Getting Smart With Community Engagement

People

Schools can’t do it alone! The people and businesses in the surrounding community can be a valuable (but often overlooked) resource to help students succeed.

According to this report, schools with the highest number of community and parent volunteers have the highest test scores. Community involvement with a school promotes real-world learning and a broader perspective for students.

How can you make community members key partners in student achievement?

Share your Success

A newsletter is a great vehicle to share school stories and successes with the community. Even community members who don’t have children enrolled in the school will enjoy reading about what’s going on in the neighborhood. It’s also a great way to inform community members about upcoming events, service projects, and volunteer opportunities. Check out our tips on how to create a newsletter that is both interesting and informative here.

Be Visible

When your school participates in community events, people will notice! Seek out opportunities for students to volunteer around town or host service projects to benefit local charities. A great way to do this is to create or partner with a service club on your campus.

Share enrichment opportunities with students. Many museums or performing arts organizations will offer student discounts. Students can enrich their day to day learning experience while getting out in the community and having fun.

Make the Most of Your School Site

Your website is a powerful tool for community engagement. An integrated and intuitive website will encourage everyone to keep up to date with happenings at school. With iClass’ website solution, schools can even make community members partners in content creation. An integrated mobile app will keep functionality at parents’ fingertips!

 

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5 Ways Classrooms Have Changed in the 21st Century

Classroom with rolling chairs

Lifestyles have changed dramatically since the beginning of the new millennium. Similar changes have occurred in our classrooms. As the first generation to grow up with smartphones, social media, and more, today’s students have different expectations and needs when it comes to education.

 

Graphic via Open Colleges

Collaboration

Pupils expect fewer lectures and more interaction with classmates. Teachers act as facilitators of learning rather than distributors of information.

 

Tech in the Classroom

Instead of competing with phones, tablets, and laptops, try incorporating them into your teaching! There are many advantages to using devices for school activities including engagement, instant feedback, and enhanced cooperation.

 

Project-Based Learning

Put simply, Project-Based Learning (PBL) is a method of inquiry where students identify a problem, then synthesize information to solve it. PBL engages students and allows them to learn about more than one topic at a time.

What is Project-Based Learning?

 

Organic Layout

Visit any school today and you’ll notice that classrooms that were once laid out in orderly rows are now full of tables, bean bags, and rolling chairs! Classrooms should be designed in a way that reflects learning goals – facilitating collaboration and meaningful discussion as well as independent learning and problem solving.

 

Classroom with rolling chairsImage via Smith System

 

Remote Access

Students have resources available on their cell phones constantly. The standard of constantly available information impacts education – learners want to be able to access homework, grades, and reminders on the go. Make sure that class website is adaptable so it can be seen on a phone and provide a channel for instant communication with teachers

 

iClass CMS provides websites that are completely interactive and adaptable. Our custom website and mobile app solutions are designed to meet the needs of a 21st century school. Learn more here.

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How One Teacher Used Tech to Transform Student Learning

a child reads a book

The increased use of technology in the classroom has made some parents and educators nervous about the negative impact it might have on their students’ education. There is always the chance that these devices may distract students if they are not used properly. Recently, parents and educators alike are seeing the overwhelming benefits of using technology in the classroom.

 

 

A study done by Lieberman Research Worldwide called “Parent’s Attitudes Towards Education Technology” showed very positive feedback from parents regarding “technology for school”. The study found that 67% of parents agree with the statement “I don’t mind my child spending more screen time if he or she is learning” and 79% feel that technology “Allows my child to learn at his or her own pace”.

 

Technology in schools, such as personal devices, can be used to adapt the learning environment to better suit the educational needs of each unique child. For instance, a device can make a previously boring subject interesting to a student by changing their perspective on it.

 

 

An article written by teacher Bryan Rossi discusses the success his students found when reading with the help of technology. In one case, a student was lacking the reading skills common for students her own age. The student began reading on a device using a read-to-me feature provided by EPIC! It was not long before she became so confident in her ability to read that she wanted to read the book on her own in physical form. The device allowed the student to alter the way they were learning and succeed in a previously difficult area.

 

In another case, a group of Mr. Rossi’s students that once disliked reading was able to discover books that interested them using the EPIC! online catalog. The search for books through the traditional library became discouraging for them, but using technology simplified the process. The group managed to find a fun and exciting book collection that made reading interesting and unintimidating. Mr. Rossi’s students are prime examples of the positive impact that technology integration can have on education. Read more about their experience here. 

 

Students may find some forms of learning mundane, but the use of edtech presents a new and exciting perspective. In some cases, students may lack confidence and consequently interest in a subject area. Edtech can help these students find their independence and gain enough confidence to explore an area of learning. It goes beyond a simple task or lesson! Technology in the classroom will open up many doors for students to explore as they grow and discover themselves and their interests.

 by Megan
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Hibernia Introduces Robots to Irish Classrooms

Swivl robot

An interesting new project from teacher education provider Hibernia College has seen the introduction of robots to a number of classrooms across the country.

