“I’ve found that it is important to reach out to students individually, to check in every once in a while to remind them of something they’re missing, to ask if there is anything I can help them with, or to ask what has been most helpful for them in class recently,” said Halaburda. However, more than one teacher we spoke with named the humble e-mail as one of their top resources for connecting with their students on a more individualized level. It’s odd to think of email as “old-fashioned” but in our fast-paced tech environment, that is typically how it is viewed. “Google Docs and Google Slides can also be shared and students are able to collaborate on projects and assignments,” said middle school special education teacher Susanne Kostaras.
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“When teaching online, I’ve found Google Docs to be helpful because groups of students can easily collaborate, and I can join in their work at any time to help and provide group feedback,” said Suzanne Halaburda, Senior Lecturer at UNC Charlotte. Several teachers mentioned the Google suite of programs as a crucial part of online learning. On the educator side, it allows me to quickly address any questions students may have and provide supplemental information to multiple classes simultaneously.” Google Docs Sun said, “It provides a place for discussion forums and easier tracking of the submission of student work (due to time stamps) and grades.
Screencastify free for educators software#
No matter which LMS they opted to use, the teachers we spoke with all agreed these software programs were essential.
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I opted to utilize Schoology with my students as it was most familiar to them and proved to be a wise decision once COVID had us do at-home learning.”
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Lonestar College utilizes D2L and my public high school uses Schoology. Kim-Ling Sun, teacher of Dual Credit English at Klein Cain high school in conjunction with Lonestar college, said, “Both institutions I work for have available LMS systems to interact with students. However, some teachers had the option to use more than one LMS. Most schools opt to use one universal LMS system for all e-learning activities.
Screencastify free for educators portable#
“LMS mobile apps make these classes more portable than ever,” said Venable. Brightspace is made of three primary components: a Learning Environment for teachers to design courses, a Learning Repository for organizing resources and an ePortfolio where students can interact with each other.Īnother perk for platforms such as Brightspace and Canvas is their integrated apps for today’s busy students. “Many companies have been providing free usage of their online programs during this time, and teachers have been able to explore many different options in search of the most effective tools for online instruction.” Canvas dashboardīrightspace, or D2L, is another cloud-based online learning platform, similar to Canvas. Plus, through the Canvas system, students and teachers can “link to other online learning programs such as IXL, Albert.io, AP Classroom, ReadTheory, ReadWorks, Commonlit and more,” added Mitchell. What can you do with Canvas? According to online university instructor Melissa Venable, platforms such as Canvas “provide a central place for students to log in and access all course information (e.g., syllabus, assignment instructions, grades, updates) and materials (including reading assignments, activities, multimedia) and participate in the course through discussion forums, live meetings and recorded presentations.” Jennifer Mitchell, English teacher for grades 9-12, said, “We have been using Canvas as our learning management platform for the past few years, so our students had the advantage of being familiar with using Canvas.” Teachers can interact with their students through Canvas to schedule assignments, supply additional learning activities, post grades and more. Canvas is an online platform that lets schools and teachers customize students’ online learning environment. CanvasĬanvas was mentioned by more than one teacher as the LMS they relied on most. It lets students and teachers access all learning materials in one place, with one login. LMS is a type of software used to organize, track and record multiple online learning programs.
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The first three online tools - Canvas, Brightspace and Schoology - are Learning Management Systems (LMS). The following online learning resources allow for customization, ease of use and collaboration between teachers and students alike. These six online learning tools were mentioned most often among the educators we spoke with, and it’s easy to see why. Best in class: The top online teaching tools