By definition, what makes any ecosystem run smoothly are all the different parts working in tandem. The same goes for edtech ecosystems, which consist of K-12 administrators, solution providers, education agencies and more. Enabling productive conversations amongst these stakeholders is the key to sustaining an ecosystem that is healthy and high-functioning.
With this in mind, LearnPlatform by Instructure recently hosted a virtual user group session with representatives and speakers from districts across the western United States. In this user group, several district leaders shared how they leverage LearnPlatform to address the current challenges inherent in building a safe, equitable and effective K-12 learning environment and ensuring both academic and financial return on edtech investments. Read on for highlights from our user group conversation!
Lisa Bradshaw, Director of Digital Learning and Strategy at Casa Grande Elementary School District in Arizona, knows all too well the challenges a district may face without access to practical and context-specific evidence. She and her colleagues at Casa Grande realized there was a need for a platform to manage all the tools teachers wanted to bring in and use during remote learning. With the influx of new products being brought into the classrooms during the pandemic, the team greatly benefitted from taking an inventory of its digital tools and organizing them in a central edtech library.
→ Take an inventory of your district’s edtech tools with our Inventory Dashboard.
Taking inventory of the district’s digital tools was just the first step in the team's journey when budgeting for and selecting which edtech tools to introduce or continue using. The team also highlighted their ability to dive deeper into analysis of how schools were using a few district-identified priority edtech tools. The results were shared with other administrators to inform ongoing budget decisions.
“Being able to share usage information [on edtech tools] is playing a bigger role in the support we can provide for our schools and in our renewal process. Now we’ve got real information behind our decisions,” said Bradshaw.
→ Learn more about LearnPlatform edtech evaluation solution.
Sergio Rizzo, EdTech Specialist at Oak Grove School District in California, shared similar priorities in his district’s use of LearnPlatform, highlighting the capability of offering a single, centrally-managed place with customized views for the community to see information about their edtech resources. He mentioned the importance of sharing information and being transparent when addressing the persistent challenges of protecting student data and complying with privacy requirements.
“We utilize LearnPlatform as a hub for student data privacy efforts, for our staff and community to see the status of products – approved, denied, or pending. And, with the new column feature, we are now able to quickly see when a data privacy agreement expires and utilize this data to trigger different workflows.” said Rizzi, putting a spotlight on a recent platform update that allows workflows to be triggered automatically when an expiration date or other key date approaches.
Other district leaders, such as Melissa Riggs, Education Technology Specialist from Colorado's District 49 and Karen Hickenbottom, Manager of Library and Instructional Technology from Edmonds School District in Washington State, confirmed they faced similar challenges within their districts and expressed appreciation for having a space to learn how their peers are addressing them. While every district is unique, all benefit from having a network of colleagues to engage with and learn from. LearnPlatform is so thankful to be a part of their conversations and for the opportunity to serve them as they work to deliver tech-enabled learning that is safe, equitable and effective for their students and teachers.
Curious to see more of LearnPlatform by Instructure? Request a personalized demo today.
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