Schoology Best Practices: According To Students
@LisaBerghoff
I recently facilitated the first meeting of the school year for the Student Technology Advisory Board. This is a group of students of varying backgrounds, ages, and technology abilities. I started this group last year when I realized that we are often guessing at "what's best for kids" when making decisions. In the technology world, they would refer to our students as the "end-users" and would be constantly looking for feedback and ways to improve. When I sent out the request for recommendations, I asked teachers to send me names of students, not for their technology knowledge, but for their ability to share their opinions and ideas. This group meets once a month and we cover a wide range of topics, all with the intent of figuring out the best ways to leverage our technology tools to help students learn. I wish you could have seen their eyes light up when we met last year and I told them I wanted their feedback. We often forget that our students are rarely asked for their input in school.
For our first meeting, I asked the students to give me their feedback on some of the best ways teachers are using Schoology. I was careful to set norms so that we are not complaining or pointing out bad use of our technology. I wanted to hear what's working and what we should do more of. Their responses were clear and there was very little disagreement. Here is what they (our "end-users") said.
1. Use the Schoology Calendar for ALL assignments (even the ones done on paper or listed on a Google doc).
Our students really make good use of the "upcoming" section on their Schoology page. It helps them stay organized and plan their time to get assignments completed. Even though we have a learning management system, it can still be confusing for students to know where to go to figure out what their homework is because we are all doing it in so many different ways. They understand that many teachers give a daily slide presentation or a Google doc that has a calendar with links on it. They know that they are asking those teachers to do an extra thing. But they are also saying that this is one of the single biggest frustrations about Schoology- not everything is easy to find, or even on it at all. For assignments that are done on paper, teachers can add it to Schoology, include a due date, and just un-click the "submissions" icon at the bottom of the assignment screen. I'm happy to work with you, your course team, or your department to learn how to get better at this.
2. Organize Folders By Unit
As adults, we often think in terms of timeline. Our students are making sense of their class work by unit and they are asking us to set them up for success by organizing folders on the materials page in that way. Did you know you can make folders within folders? Our students know that and they like it. They did say to please not get too carried away but if we have a folder for each unit, and then within that unit folder perhaps there are folders for notes, assessments, and assignments, that would be ideal. One student noted that all AP classes have 5 units. I decided to take her word for it because she seemed to really know what she was talking about. Now, sometimes teachers can split these units up in a way that is more manageable for teaching, but if we can keep those 5 unit folders consistent for AP classes, it could potentially remove a barrier for students who are new to the AP curriculum.
3. If It's Going To Be Digital, Assign It In Schoology
This one actually shocked me and I had to ask several times to make sure I was understanding what they were saying. If your students are going to be working in a digital format such as a Google doc, Google slides, or PDF, please do not ask them to make a copy and share it with you. Schoology can easily make a copy for every student and it is shared with both of you automatically. It's easy for them to submit and easy for you to grade. If it's something like a video or a link to a Canva project, they can just include the link in Schoology by clicking the "submit" button and copying it there. They said that they are being asked to make copies and upload all the time. Again, please reach out to me to learn more.
Other things they noted:
- Inconsistent use of Updates is confusing
- The email notifications that they receive are from a generic mail account, they don't see who it is from until they open it and they get a LOT of them.
- They love that they can re-order their courses
- They love being asked what is working well
I'm sure I will have more information as the group meets monthly. We will have different topics each month so stay tuned.
No comments:
Post a Comment