Category: High School

Upcoming Virtual Days? Tips for Success

With State testing season upon us, you may have a virtual day coming up on your calendar. Please follow these tips to find success:

If it has been a long time since you have opened Zoom, you will likely need to install an update. This is NOT as simple as clicking “update.” Please follow the guidance in this blog post.
In an effort to manage funds, not all staff have licensed Zoom accounts. When you login to Zoom be aware of any notice that you have a limited account and are limited to 40 minute sessions. If you see this type of messaging, please submit a tech ticket so your account can be upgraded.
Have students practice joining your Zoom, if possible. Related to that, check your Canvas page, do you have multiple Zoom links visible (perhaps in the Course Navigation Menu and near your name/room # on the homepage). To reduce confusion:
1. Remove one of the options.
2. Ensure that the duplicate links go to the same meeting.
Add any necessary co-hosts following these directions. Bear in mind, page 8 of the manual gives directions specific to adding co-hosts to a Personal Room if that is what you intend to use.

For more Zoom resources, please visit our Zoom resources on the P-CCS Tech site.

If you are unsure about any of these steps, please submit a tech ticket for assistance.

Digital Literacy and Citizenship in the Classroom

In our rapidly evolving digital world, it’s crucial that students develop strong digital literacy and digital citizenship skills. From navigating the internet safely to understanding the capabilities of artificial intelligence, our students need guidance to become responsible and informed digital citizens. That’s why incorporating Common Sense Media’s free educator resources is such a valuable opportunity for all educators.

Common Sense Media provides ready-made lesson plans and lesson collections tackling a wide range of relevant digital topics like digital security, managing digital distractions, and understanding AI. By creating a free account, teachers gain access to these amazing materials designed to build digital literacy in an engaging way. As educators, we have the chance to empower our students with the knowledge and skills required to thrive online. Bring Common Sense Media’s lessons into your classroom to prepare your students for success in our digital age with confidence.

lesson collection on digital well-being — Digital-well being lessons are available across grade levels.

lesson collection for elementary device advice — Lessons to foster device use in the classroom.

Range of lessons for 10th grade — Digital citizenship lessons can fit in a variety of subject areas.

March Canvas Updates

March 16, 2024 Canvas is releasing two welcome updates!

New Quizzes Item Analysis: Fill In the Blank Data now provides additional information on specific question types for instructors to evaluate student responses and provide appropriate intervention. Previously, if you had multiple blanks or dropdowns you would not get stats on all the blanks. Now you will be able to get data for each blank. See image below.

Multiple gradebook filter options can be applied at once.

Video walkthrough:

Canvas

Canvas Discussions Redesign Coming this Summer

This summer, Canvas is rolling out a redesign of the Discussions feature to provide a more modern, accessible, and user-friendly experience. While the core functionality of Discussions will remain intact, the new redesign brings a host of exciting enhancements.

What’s New in the Discussions Redesign?

Cleaner, more accessible UI with improved screen reader capabilities
Flexible viewing options including inline view and split view
Reply reporting with notifications for instructors
Quoting functionality to make referencing easier
Improved search with text highlighting
Support for full and partial anonymity in graded discussions—this functionality is currently turned off for P-CCS until Canvas adds a moderation feature
Additional sorting and filtering options

The goal is to facilitate better peer-to-peer interaction and collaboration through a modernized discussion forum experience. Popular existing features like posting before seeing replies, marking posts read/unread, group discussions, peer reviews, and rubric support will continue to be available.

While some may be apprehensive about the changes, Canvas emphasizes that no current functionality is going away. The redesign aims to elevate the overall discussion experience by adding conveniences like quote replies, anonymous postings, and a more intuitive design.

So get ready to embrace the future of Canvas Discussions coming your way this summer! The refreshed interface and new capabilities will foster more engaging discourse for students and instructors alike.

Find more information here: 2024_Canvas-Discussions-Redesign_Data-Sheet.pdf – Google Drive

Canvas

New Student & Family Canvas Orientation

In an effort to better help new students and families understand how to use Canvas, we have created a Student and Family Canvas Orientation. We plan to link it in several places throughout our public-facing websites. For now, it is conveniently linked in the “Help” area in Canvas.

There is a family module and student module. They contain walkthroughs in several formats (video, interactive tutorial, and linked guides).

students orientation modules — Module for Students

Individuals don’t need to be be logged into view the course, so you can also share the link directly. Please feel free to spread the word to anyone who would benefit from this resource. We will update this blog post when we add the link in other places.

Are your MiStar Grades & Assignments Visible?

