Technology & Learning - December 2008 - (Page 24)

FEATURESTORY STUDENTWATCH SUITE PUBLICSCHOOLWORKS StudentWatch Suite is an online system built specifically for public schools that reports, documents, and tracks safety issues including bullying, fighting, and other behavioral problems. Integrated with this Web-based program is a system for students and parents to anonymously report safety concerns about themselves or other students, either online or via telephone. The “anonymity” factor helps students feel more comfortable reporting bullying and other sensitive information, and the program goes even further by communicating directly to key administrators when time is of the essence. Each report submitted is immediately sent to the appropriate administrator to be addressed. The systems provide reports and trends data for safety issues for individual schools and district-wide to evaluate the effectiveness of current safety programs and behavior strategies and to see where students may be at risk. The Student Accident Management System tracks and documents student accident reports and is integrated with the other systems. Judges said they haven’t found anything like this program and agreed it would be very helpful for teachers, parents, and students to stay in communication—making the school environment as safe as possible. Individual programs start at $500; suite starts at $3000, www.publicschoolworks.com RAPID RESOURCES INTERNATIONAL LEARNING CORPORATION Rapid Resources is geared toward “teachers who need a multi-grade range of instructional resources and assessments,” and the program provides lesson plans and activities to help improve scores for students who are achieving at different (either lower or higher) grade levels than average. The program has an interesting approach—it breaks down each standard into skills with activity sheets that teachers print out. Then teachers can customize a learning plan for each student or for a whole class. Judges found it to be a useful tool for remediation (with both parents and students), missing skills, and for students who wish to move ahead. The program makes it very easy for teachers to help students through the use of step-by-step lesson plans, and many lessons are hands-on and interesting for students. One-year subscription for teachers, $199; school/district licenses available, www.rapidresources.com SCHOOLSITES SCHOOLWORLD ST MATH: ALGEBRA READINESS MIND RESEARCH INSTITUTE The new ST Math: Algebra Readiness instructional software was developed in response to the nationwide problem of middle school students failing Algebra courses. The visual approach offers an innovative way to teach math to struggling middle school students, focusing on an interactive, animated exposition of foundational concepts before introducing equations and math terminology—an approach shown to benefit learners at every level of math or language proficiency. Judges agreed that this easy-to-use, fun program is a “great tool for students struggling with algebra concepts,” especially for students who are visual learners. Price varies, www.mindresearch.net SchoolSites is a great option for districts and schools looking for a robust Web site solution. The product allows districts and schools to easily create their Web site, choosing from a variety of templates or making one from scratch with the help of SchoolWorld’s creative team. The product is easy to navigate; one judge loved that “everything is in one place,” and labeled it as a “must” product for schools seeking professional results in their Web site presence. Price varies, www.schoolworld.com 24 | TECH & LEARNING http://www.publicschoolworks.com http://www.rapidresources.com http://www.schoolworld.com http://www.mindresearch.net

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