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Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

5 tips to help students master foundational skills

English language arts (ELA) standards identify a set of foundational skills students must master in their progression to becoming skilled readers. These skills include alphabet recognition, concepts of print, phonological awareness, phonics, high-frequency words, and fluency.

To effectively teach foundational skills within the classroom, educators need access to engaging materials that offer the right level of challenge for students and provide ease of usability. Unfortunately, only 7 percent of K-5 teachers use one or more high-quality ELA material for their classroom instruction due to common roadblocks like long adoption cycles and costs associated with the materials. But that statistic may soon change.

The pandemic left a lasting, negative impact on the American education system. K-5 student test scores plummeted in math and reading nationwide this year, erasing two decades of progress. Now, many teachers, schools, and districts want to reassess their foundational skills instruction.…Read More

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Pennsylvania Evidence Resource Center Adds IXL Math and IXL English Language Arts to List of Evidence-Based Resources for Schools

HARRISBURG, Penn.  — IXL, the personalized learning platform used by more than 13 million students, announced that the Pennsylvania Evidence Resource Center (ERC) has added IXL Math and IXL English Language Arts (ELA) to its list of evidence-based resources. The ERC’s approval signals to educators that IXL Math and IXL ELA have rigorous research supporting their effectiveness in the Keystone State. IXL is used by nearly 30 percent of all K-12 students in Pennsylvania, accounting for more than 560,000 learners.

The Evidence Resource Center is a division of the Pennsylvania Department of Education and provides lists of effective learning resources to the state’s educators. Following its review of IXL’s quasi-experimental research, The IXL effect: Measuring the impact of IXL Math and IXL Language Arts in Pennsylvania schools, the ERC determined that the study met ESSA Tier 2 standards for evidence-based interventions in each subject and added the resources to its list. 

The study investigated hundreds of public schools in Pennsylvania that used IXL Math or IXL ELA. Using data from the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment and Keystone Exams, the study found that schools using IXL outperformed schools not using IXL in math and ELA on each exam. Additionally, an analysis showed that if students mastered just one more IXL skill per week, schools would increase their proficiency rate by 13 points in math and 15 points in ELA. …Read More

FEV Tutor Students Achieve Higher Growth Scores in ELA and Math on NWEA MAP Growth, STAR, and i-Ready Assessments

BOSTON, Mass. – Aug. 18, 2022 – Fifty-six percent of U.S. public schools are using high-dosage tutoring to support learning recovery, thanks to funding from the American Rescue Plan. But is it working? New research from FEV Tutor shows that live 1:1 tutoring with a subject matter expert can help students progress and close achievement gaps.

During the 2021-22 school year, students who participated in recommended dosages of tutoring with FEV Tutor, a comprehensive, research-based, virtual tutoring solution for K-12 schools, achieved higher growth relative to non-participants in English language arts (ELA) and math on the NWEA MAP Growth, Renaissance STAR 360, and i-Ready assessments.

The growth and impact analysis, which was conducted by independent researchers from JoinIn Ventures, examined fall 2021 and spring 2022 assessment results for nearly 40,000 students from more than 20 states. The data showed that students who participated in 21 or more online tutoring sessions with FEV Tutor showed greater improvements in ELA and math relative to their peers. The results also showed that the students who were the furthest behind benefitted the most.…Read More

Madison Metropolitan School District Selects Open Up Resources And Kiddom To Provide K-5 English Language Arts Blended Learning Program

MADISON, WI – Today, Open Up Resources and Kiddom announced Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) has selected its top-rated EL Education K-5 Education Language Arts (ELA) curriculum for its 31 elementary schools in support of the district’s efforts to prioritize early literacy and beyond. Open Up Resources, a nonprofit, works to increase equity in education by making the highest quality curriculum accessible to educators, and Kiddom is the first all-in-one education platform for high quality digital curriculum.

