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.

How our school handled the chaos of an active shooter hoax

Key points:

  • Every moment is critical during a school emergency, and having the right tools is a must
  • An emergency response app helped one school leader receive and deploy clear communication

I was in a meeting when I heard the sirens. I immediately excused myself and saw the first squad car screech to a halt in front of our doors and knew it was bad. The police department had just received a call saying there was an active shooter somewhere at Spanish Fork High School and two students were deceased.  

As it turns out, we were the victim of a coordinated hoax that targeted schools throughout Utah and other states, but for the next 24 minutes, this was our reality and as principal, I had to act. My emotions almost got the better of me; not only do I care deeply about each and every one of our 1,469 students, I also have a daughter who was in class just down the hall. I almost lost my motor skills but was able to pull my phone from my pocket to instantly lock down the school with the push of a button and watch our emergency plan unfold almost flawlessly before my eyes.   …Read More

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Vernier Science Education Updates Vernier Graphical Analysis® Pro to Further Meet the Needs of Educators and Students

BEAVERTON, Oregon — Vernier Science Education has updated Vernier Graphical Analysis ® Pro to further meet the needs of high school and college educators and students. This award-winning app, which helps students engage in advanced data analysis as they think critically and make real-world connections, now includes even more features to deepen and extend learning—including an annotation feature, which enables students to comment on a region or point of a graph.

“Technology, such as our newly updated Graphical Analysis Pro app, can support students in building STEM literacy and forming critical connections between abstract scientific ideas and the real world,” said John Wheeler, CEO of Vernier Science Education. “With Graphical Analysis Pro, students can visualize and interact with experiment data they have collected via nearly 50 of our sensors. At the same time, educators can use the app to enrich their live instruction and provide even more opportunities for students to interact with and analyze data outside of the classroom or lab.”

Graphical Analysis Pro lets educators and students easily view and sync a video to sensor data, which enables them to replay, speed up, slow down, and pause recorded experiments at key moments in time. Whether learning happens remotely or in person, students can perform live experiments and share data over the internet in real time as they analyze and graph data and experience three-dimensional learning. …Read More

TeachingBooks, Sora and Pear Deck Announce Collaboration to Expand Student Engagement and Learning

CLEVELAND –   TeachingBooks.net today announced a unique collaboration with  Pear Deck, providing expanded opportunities for student engagement and learning. In this new collaboration, Pear Deck takes book-specific supplemental materials from TeachingBooks and creates a custom, interactive lesson. When used with the  Sora student reading app, a complete interactive literacy experience is created that engages students of all ages and provides unique learning opportunities. All TeachingBooks templates, as well as Pear Deck’s other content, are available for free at  Pear Deck’s Content Orchard.

“By partnering with TeachingBooks and Sora, we’re bringing free, ready-to-teach literacy lessons to teachers and learners, furthering Pear Deck’s mission to create powerful learning moments for every student, every day,” said Stacy Yung, a former teacher and Senior Instructional Designer at GoGuardian, parent company of Pear Deck. “Reading is a strong lever in building a community in the classroom. We’re confident that this partnership will increase access to engaging lessons that help students connect with books, gain new insights and improve understanding, ultimately building deeper love of reading.”

With Pear Deck, now part of leading digital learning company GoGuardian, educators can transform lessons into impactful formative assessments and active learning experiences that seamlessly integrate with learning management systems. Templates, quick-start activities and ready-to-teach lessons connect students across all grades and subjects. TeachingBooks offers high-quality instructional assets such as author interviews and cultural reflection prompts that help educators bring books to life. The Sora student reading app is the leading digital book platform for schools that helps students read or listen to school-selected ebooks and audiobooks, 24/7 on any device. Sora offers the largest collection of premium materials used for instruction, novel sets and choice reading, including the most in-demand and beloved books and authors such as  Diary of a Wimpy Kid and  The Great Gatsby. All three platforms offer free access to a “starter set” or “introductory catalog” as well as paid content options. California educators already have premium access to TeachingBooks.net via the  State Library of California and the California K-12 Online Content Project.…Read More

KCAV and Rise Vision Help Middle School Use Digital Signage and Social Media App to Boost Student Motivation and Engagement

Derby, Kansas – Derby North Middle School (DNMS) in Derby, Kansas, has found a unique and effective way to build culture and increase student engagement with the help of Rise Vision digital signage software and Class Intercom.

DNMS had faced issues with their previous digital signage provider, including hard-to-use software, inconsistent uptime, and lack of support. With the help of Kansas City Audio Visual (KCAV), a Rise Vision partner, DNMS switched to Rise Vision for their digital signage needs. 

DNMS has taken a unique approach to student recognition with the integration of its social media accounts and Rise Vision displays. With the use of the Class Intercom app, students create photo and video content, write a post about DNMS, and select which school social media channel to post it to. The content then gets delivered to moderators at DNMS who approve it or send back changes to the student. Once the content is approved, it gets published on DNMS’s social media accounts and automatically pushed to displays around the school for everyone to see.…Read More

7 Mindsets Launches App Focused on Mindsets Learning and Well-being for Educators, Students and Families

ROSWELL, Ga. – 7 Mindsets, the leader in PreK-12 mindsets-based learning and well-being solutions, today announced the launch of an app designed to offer free access to the research-based principles for developing human potential from The 7 Mindsets to Live Your Ultimate Life: An Introduction. The company is committed to its mission of driving greater success, happiness, overall well-being and improving school climate and culture.

