The Digital Content and Curriculum Achievement Awards program was established by the Center for Digital Education to recognize schools for their innovation and diligence in digital content and curriculum program implementation.
"We are pleased to announce the honorees of the 2015 Digital Content and Curriculum Achievement Awards," said Alan Cox, Senior Vice President for the Center for Digital Education. "It is clear that schools all over the country are moving from pilot projects to full-scale implementations. Districts are combining content created by their faculty with content curated from other organizations or purchased from private-sector curriculum providers in ways not truly realized in past years. This year's honorees are taking the practice of education to new heights that show great promise for other districts to follow."
The following are highlights of schools earning top honors:
K-12 Large District/School (12,000 or more students)
Baltimore County Public Schools - S.T.A.T. Reforming Digital Curriculum and Content for Learner-Centered InstructionThe S.T.A.T. initiative provides personalized learning with a comprehensive system for curriculum, instruction, assessments, student data, reporting, and analysis. BCPS Lighthouse Schools are model sites for interactive and blended instruction. Wireless and broadband infrastructure have been provided in every school, and by 2018 all students will have access to a digital learning device and personalized, blended, interactive curriculum.
Clark County School District, Nev. - 100,000 Students in Online and Blended Learning by 2015-16
Clark County SD continues to be a leader in the use of technology. Developing their own digital content is very cost-effective, and teacher and administrator training is provided through their Online and Blended Certification program, with 1,500 credits issued last school year. Through these efforts CCSD increased both participation and outcomes on AP exams.
Fulton County Schools, Ga. - Learning Gets Personal in Fulton County Schools
Fulton County Schools initiated a comprehensive planning and roadmap process that ties together departments from IT, curriculum and operations. Their comprehensive adoption of a variety of technologies includes titles from ASCD and ISTE the Gale Virtual Reference Library, over 8,000 e-books, 9,500 videos and more than 17,000 images. Also the district implemented an approval process and procedure for the vetting of teacher-created content.
Houston Independent School District - Transforming Teaching and Learning
HISD has integrated the use of digital content, systems alignment, network upgrades and 1:1. The innovative decision to require compliance to IMS standards by all content providers, partnering with other districts, and working with publishing companies toward success is helping to set a new direction in quality standards for integration of digital content in education.
Leander Independent School District, Texas - Creating Curriculum through Crowdsourcing, Curation, Collaboration, and Community
Leander ISD uses open educational resources and teacher-created content. Funds were reallocated to hire an in-house curator to initiate digital mathematics curriculum. By collaboration among math facilitators, the curator, and teachers, curriculum documents and structures were developed around the new standards; digital resources were located, evaluated, vetted and aligned to the documents. This new digital content format is part of the district’s Mobile Learning Initiative.
Northwest Independent School District, Texas - Consolidating a Creative and Collaborative Curriculum
The Northwest ISD IT and Curriculum Departments worked over an entire school year to standardize the platform and utilize the same technology that was being used in classrooms for blended teaching and learning. The first step included a general template for each curriculum course. The vetted content, predominantly provided by teachers themselves, includes pacing guides, scope and sequence for each unit, curriculum-based accountability assessments, formative assessments, technology integration, assessment calendars, feedback forums, examples of exemplary work, everyday resources and strategies for lessons.
K-12 Small-Medium District/School (up to 12,000 students)
Maine Township High School District 207 - 1:1 ProgramA major focus over the past three years has been transitioning outdated and expensive print books to low-cost or free digital resources, replacing half of the textbooks with over 150 digital resources – which helps to integrate the use of the 1:1 device in the curriculum and reduces costs greatly with a $1000 savings per student over a four-year career.
Saline Area Schools, Mich. - Next-Gen Classrooms
In each flexible-space Next-Generation Classroom, a learning profile is compiled to address the required curriculum content. The profile is then expanded to include vetted digital content, desired 4C’s (critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, and communication) & PBL (project-based learning) experiences, teacher recommendations and student suggestions. The district has provided extensive professional development for the Next-Gen middle and high-school teachers.
Somers Public Schools, Conn. - Technology in the Lives of Somers Students
In the past, the general classroom technique was to “teach towards the middle.” This technique was unable to help struggling students or challenge advanced students. The district credits teacher dedication, new technology, and professional development from a variety of sources including “students-teaching-teachers” sessions with their ability to customize the delivery of classroom content for individual students.
Taylor County School District, Ky. - Performance-Based Education/The Wagon Wheel of Learning
The Wagon Wheel of Learning (WWL) and Performance-Based Education (PBE) were integrated in the district beginning three years ago. The WWL incorporates “wheel spokes” of traditional teaching, project-based learning, self-paced learning, group, and virtual learning. These methods enable teachers and students to determine in which method they can most effectively teach and learn. Students can also move between spokes. Since implementation, the district has had zero dropouts and a 100 percent graduation rate.
Tullahoma City Schools, Tenn. - Digital Delivery of Open Source Curricular Content
Tullahoma City Schools’ vision includes teachers as creators, the district as a publisher and the community as contributors of open source content. Due to budget limitations, the district developed their own digital social studies texts for grades 6-8, aligned with Tennessee standards, and saved more than $50,000. Technology facilitators train teachers and shadow them while they teach. This initiative has become portable to a half-dozen neighboring school systems.
CDE thanks premier sponsor Samsung, and sponsor Apex Learning, for underwriting the 2015 Digital Content and Curriculum Achievement Awards.
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About The Center for Digital Education
The Center for Digital Education (CDE) is a national research and advisory institute specializing in K-12 and higher education technology trends, policy, and funding. CDE provides education and industry leaders with decision support and actionable insight to help effectively incorporate new technologies in the 21st century.
CDE is a division of e.Republic, the nation’s only media and research company focused exclusively on state and local government and education.
For questions please contact Janet Grenslitt, Director of Surveys and Awards, at
jgrenslitt@centerdigitaled.com