We have gotten a few reports from students and families that MiStar grades and assignments aren’t visible for certain classes. Perhaps your turned off visibility at the end of the semester or have new semester courses, please take a moment to check that you have the correct setting turned on. You will want to “Share Assignment Information With Those Permitted Access.”

mistar grade settings

Please submit a tech ticket if you have questions.

Canvas February Updates

There are several updates coming to Canvas on February 17.

Calendar: Did you know you can set up appointment groups for students to sign up to meet with you? Coming February 17, you can also allow Observers to sign up for Appointment Groups.

New Quizzes updates include:
- If you utilize Classic Quizzes for practice quizzes you’ll be able to migrate them to New Quizzes. When migrated, the settings for a practice quiz will automatically be enabled (worth 0 points and set to NOT display in the gradebook).

- New Quizzes has recently increased the speed of analytics for your quiz and now they are adding the option to export the data as a CSV.
- There will also be answer frequency summary tables available for Multiple Choice, Multiple Answer, and True or False question types.

Go to Canvas’s Relase Notes for more information on these updates.

iPads and IXL – Using the Web Version enhances student accessibility

As we continuously strive to enhance the learning experience for our students, we would like to inform you of an exciting change in the way students access IXL. We are removing the IXL app from student and teacher iPads, and here’s why we believe it’s a positive step forward.

The decision to transition from the IXL app to the web version is rooted in our commitment to providing students with the best possible learning environment. The web version offers an updated IXL dashboard, granting students easy access to starred skills, skill plans, and a seamless review of recently worked-on skills. The web version also gives students access to the games available on IXL We believe that this enhancement will empower students to navigate and engage with IXL more efficiently.

Consistency in Sign-In Process

We understand that change can sometimes raise concerns, but we want to assure you that this transition will not impact how students sign in to IXL. The familiar Clever app will remain the gateway for students to access IXL on their iPads. By tapping on IXL through Clever, students will continue to seamlessly log in and explore the enhanced features on the web version. Our goal is to emphasize that this change is about making the IXL experience even better for students. The shift to the web version is not a loss but a gain in terms of functionality and accessibility.

How to Guide Students Through the Transition

To facilitate a smooth transition, we encourage you to guide students in accessing IXL through the Clever app on their iPads, just as they always have. The new features and improvements await them on the web version, promising a more streamlined and enriching learning journey. The last day for the app to be on the iPad is Thursday February 15. By Tuesday February 20 the app will no longer be on the ipad.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to our support team through a helpdesk ticket.

Canvas Module Requirements: Streamlining Learning for Educators

Canvas offers a valuable feature known as Module Requirements. Canvas Module Requirements allow teachers to set prerequisites for learning materials within a course. This means that learners must complete one step before moving on to the next. This feature is particularly beneficial in guiding students through a sequential learning journey. By structuring modules with prerequisites, educators can ensure that foundational concepts are mastered before introducing more advanced topics. In a world where remote and asynchronous learning are becoming increasingly prevalent, the ability to control the flow of information is crucial. Canvas Module Requirements provide teachers with the means to create a logical progression of content, fostering a deeper understanding of the subject matter.

Did you know? Canvas requirements are used in all of our asynchronous professional development. If you click on Module in the course you are taking, you can easily see what items you have completed and pick up where you left off in a course. When you go to Module you’ll see this:

Green checkmarks indicate it is complete and the circle indicates that it still needs to be completed. Hopefully this information helps you as we enter the February PD window. If you would like more information about setting these up in your own course, check out the instructor guides linked below.

https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Instructor-Guide/How-do-I-add-prerequisites-to-a-module/ta-p/1123

https://community.canvaslms.com/t5/Instructor-Guide/How-do-I-add-requirements-to-a-module/ta-p/1131

GIFs for Students!

Exciting news! There’s a cool new resource in town – Gif.school! 🎉 We know how students love GIFs, GIFs can add that extra flair to your lessons and assignments, and Gif.school is here to make it a breeze!

Less Searching, More Finding

Ever want students to be able to use a GIF in an assignment or exit ticket and they get lost in a sea of gifs? Gif.school keeps it simple by giving you fewer choices. No more endless scrolling – you and your students can now easily find the perfect gif without the fuss!

Safe, Secure, and Student-Friendly

Worried about inappropriate gifs? Don’t be! Gif.school is like your trustworthy classroom assistant, filtering out the stuff you wouldn’t want in your lessons. Safe search approved and ready for action!

Creativity Unleashed

Let’s face it – gifs make learning fun. Gif.school strikes the right balance of fun and security, offering relevant and exciting gifs that add that can support student engagement and joy in your classroom. Let students choose their GIF to add their voice to exit tickets, polls, assignments and more!

Ready to dive in? Head over to Gif.school and let the gif magic begin.