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W. James Popham, renowned expert and author of Transformative Assessment said, “Formative assessment is a planned process in which teachers or students use assessment-based evidence to adjust what they’re currently doing.” How do you do that? One of our professional development trainings here at Digital Edge focuses on using our Classroom Performance Responders as a tool to accomplish Formative Assessment. We help teachers create On-the-Fly, Planned for Interaction, and Curriculum Embedded opportunities to check for understanding as the students respond using clickers. The teacher sees immediate results on their MobiView screen. We blend ExamView quizzes with our CPS software allowing for multiple forms of engagement. Students can take quizzes, interact in classroom discussions by proving and disproving their answers, as well as partake in a Jeopardy style game. Students can also take Summative assessments with their clickers while the teacher gets instant results. This allows for immediate feedback to the students and provides the data needed for the teacher to adjust instruction. Now, summative assessments can become formative.

If you’d like more information about our Formative Assessment training with eInstruction’s Student Response System, or are interested in learning about other trainings we offer, please email our Professional Development coordinator Raquel Hernandez: Raquel@digitaledgelearning.com

Debbie Hamilton

Digital Edge Learning is training over 250 teachers in Los Angeles County on eInstruction products as part of an EETT grant.

Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) is a Federal Technology Grant that provides funding for eligible local educational agencies who are using technology to enhance teaching and learning.

The Los Angeles County Office of Education (LACOE) and the California Technology Assistance Project (CTAP 11) are using the grant to focus on data analysis with 14 districts in LA County. One of the components is using ExamView Learning Series, which is an eInstruction test generator consisting of high-quality content aligned Core Curriculum State Standards. The majority of these districts will be using MOBIs and clickers with ExamVIew for formative assessment and instant feedback.

To prepare teachers for the CTAP EETT Technology trainings, teachers will be trained to use the RF Pulse Student Responders (Clickers), and the New MobiView with Digital Edge Learning. Keep an out for the nearly 250 teachers in LA County who are going to have instant data at their fingertips!

This school year began in a thrilling way for more than 75 teachers in the Covina Valley Unified School District, located 30 miles east of Los Angeles. Elementary and secondary teachers came together at the district office in the month of September to receive training for their new MOBIs and Pulse student response systems. “Covina Valley teachers have been tremendously excited about the potential the MOBIs and Classroom Performance System (aka “Clickers) have brought to classroom instruction,” said Dr. Stella Port, Director of Assessment and Evaluation.

In an effort to ensure that CVUSD’s 100+ MOBI and 35 clicker sets implementation began successfully, the MOBI/Clicker trainings were offered at no cost to the Covina Valley district teachers. Teachers learned the ins and outs of Interwrite Workspace, practiced integrating the CST released test questions into their lessons and even began using their digital curriculum!

“The district training got me excited to use it in my classroom. Teachers need the hands on training in order to effectively use the technology in our classrooms. My favorite part of the training was seeing firsthand the different uses that the MOBI and clickers had,” said Sherry Graham, a fourth grade teacher at Barranca Elementary School. “The MOBI has made my math lessons come alive! I am able to instantly pull up math manipulatives or write on top of interactive teaching models. I love the automatic results that the clickers give too,” continued Ms. Graham.

While the MOBI trainings focused on teaching from anywhere in the classroom and enhance lessons with endless digital resources. The clicker trainings focused on immediate feedback, checking for understanding and using the clickers to grade tests, quizzes and homework assignments and instantly receive the data. Some teachers were able to bring the ExamView CDs that came with their textbook adoptions and learned how to bring in their ExamView questions with a click of the button.

Jason Saliskar, a teacher from Rowland Avenue Elementary, a California Distinguished School, has been able to quickly implement the MOBI and Pulse Clickers, based on what he learned at the trainings. “The experience was so positive that I scheduled a training at my school site for all my fellow teachers to learn this wonderful technology,” said Mr. Saliskar. “The Digital Edge Learning Team has the ability to present their amazing products in a way that reaches all professionals at their learning level. The knowledge I have gained has impacted my students as I have seen an immediate increase in performance and interest. They cannot wait to use the clickers!!”

