Open High School of Utah makes learning ‘collaborative, interactive, and flexible’

The winner of our June “eSchool of the Month” honor is Open High School of Utah (OHSU), a full-service virtual high school that serves students throughout Utah. OHSU serves 250 ninth and 10th grade students, and in the 2011-12 school year it will expand to include 11th and 12th grade students.

OHSU is a leader in using ed-tech tools to make learning more collaborative and engaging for students—from staging historical reenactments via Twitter to launching video discussions of course content. In this feature, Sarah Weston, the school’s curriculum director and technology coordinator, describes some of the initiatives that have helped the school serve its students effectively.

(To nominate your own school or district for this award, and to see past winners, go to http://www.eschoolnews.com/eschool-of-the-month.)

How does your school use technology to advance student learning?

OHSU is a public online charter high school. We are fully online, offering all high school courses in an LMS environment (a hosted version of Moodle, from Moodlerooms).

OHSU has implemented the use of multiple technology tools, all chosen for their ability to bring collaboration to the online environment. Tools such as Google Apps, Sliderocket, Skype, Voicethread, Oneeko, Glogster, Wallwisher, Scribblar, and Grockit are each web-based, collaborative tools. We give students accounts to use these tools, allowing students and teachers to work together from any computer, in real time, in a multitude of methods. Book clubs, study groups, peer editing, video discussion boards, and group presentations are all possible in the online environment. OHSU uses these cutting-edge tech tools to create interactive and collaborative online classrooms.

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eSchool News Staff

eSchool Media staff cover education technology in all its aspects–from legislation and litigation, to best practices, to lessons learned and new products. First published in March of 1998 as a monthly print and digital newspaper, eSchool Media provides the news and information necessary to help K-20 decision-makers successfully use technology and innovation to transform schools and colleges and achieve their educational goals.

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