However, these robots are not there to help children learn but instead monitor trainee teacher performances for the purpose of assisting new teachers in improving their interactions with students.

The Swivl is a video observation robot that connects to an iPad or smartphone and can rotate and tilt, ensuring it captures every interaction between students and their teacher.

Trainee teachers must review their own performance in class as part of their training, something which can be a bit difficult to do at the best of times.

Swivl greatly simplifies this task by providing trainee teachers with a video log of every class, enabling them to efficiently and effectively review their own performances and find any areas of concern that require improvement.

Generally, when we think of EdTech we imagine education technologies that are designed specifically for the benefit of students, so it’s great to see an EdTech company working on solutions for teachers instead.

The Swivl robot is quite an innovative idea and one that could not only benefit trainee teachers but teachers in general, providing them with invaluable information they might miss during class e.g. which students are responding well to lessons, which are having trouble concentrating etc.

Hibernia College introduced Swivl robots to Irish classrooms just over three months ago so the project is still in its early days, but a quick visit to the Swivl website shows the robot is in use in more than 30,000 classrooms and universities across the world.

Hopefully we’ll start to see the implementation of other innovative EdTech projects in Irish classrooms in the near future.

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The Importance of Parent-Teacher Communication

Header FAQs

One of the most important elements of a child’s educational journey is clear and regular communication between parents and teachers.

It’s vital for good communication to exist between both parties in order to guarantee that a child’s cognitive, social and emotional development is progressing naturally and without any issues.

Similarly, a parent’s involvement in their child’s education can greatly benefit the child, resulting in happy and curious kids who look forward to the challenges of school.

Parent involvement also helps to keep kids on track and make sure they’re reaching their full potential in all areas, from homework to exams, afterschool hobbies and more.

Regular communication between teachers and parents encourages parents to take an active role in their children’s studies, so it’s a good idea to start off on the right foot and make parents feel welcome in bringing any concerns they may have to your attention.

Parent-teacher meetings are obviously a great opportunity to discuss student performance and improvement, but they typically only take place a few times during the school year.

This can be detrimental to the student, particularly if they’re having difficulty in certain areas as problems may go unreported and become more of an issue as time goes by.

While many schools now offer a variety of methods for parent-teacher communication including by phone or email, only the iClass platform provides a completely free-to-use mobile app for parent-teacher communication.

It simplifies the entire communication process and ensures parents and teachers can get in touch with one another when needed.

The iClass Mobile App also allows for the dynamic publishing of news and events, both of which will help parents feel that they are fully informed of all related school activity.

Get in touch with us today to request a live iClassCMS demo or brochure.

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2018’s Biggest EdTech Trends

Learning

Educational technology is set for another stellar year in 2018 and we will hopefully see further adoption of EdTech processes and resources in schools throughout Ireland.

To help you prepare for any new technology you may introduce to your school in the coming year, we’ve rounded up the biggest EdTech trends of 2018.

  1. Mobile Learning

Mobile learning simply refers to education and teaching conducted through use of portable computing devices such as smartphones and tablets.

It will possibly be the biggest EdTech trend of the year thanks to the increased use of smartphones and tablets in classrooms both in Ireland and the rest of the world.

Mobile learning empowers students by providing them with access to high quality learning materials and encourages learning through use of different media (text, video, audio etc.)

Mobile learning also greatly benefits educators as it generates large amounts of data on students’ studying behaviour and habits, data which can later be analysed and used to improve curricula.

  1. Internet of Things

The Internet of Things, or IoT as it’s also known, is the name for the network through which various computing devices are connected.

This includes everything from a smartphone to smart home appliances, and is generally used to describe the ‘system’ that allows devices to communicate with one another.

In the educational setting, the Internet of Things aims to simplify much of the learning process so teachers can spend more of their time engaging with students and preparing classes and less time on repetitive tasks such as correcting homework.

  1. Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is an alternative method for delivering IT services and one that utilises web-based tools and applications retrieved from the Internet as opposed to a physical server.

Cloud computing enables a great deal more of flexibility when it comes to IT services in addition to reducing the time it to takes to retrieve data and minimising IT costs.

It benefits schools by providing teachers and students with access to the Internet’s infinite repository of information for a very small fee and should see widespread adoption in 2018.

  1. Augmented and Virtual Reality

It may be a few years yet before augmented and virtual reality becomes commonplace in the school, but a number of Irish companies are exploring how this technology can be used in an education.

Augmented and virtual reality technology supports active learning as opposed to passive learning and is particularly useful in combatting limited attention spans.  

It can also increase a student’s understanding of complex theories and subjects through use of an immersive and visual experience that illustrates the information being conveyed to the student.

