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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.

TRACK IT FORWARD ANNOUNCES INTEGRATION WITH CLEVER SINGLE SIGN-ON

OAKLAND, Calif. – Track it Forward, a leader in volunteer time tracking software, just announced their new integration with the most widely used school single sign-on platform, Clever. Track it Forward is also the first volunteer time tracking app to be listed in the Clever Library.

Schools can effectively track service hours by implementing this easy-to-use volunteer time tracking software. The new integration with Clever will make it easier than ever for students to log community service hours and for teachers and administrators to track progress toward requirements and awards.

Track it Forward allows school districts and teachers to set up custom categories for different types of community service, and students can view their progress toward milestones, or service hour goals. In addition, students can submit verification of volunteer work completed onsite, like signatures, selfies, and GPS locations.…Read More

Why E-rate is critical for school technology access

Every year, schools and libraries have access to billions of dollars of funding through the FCC’s E-rate program. Unfortunately, many don’t take advantage, oftentimes because of confusion over who is eligible and what services are available. In this post I’ll break down the importance of E-rate, how it works, and the types of technologies it makes available that are crucial to education.

The importance of E-rate

For students in the 21st century, it’s almost impossible to overemphasize the importance of the internet and digital learning technologies. There is a growing dependence on these resources across the U.S., and they are often seen as critical for connecting students and teachers and preparing students for lifelong learning and jobs.…Read More

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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

4 ways to avoid cybersecurity snake oil

When it comes to cybersecurity, you want to do right by your students, your schools, and your district–but it’s not that simple.

The cybersecurity industry is massive, representing literally thousands of vendors in the United States alone, with the global cybersecurity market staged to grow to over $350B by 2026. The options are extensive and confusing, and sales teams have mastered the art of introducing fear, uncertainty and doubt into the minds of their prospects.

In a perfect world, sales teams that exist to protect organizations would be trustworthy and altruistic, but with that much scrap up for grabs, snake oil salespeople are out in full force trying to get your business. To help you sidestep this minefield, here are four steps to take with your cybersecurity program.…Read More

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How innovative teaching helps boost productivity

AI has untapped potential in classrooms, from preschool through higher education. An AI digital assistant used in a classroom can transform how educators teach, giving them the freedom to teach from anywhere in the room.

Join eSchool News as Levi Belnap, Chief Strategy Officer at Merlyn Mind, introduces Merlyn (a digital assistant custom-designed for the classroom), shares the benefits of using an AI digital assistant, and discusses how the new strategic alliance with Promethean enables access to powerful technology in the classroom.

When you register, you’ll learn:…Read More

Students’ emotional growth continues beyond classroom walls

As the days of summer dwindle, many parents are looking at the fast-approaching new academic year with a sense of uncertainty and unease. A nationwide teacher shortage has left schools scrambling to fill critical vacancies in a matter of weeks. And tensions over mask-wearing may soon return to a fever pitch as a rise in COVID cases and hospitalizations is already leading some public school districts to announce a planned reinstatement of controversial mandates.

Last year, as educators across the country did their best to transition children back to in-person learning environments amid the ongoing COVID pandemic, school districts nationwide saw a startling uptick in reported student misbehavior, ranging from in-class tantrums to incidents of outright physical violence. An overwhelming majority of public schools also reported marked increases in disrespectful behavior towards teachers, as well as chronic absenteeism, during the 2021-22 year. 

Much of this can be interpreted as the emotional fallout from the schedule disruptions and personal losses many children experienced due to the pandemic. Prolonged social isolation and family instability during important formative years has led to increased anxiety, depression, and even suicide ideation among kids of all ages. Late last year, the American Academy of Pediatrics, along with the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Children’s Hospital Association, declared this decline in youth mental health a national emergency.…Read More

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Education’s Great Resignation

Just outside of Des Moines, Iowa, an opening for a sixth-grade teaching job sits vacant… with zero applicants.

An hour northwest of Chicago, a shortage of bus drivers, special education teachers, counselors, and paraprofessionals is forcing teachers to reexamine their workload and look outside of the profession.

Public concerns around books, curricula, and learning platforms, combined with debate over masks and vaccines, have compelled college students who intended to major in education to choose a different career path.…Read More

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3 tips to balance the back-to-analog edtech transition

During the “emergency teaching” era of the COVID-19 pandemic, digital resources and edtech tools were used by educators worldwide in an effort to maintain students’ continuity of learning. Tremendous investments were made by school systems in an effort to rapidly scale digital learning.

With many of the COVID-era restrictions receding, it is tempting to think that we’ve entered into a new, highly digital era of education that will be far less dependent on pencils and paper. But, in the famous words of college football insider and former coach Lee Corso, “Not so fast my friend!”  

Interestingly, the post-COVID teaching environment has so far, in my opinion, been marked by a strong desire to see things done with pencil and paper. In my district, I hear from educators, students, and families alike that they wish to see what they learned online to be applied in hard copy. After a two-year period where “virtually” everything was done on an iPad, parents have a thirst to see their children bringing home papers in their backpacks again.   …Read More

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Loudoun County Public Schools Partners with Tutor.com to Provide 24/7 Unlimited Tutoring for K-12 Students

NEW YORK/PRNewswire/ —  Tutor.com, one of the world’s largest online tutoring services, announced today that it has been selected by Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS), the third-largest school division in Virginia, to provide 24/7 online tutoring for every K–12 student in the division.

Through the partnership, which launches today, more than 82,000 students across 98 LCPS facilities will benefit from access to 1-to-1 expert tutoring, test prep, concept review, and homework help in more than 200 subjects, including many in Spanish.

“We believe that all students should be able to access additional support when they need it, and therefore, we are pleased to be able to offer this service to our students at no cost,” said Dr. Ashley Ellis, deputy superintendent of instruction. “We are offering this service because students should have access to the tools they need to be successful in school. By partnering with Tutor.com, we are further able to fulfill the mission of our strategic plan and empower our students to achieve their best.”…Read More

Nevada Department of Education Renews Partnership with Nevada Gold Mines and Discovery Education Providing High-Quality Digital Content to Students and Educators Statewide

Carson City, NV and Charlotte, NC – The Nevada Department of Education (NDE) is proud to announce it has renewed its multiyear partnership with Nevada Gold Mines, operated by Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: GOLD) (TSX: ABX), and Discovery Education, the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports both remote and in-person learning.  

The renewal of this partnership, which includes a $2.2 million investment from Nevada Gold Mines, ensures the state’s teachers and students continued access to high-quality digital resources through the Discovery Education’s K-12 platform. Connecting educators to a vast collection of high-quality, standards-aligned content, ready-to-use digital lessons, intuitive quiz and activity creation tools, and professional learning resources, Discovery Education’s K-12 platform provides educators an enhanced learning platform that facilitates engaging, daily instruction in any learning environment.     

“We are incredibly pleased to continue this tremendous partnership benefiting Nevada’s students and are grateful for the support of community partners like Nevada Gold Mines, who are so passionate about investing in the educational resources which are so key to making our state a better place to learn, work, and live,” said Jhone Ebert, State Superintendent of Public Instruction. “The continuation of this powerful partnership preserves Nevada’s students’ access to best-in-class digital resources, and we look forward to the next phase of this powerful collaboration.” …Read More