MMSD’s investment will provide its teachers the ability to utilize the ELA curriculum to:

●      Share assignments digitally;…Read More

Charleston County Schools Selects Open Up Resources And Kiddom To Provide K-8 English Language Arts Blended Learning Program

CHARLESTON, SC – Open Up Resources, a nonprofit increasing equity in education by making the highest quality curriculum accessible to educators, and Kiddom, the first all-in-one education platform for high-quality digital curriculum, announced today a new partnership to bring the top-rated EL Education K-8 English Language Arts (ELA) curriculum to Charleston County School District (CCSD) in support of the district’s blended learning efforts.

The partnership will provide teachers the ability to utilize the ELA curriculum on Kiddom’s platform to share assignments digitally, communicate with students, and deliver personalized feedback on submissions, while prioritizing student reading proficiency and content knowledge of science and social studies. Additionally, the partnership will equip CCSD with a full-service, multi-year professional learning plan from EL Education to support teachers, plus access to peer-to-peer communications within Open Up’s K-8 EL Education digital community.

“Putting students at the heart of this work has been our tagline for a while, but we watched schools make the decision to opt-out of what’s easier or more comfortable and that’s the true evidence that we are putting students first,” saidEmilie Woody, Executive Director of Curriculum & Instruction, Charleston County School District.…Read More

4 ideas to infuse critical thinking in ELA and social studies

Every teacher knows the importance of critical thinking in education. Strong critical thinkers make better decisions, are more informed, have more career opportunities, and are generally better equipped to navigate the challenges of everyday life.

In the classroom, critical thinking is essential to the growth and betterment of our students. It’s not enough for them to simply memorize that 6 times 6 equals 36; they also need to know the underlying principle behind the equation. And, when put into practice, it can unleash student potential in ways we’ve never dreamed.

Just consider Ann Makosinski (16), a student who created a flashlight that is powered by her own thermal energy. Kelvin Doe (13), of Sierra Leone, built a radio transmitter and generator for his village out of spare parts. Another student, Gitanjali Rao (12), was inspired by the crisis in Flint, Michigan, to build a way to send water-quality information via Bluetooth. …Read More

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4 ways online tutoring helps our at-risk, low-income district achieve goals

Our urban Title I district serves a population of 78 percent at-risk students and 84 percent low-income families. We were already managing low proficiency rates on math and ELA state assessments prior to the pandemic, and the move to remote learning made it even more difficult for teachers to engage with students who couldn’t be on campus.

The shifting rigor of Maryland’s College and Career Ready Standards pushed our students even further behind the curve. We knew we needed a program to accelerate learning outcomes and boost proficiency rates on MCAP/PARCC assessments while also providing academic support to students in need.

Finding the right solution…Read More

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iTutor’s Virtual Quarantine Classroom Offers Educational Lifeline for COVID-Affected South Carolina and New York Students

As many as 2,000 students on any given day this school year in Richland Two (South Carolina) and other school districts, and, in partnership with PNW BOCES, across the state of New York — required to quarantine at home because of COVID-related concerns — have been able to continue their studies uninterrupted, thanks to iTutor and its new Virtual Quarantine Classroom service featuring live, online, instruction provided by state-certified teachers.

In the Richland Two School District, Columbia, SC, iTutor is serving all 24 elementary schools, providing group classes in ELA and Math for eight hours each week throughout the school year. Students begin receiving academic support within 24 hours of starting their quarantine at home.

“iTutor’s Virtual Quarantine Classroom has been an important partner in ensuring that students continue to receive premier learning experiences even when they must be away from school due to the pandemic,” said Richland Two Superintendent Dr. Baron R. Davis.…Read More

Wasted Technology: Why Many Teachers Don’t Use the Programs Their Districts Provide

Imagine you’re about to give a big presentation to a large audience. Just before you go on stage, your boss hands you a new gadget and tells you to use it. You’ve never seen the gadget before, you have no idea what it does, and you’ve never received any training on how to use it. Your boss assures you that it will make your presentation better, and just before you can respond, the curtain goes up.

If the thought of using the gadget for the first time in front of a large audience gives you any level of anxiety, you now know why many teachers never use the technology their districts provide.

According to EdNews Daily, the projection for educational technology spending in the United States will reach an astounding $38.2 billion this year. And while it may seem as though students will reap all the benefits of having innovative technology so close at hand, there is a giant hurdle that stands directly in their way of accessing it — their teachers.…Read More