Schoology and Academy District 20
Where Learning Happens │ July 27, 2018
Welcome to 20Learn! Powered by Schoology
20Learn will be our new hub for Where Learning Happens at Academy District 20. Powered by Schoology, this will be the place where instruction, professional learning and Parent Academy meet.
Imagine Schoology as a dinner plate with three main dishes: instruction, professional learning, and parent learning. Schoology brings them all together in one place. Your current resources, lessons, ideas, assessments, book studies, individual coursework, parent communication and education and more - all in one place!
Where Are We Now? - The Weekly Update
We are there! We have more than half of our pilot members at some stage of the Getting Started with Schoology course. We have people attending the drop-in support sessions every time. We have 265 discussion posts and over 5000 page views! It’s great to see so many people interacting with each other and with Schoology!
Things to try:
- Migrate your ALEC resources
- Create units
- Create lessons
- Curate resources
- Start your professional learning experience.
- Explore examples
- Participate in a variety of activities - There are more every week!
- Don’t forget about the Recent Activity feed - ask questions and provide feedback as necessary. It's great to see people helping each other!
Worth noting:
You won’t be able to create a class. Classes will be imported from IC in the beginning of August. Don’t worry, creating in Resources is a best practice. Grade passback and parent account access won’t be available during the fall semester. As we make progress with those features we’ll communicate updates.
Keep in mind that we’re at the beginning of a journey. We have a lot of ground to cover and we’re just learning the terrain. Partner with us by participating, asking questions, and providing feedback so that we can continue to grow. That participation is helping us work to meet your needs.
Were you a Schoology Basic User?
Check out the attached comparison chart for additional information.
Looking to Collaborate? Great!
Schoology’s social media-like design is intended to be used for collaborative purposes. Groups are where you can build and share resources with your team members. It’s where those course templates can be created and shared.
At the moment you’re unable to create groups on your own. There are some steps that have to happen before each building will be able to create their own. Don’t worry, submit a Help Desk ticket (help@asd20.org) with your name, your school name, and your grade level or department or team name. We’ll get that created for you.
Where Are My Courses?
Great question!
It’s natural to want to get in to your courses and start working. In this case, however, we have a shift in vocabulary and practice that is happening.
Courses in Schoology are live courses with active students students. Resources is not only where you house your materials, but the place to create your master templates or design course templates. The only thing you won’t be able to do in Resources is assign an active assignment (one for active students with due date for an active grading period).
So when will your courses become active? Your courses will become active in the beginning of August. At the moment we are still testing the systems integrations in our test environment. When the testing phase is complete, we’ll be ready to go and be activating your courses. That’s just around the corner!
Do you feel you need some practice importing materials from Resources? Do you feel you need to test out some experiences before going live? We understand. Submit a Help Desk ticket to help@asd20.org and request a sandbox. Still not feeling confident? That’s OK. Remember, this is a pilot, not a requirement. Spend the time you need creating, curating and playing in Schoology. Come to any of our drop-in support sessions over the summer or any that we will continue through the fall. We are here to support you through this process.
Note: Google Drive is considered to be a live environment, so adding a Google Drive file as a link would be a good idea until your IC course appears. When that happens, the Google integration is wonderful! Want more information on that? Come to a drop-in support session and we’ll be glad to show you!
Migrating Your ALEC Resources to Schoology
You will be able to import your ALEC files into Schoology. To assist in this process, we are creating backups for you!
Use the attached PDF to assist you with downloading your ALEC files and uploading them to a Collection in your Resources. You are also welcome to visit us during one of
our support sessions for help with this process.
Having problems migrating courses to Schoology? Here are some tips:
- Try downloading a backup without the question bank.
- Try choosing the Schoology option to import into a “New Collection” (see instructions).
- Join us during a support session and we’ll work through the process with you.
Please keep in mind that these are two different platforms. Things in Schoology may not look exactly the same as they did in ALEC. Join us in a support session if you have concerns.
How do I start?
Your first step will be to join our ASD20 Getting Started with Schoology course. This course will walk you through some of the basics about using Schoology as a Learning Management System.
- Login at asd20.schoology.com (Chrome is the preferred browser.)
- For your initial login, use your complete email address: first.last@asd20.org (Subsequent logins will not require your complete email address. Schoology should remember you.)
- Click on “Courses” in the top menu bar.
- Click on “See All Courses” at the far right.
- Click the “Join a Course” button on the right.
- Use this course Access Code: 5XK69-CHSJH.
(More units will appear as we progress along our journey.)
Want some guided help?
Great! Your Digital Integration Services team is here to help you! We’re offering drop-in for support next week from 9:00 AM - 11:30 AM in the EAC Training Room (upstairs):
- Friday, August 3
Visit the course Calendar in Schoology for dates and time of additional drop-in support sessions.
Need Technical Help?
- Contact your DLC regarding any District apps that need to be integrated. They'll submit a Help Desk ticket if it something that can be integrated.
- Having technical troubles? Submit a Help Desk ticket (help@asd20.org) with the subject heading "Schoology."
Here Are Some Great Support Articles
Professional Learning
Learning Services and Digital Integration Services are partnering with Schoology to develop our training program. You will be receiving online and face-to-face learning and support opportunities.
There are two (2) courses for you to join:
- In Schoology - Getting Started with Schoology = this is growing and developing course to walk you through the process of getting to know Schoology. Join code = 5XK69-CHSJH.
- In the SPOT - Schoology Support for Pilot Participants: Foundations and Best Practices = this is where you register in order to receive credit for your work. Course ID=1819-017-20.
In time, this process will become more streamlined and Schoology will link with our Professional Learning program at ASD20.
Your support will include online instruction and resources in the Schoology platform, face-to-face drop in sessions throughout the summer and school year, webinars, plus additional workshops and formal training opportunities. Do you need instant support? Schoology has an extensive resource collection to help, too!
Keep logging your hours!
Susan Murray-Carrico
Email: susan.murray@asd20.org
Website: www.digitalteachingandlearning.com
Location: 1110 Chapel Hills Drive, Colorado Springs, CO, USA
Phone: 719.234.1471
Twitter: @FrauSusi