This district training approach has become increasingly popular as school districts are beginning to buy MOBIs and clickers in bulk. This training rollout that Covina Valley experienced is similar to rollouts in districts such as Gilroy USD, Paramount USD, Westside USD and Compton USD. “The Digital Edge Learning professional development was exciting, thorough, hands-on and effective!” said Dr. Port.

If you are interested in a district rollout, such as the one highlighted above, please contact Raquel Hernandez at (909) 478-9595 or email her at Raquel@digitaledgelearning.com.

Raquel Hernandez, M.A. Ed
Professional Development Coordinator

Applegate is in her fourth year as the administrator at Warm Springs. She has implemented and supported new technology at her site, and many of her teachers are avid users of the MOBI after they were trained by the Digital Edge Team during the 2009-2010 school year. That year the school’s API increased by 72 points, moving from 639 to 711. Her teachers received a series of professional development days, performance based coaching and principal walk-through as part of Digital Edge’s plan for systemic change. She intends to send another cluster of teachers through the training this year. Ana sat down with Carolyn Podolak, a Digital Edge Trainer, and shared her thoughts on the MOBI, technology, and its impact on student learning.

What made you invest in technology to begin with?

"It’s the wave of the future. Kids who come in with technological knowledge are at an advantage. It’s my responsibility to make sure that all students are exposed to it and of course it goes without saying, the engagement factor is huge."

So you think that the MOBI has a positive impact on student engagement?

"If you have something in place that not only motivates them, but also plays to their learning styles, that are interactive, interesting, fun, and it’s along the lines of what they like to do, then you’re going to get more student engagement. But for me it goes beyond that. If they are not exposed to technology, they are going to be at a disadvantage. Those are the jobs of the future. We can’t, with good conscience, move forward without making sure that our kids are technologically savvy."

Does the MOBI positively effect student achievement?

"Absolutely. Obviously with more engagement you’ll have more motivation, students are going to understand better, and overall that’s going to effect student achievement. Our fourth grade teachers have been the most proactive with Interwrite and the MOBI… and we’ve seen some really good results in math. They also team teach for math, I’m sure that’s a part of it. Another added factor is that it really brings teachers together to plan."

What about special populations?

"We have about 60% EL population. One of our big focuses was to make sure we had comprehensible input for them. The Interwrite pad allows us to do that. Our EL’s actually outscored everybody in the whole school! "

Do your teachers enjoy using the MOBI?

"They really do. The ones that don’t have it are jealous of the ones that do! Some of our veteran teachers were resistant, but we’re bringing them along. It’s our younger teachers that are asking me, When is it my turn to go to the training? But it’s how they are… that’s their world. It’s a natural way for them to teach."

What about on campus support?

"Even if the teachers have been through the five day training and coaching, the administrator still needs to know what’s going on because everything comes back to the administrator. We know as former teachers that if it’s not coming from the top, it’s not taken that seriously. In the future I’d like to look at having a technology coach, just like we do with reading and with math."

How do you think technology integrates with curriculum?

"Well, pretty much in every aspect, with all subjects. Curriculum first and foremost has to be comprehensible to students. You can teach all you want but if the students aren’t getting it, then you’re just spinning your wheels. One of the questions in our PLC’s has been, How do you know that they are getting it? That’s why we’d like to move ahead with the clickers, to make sure immediately, right then and there, that our kids understand. We don’t want to wait 4-6 weeks to find out whether they got it or not"

At the close of the interview, Ana asked if she could "climb on her soap box" and share her thoughts:

"Everybody knows the obvious… student engagement and this and that, but there is an underlying caution: the digital divide. My kids (her own children) have computers and such. But, I want to emphasize that the kids in the poorer environments are going to be left behind. Unless we’re careful we’re going to close out a whole segment of our population. We’re not going back. There aren’t going to be any post office jobs, or electric company jobs. Those things are gone. How do you even begin to choose a technology type of major in college… if you don’t know anything about it? If they’re not prepared, then we’re doing them a disservice. We have to expose our kids to technology."

Carolyn Podolak, Trainer
Professional Development