“The goal of the 7 Mindsets app is to plant seeds and equip our community with attitudes and perspectives that will allow them to not just survive but thrive,” said Jeff Waller, co-creator of 7 Mindsets. “Learning the 7 Mindsets is eye-opening but living the 7 Mindsets is life changing. We’re excited to launch the app and help our users live the 7 Mindsets every day.”

The app, the first of its kind for the company, will provide a comprehensive introduction to the 7 Mindsets for those looking to improve and enhance their personal well-being. It will also serve as a valuable resource for the 7 Mindsets community of educators, support staff, administrators, students and families. Through the app, educators can quickly review the Mindsets to help inform their lesson plans. Families can use the app to better understand the Mindsets and what their children are learning at school. For students, it serves to reinforce the Mindsets learning in the classroom.…Read More

Awardees Selected for Inaugural Vernier Science Education Inspiration Grants

BEAVERTON, Oregon — Vernier Science Education has named the 10 recipients of its inaugural Vernier Science Education Inspiration Grants. These STEM educators will each receive $1,000 in Vernier technology of their choosing, an annual license for the Vernier Graphical Analysis ® Pro app, and three hours of virtual professional development to further support their teaching as they foster students’ STEM literacy.

“There are so many educators who are passionate about bringing exciting, hands-on STEM learning opportunities to students,” said John Wheeler, CEO of Vernier Science Education. “Our Inspiration Grants were designed to provide some of these educators with data-collection technology and professional development to help them offer hands-on, socially relevant STEM learning in their classrooms.”

The 10 grantees were selected from more than 400 submissions by a panel of fellow educators and Vernier employees. The panel considered how the grantees will implement the $1,000 worth of Vernier technology in their classroom or laboratory, their educational institution’s needs, and how the funding and professional development will enhance their instruction and engage their students.…Read More

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

K12 Technology Company Edlio Acquires SchoolInfo, Launches Edlio Access App

GLENDALE, Calif. (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Edlio, leading provider of technology solutions for K-12 schools, is pleased to announce its acquisition of SchoolInfo, creators of premier mobile apps for schools.

SchoolInfo has proudly served the education market for 10 years, and has created mobile apps for more than 2,500 schools, districts, and other organizations. Nearly 3 million teachers, parents, and students worldwide rely on SchoolInfo products.

Edlio serves over 16,000 schools, and is a proven partner for K-12 leaders. Since 2001 they have worked to innovate and adapt to the ever-changing needs of teachers and school administrators. Edlio’s technology is designed to be user-friendly for any educator, yet powerful enough to meet the needs of even the largest school districts and communities.…Read More

New Physics E-Book Helps High School and College Students Explore Mechanics Concepts Using Video Analysis

BEAVERTON, Oregon — To support high school and college physics instruction, Vernier Science Education has released Vernier Video Analysis: Conservation Laws and Forces. This new e-book, which features 12 hands-on investigations that use the award-winning Vernier Video Analysis® app, helps students explore mechanics topics beyond basic motion, such as conservation of energy and conservation of translational and angular momentum.

“Vernier Video Analysis: Conservation Laws and Forces builds on students’ understanding of physics as they delve into more complex concepts,” said John Wheeler, CEO of Vernier Science Education. “It features a number of real-world examples to help increase engagement and knowledge retention as students critically analyze data.” 

The investigations in the e-book go beyond simple kinematics, connecting physics concepts to various sports and athletic activities. In addition, students can examine interactions between different objects, such as a physical pendulum and a cart, or two similarly charged objects. Sample investigations include “Energy of a Bouncing Ball,” “Introduction to Weight Lifting,” “Angular Momentum and Energy,” and “Water Flow from a Tank: Parabolic Trajectory.”…Read More

Digital On-Demand Class Sets for Required Curriculum Books Now Available in Sora Student Reading App

CLEVELAND – To help educators provide students with the books they need as efficiently as possible, OverDrive Education announced the new On-Demand Class Set digital access model for curriculum titles. This model makes available ebooks and audiobooks on-demand in the Sora reading app to as many students as needed, with or without codes. Digital On-Demand Class Sets give schools the flexibility to allocate budget for assigned classroom reading even in situations where classes and rosters are not finalized. Educators can use this model – as well as many other cost-effective models in the OverDrive Marketplace – with required reading for English language arts, history, social science and other classes, as well as for all-school required reads and literature circles.  

Educators can buy digital On-Demand Class Sets in bulk to correspond with the units of study and modules they plan to teach throughout the school year. Rostering a list of students is not required, so schools can purchase the approximate number of class sets they think they’ll need. Students use copies as needed, and if demand is higher than anticipated, schools can purchase more copies and make them available within hours. When a student borrows an On-Demand Class Set title in Sora, they will have access for three months, ensuring availability throughout their unit of study.

“On-Demand (Digital) Class Set rentals significantly increase our capacity to be responsive to district-wide curriculum needs,” said Suzi Tonini from Denver Public Schools in Colorado. “They’re a smart, responsible use of our curriculum budget dollars. In short, they’re a game-changer!”…Read More