Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
I N T H I S I SS U E N a n c y’s n otes
A n ote f r o m the e d ito r It’s hard to believe the end of the school year is in sight for schools in the Northern
Hemisphere. It seems like just yesterday school doors opened, welcoming everyone back
Welcome to the April issue of from vacation. While many teachers and administrators may be wondering where the time
EDCompass™ newsletter! has gone, some students are already counting down the days until their summer break.
Creating a student-centered environment
that encourages everyone to actively Thoughts at this time inevitably turn to how students have progressed over the course of the
participate in the learning process involves school year. Students certainly notice that now is when they are most intensely tested, and
more than just purchasing computers. It the importance of these tests is repeatedly highlighted to them and their parents.
requires that students have access to a
variety of resources to complete assignments For teachers, there is no escaping the debate about assessment and the form it should take.
independently, enabling them to become Though opinions may vary, no one contests the need to know that each child is making
lifelong learners. This issue of the newsletter adequate yearly progress.
offers tools and resources to help you and
your students achieve this goal. Read the Some of the most important assessments have already taken place. On a daily basis, teachers
feature article to find out how teachers are have given pop quizzes, assigned projects and homework, and asked impromptu questions
constructing fluid learning environments to gauge student understanding. While marks for these assessments may never show up
that meet the varying needs of students. in a gradebook, the information they provide is likely more valuable than the end-of-year
And then check out this month’s product or end-of-term exams, because teachers get the results while they still have time to make a
spotlight on SMART Response (formerly the difference in their students’ learning.
Senteo™ interactive response system), which
increases one-to-one participation in the We’re assisting teachers in measuring student understanding throughout the year by
classroom by enabling teachers to assess building assessment into our products. We’re also focused on making it easy for teachers
each of their students. to create materials that engage students and bring concepts to life. By thinking about
students’ needs and interests, our goal is for them to be interested in interacting and
As always, if you have any comments about participating in class.
the newsletter or any of the information
featured in this issue, we’d love to hear That’s ultimately what student-centered learning is all about.
from you. Please e-mail your feedback to
education@smarttech.com. Nancy Knowlton is the CEO of SMART Technologies.
April 2009 | PG 1
C l a ss r o o m c o ntent News
Watch for this white paper to be included in our website’s Resource Library later this
month. And to find out about real technology-enabled classrooms that reflect this
approach to teaching and learning, read the feature article.
April 2009 | PG 2
NEWS C l a ss r o o m c o ntent
When you visit the SMART Exchange, you can connect with more
than 50,000 of your peers. If you’re not a member yet, join today!
Picture Addition
Kindergarten and first-grade students can
test their ability to add using pictures.
Apostrophes in Action
Second- and third-grade language arts
students can test their knowledge of
apostrophe usage in a sentence.
Bird Habitats
American poet Oliver Wendell Holmes once said, “The great thing in this world is not Seventh- and eighth-grade social studies
so much where you stand, as in what direction you are moving.” Holmes may not students can test their knowledge of bird
have been referring specifically to education, but his words certainly apply. Education is habitats.
about movement, metaphorically speaking, not about standing still. Students seem to
learn best under circumstances that are not static, but fluid; in classrooms that are not Catalysts
stagnant, but energized; facilitated by leaders who know when to step back and let the Tenth-grade chemistry students can test
learners show the way. Read the full article. their knowledge of catalysts.
April 2009 | PG 3
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT CO N T E ST S
Our next administrator webinar, Budgeting Essrig Elementary School in Tampa, Florida, boasts a diverse student population and a
for Necessary Technology, takes place on SMART Board interactive whiteboard in every classroom. Academically gifted and learning
May 5. Check back at www.smarttech.com/ disabled students learn side by side in classrooms at this modern suburban school, but they
SMARTWebinarEC after April 16 for more do not necessarily share the same learning styles. As a result, teachers at Essrig work hard
details and to register. to adapt their lessons to best meet the needs of all their students. Read the full article.
April 2009 | PG 4
P r o d u c t S p ot l i g ht
Fast forward to spring 2009 – the Senteo interactive response system has been renamed • Add images and multimedia to a question
SMART Response. by dragging them from your own collections
or choosing them from the Gallery
SMART Response offers everything teachers need to gain instant and reliable insight into
student learning. Avid users of the Senteo interactive response system will quickly recognize • Graphically represent individual and class
SMART Response as the same great assessment tool that helps them quickly gauge student performance and results with pie charts
understanding so specific learning needs can be targeted. It also offers improved graphing and bar graphs
features and allows teachers to insert questions on both current and new pages.
• Assign different point values to individual
Upgrades are easy questions within any quiz or exam
We’ve made the upgrade process easier for everyone, no matter which version of Senteo
assessment software you currently use. Find out how to use the SMART Product Update • Insert spontaneous questions into
tool to switch to SMART Response assessment software on page 4. your lessons to quickly gauge student
understanding
If you currently use Senteo 2.0 software, by upgrading to SMART Response software
you’ll be able to display performance and test results in pie charts and pie graphs. • View and manage all assessment data
Instantly add a chart or graph to a SMART Notebook page so you can get a closer look at from one location using Teacher Tools
results, and add notes or comments in digital ink.
• Use SMART Response to help you
You’ll notice even more benefits if you are upgrading from Senteo 1.0 software. SMART tailor your teaching tactics and learning
Response software enables you to organize and track grades and test results using its environment to your students’ needs
built-in gradebook. It’s easy to assign different point values to individual questions within
an exam, or to tag questions and student names with keywords to track results. And • Gain immediate insight into student
when it’s time to evaluate students more closely, use SMART Response to produce instant learning with continual assessment, and
reports on performance. monitor the pace of your instruction
The upgrade to SMART Response software is available at no charge if you’re already • Increase student engagement and
using Senteo assessment software. enthusiasm
April 2009 | PG 5
P r o d u c t S p ot l i g ht
April 2009 | PG 6
© 2009 SMART Technologies ULC. All rights reserved. EDCompass, Senteo, AirLiner, SMART Board, smarttech, the SMART logo and all SMART taglines are trademarks or registered trademarks of SMART Technologies ULC in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other third-party product and
company names are for identification purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners. 11477-09