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Tips: Social Media Do’s and Don’ts for Schools

Phone

When used correctly, social media can be an extremely effective tool for promoting schools and generating interest among parents.

It can also be used to update students, parents and teachers about school news and facilitate communication between parents and teachers.

Keep in mind the following when setting up a social media profile for your school and you will soon be enjoying the benefits that come with this type of promotion tool.

Do:

  • Consider your audience: there are a few different social media platforms but schools generally only need a Facebook and Twitter account, as these are the services chiefly used by students, parents and teachers.
  • Assign roles: it’s a good idea to assign one or two teachers or staff members to overseeing the school’s social media profiles, as daily activity is recommended for maintaining a positive image.
  • Implement routines: the person in charge of the school’s social media profiles should implement a daily routine consisting of reviewing comments and replying where needed, as this will ensure a consistent and respectable image.
  • Post pictures: post pictures of the school, sporting events, student activities and anything else that could help reinforce a positive image of the school.

Don’t:

  • Give students control: avoid allowing any student direct access to the school’s social media profiles, as this can understandably lead to issues down the line, but encourage them to interact via their own profiles.
  • Post inappropriate content: this may seem obvious but it does unfortunately occur from time to time, which is why it is so important to assign a teacher or member or staff with control of the profile.
  • Respond directly to posted issues: avoid responding directly to serious issues posted on the school’s social media profiles and instead acknowledge the comment and inform the user they will be contacted through traditional avenues (phone, letter etc.) to discuss the issue.

Click here to sign up to the iClass Owl Newsletter.

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iClass Owl Newsletter Issue 1 is Now Live!

Owl final logo

The first issue of iClass Owl, our brand new newsletter focused on educational technology (EdTech) and its impact on Irish schools, is now live!

iClass Owl is a free monthly publication that aims to keep teachers, administrators and educators up-to-date with the very latest happenings in the world of EdTech and how these new technologies will transform classrooms.

iClass Owl Issue 1 covers the latest school tech news, reviews the biggest EdTech trends you can expect to see making ground in 2018 and features a detailed look at STEM Workshop, CoderDojo.

Click here to sign up to the iClass Owl Newsletter.

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iClassCMS Partners with FCSSPA for Launch of First Parent Module for School Website and Mobile App Platform

St Mary's College

iClassCMS, Ireland’s leading school website and app developer, in partnership with the FCSSPA yesterday launched an update to its school website and mobile app platform allowing parents direct access to a school’s website.

The update also permits Parent Associations to publish relevant news directly to all parents of enrolled students via the iClass app. As a result, iClass now fully engages all key participants in schools: teachers, students and parents.

The iClass Fully Integrated Mobile App for Parents facilitates free communication between schools and parents, allowing schools to pass on the latest school news and important information about events directly to parents’ smartphones completely free of charge.

Speaking about the launch of the Parent Module for the iClass platform, Mr Paul Beddy, President of the Federation of Catholic Secondary Schools Parent Associations said:

‘We welcome the development of a Parent Module for School Websites by iClassCMS.  This module will facilitate greater communication between parents and allow Parent Associations to share events, fundraising and parent association business to the wider parent community.’

Frank O’Grady, Managing Director of iClassCMS, spoke of the benefits of the module for schools:

‘We are delighted to partner with the Federation of Catholic Secondary Schools Parent Associations on our new Parent Module for iClass. This allows schools using the iClass Website and Mobile App solution to give access to the school website to members of the School’s Parent Association. They can contribute content and set up a dedicated Parent Assoc News Channel on the School App allowing all parents keep up to date with all that is happening.’

For more information, please visit www.iclasscms.com or contact 01-6918833.

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Safer Internet Day 2018

Save the date logo

Safer Internet Day (SID) 2018, the EU wide initiative to promote a safer internet for all users but especially young people, took place yesterday, Tuesday the 6th of February.

More than 70,000 young people across the country joined the celebrations and we’re happy to report that hundreds of schools got involved too.

The theme for Safer Internet Day 2018 was ‘Create, connect and share respect: A better internet starts with you’, and resources were made available to schools for the purpose of educating students about how they can stay safe on the internet and counter cyber bullying.

These resources include a detailed PowerPoint presentation complete with videos and twelve fun and informative activities based around staying safe online, all of which can be found on the SID website under the Schools category.

Of course, Safer Internet Day is for everyone and as a result there are also high-quality resources for families containing invaluable information about social media, cyberbullying and filtering, plus the support needed to ensure everyone enjoys their time online.

Internet users are getting younger and younger which is why it’s so essential that we all work together towards a safer and more supportive internet.

It’s great to see so many schools and students taking this initiative seriously and we hope that as schools continue to integrate new technologies into the classroom more time will be spent on internet safety and how we can achieve it.

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