner with Moodle. 

“Text to speech is a great equalizer and force multiplier for online learning, opening new and exciting pathways for engagement and mastery for millions of students, not just those needing accommodations,” said Roy Lindemann, Chief Marketing Officer for ReadSpeaker. “This partnership is extremely significant to the institutions and students we both serve, including those needing accommodations and those who simply want added capabilities to engage with learning materials.” …Read More

How to educate in the 4th Industrial Revolution

Just for a moment, think about your physical environment. Perhaps you’re taking your lunch break in your car that has satellite radio and reading this article on a mobile device. Maybe you’re at home on your computer where you’ve got another browser tab open, creating a meeting agenda in Google Drive to share with your colleagues. 

Evidence that we’re in the middle of the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) is all around us. From the mobile device that can connect you via FaceTime or Slack with co-workers worldwide to cloud computing, we operate in a time and space marked by its reliance on artificial intelligence, blockchain, big data, the Internet of Things, and automation.

As individuals interested in empowering the next generation of young people to succeed, it is time to ensure that the field of education is appropriately responding to the 4IR, which has impacted nearly every industry in recent years. The question, then, is how can we ensure that we educate students to succeed in a world dominated by the 4IR?…Read More

3 critical considerations for the future of school cybersecurity training

A universal truth over the last two years within the education sector has been this: Students need to continue learning, whether in school, at home, or somewhere in between. For many school systems and institutions, this meant sending students home with whatever device they could get their hands on–even ones that had been earmarked for disposal. Technology had to be put into the hands of students, one way or another. For many, this came at the cost of proper security precautions. Schools and institutions were at higher risk of security attacks, with more sensitive online data than ever before.

In the two years since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, most schools have returned to a fully in-person learning environment. However, for many, the damaging effects linger–in 2021 alone, 67 separate ransomware attacks impacted 954 schools and colleges, putting at risk the personal data of more than 950,000 students, according to a study by security firm Comparitech.

As we head into a new school year, it is time to ask ourselves: How can we better prepare and protect our students to be a line of defense against malicious attacks? And furthermore, who is tasked with properly training them?…Read More

How to move your schools from AUPs to RUPs

Within the past few years, thanks to COVID-19 and distance learning, the amount of technology in schools across the country has increased a hundredfold. Many districts are now supporting 1:1 device initiatives, giving students daily access to the internet and information through Chromebooks, iPads, and other smart devices. To the relief of the world, education has mostly returned to the classroom after the pandemic mandated distance and hybrid learning.

Now, along with paper notebooks and colored pencils, classroom supply lists include technology as essential learning materials. With access to smart devices comes different responsibilities for teachers and students, new ways of learning, and new distractions. What’s your school’s current technology acceptable use policy?

As teachers continue to enhance instruction using 21st-century devices, the written policies for technology are often not clear or outdated. In many schools, the rules for daily technology use are frequently delegated to the discretion of each individual classroom teacher.…Read More