Welcome Back! Fall 2017 DALC Technology News

Welcome Back from your Technology Specialist

Welcome back for another school year! I am available to assist you with technology in your classes.

My regular hours are:

Monday  - Thursday, 9am  - 12pm

But I can be available other times when needed. Please let me know how I can assist you with any technology needs!

DALC Technology Website

I  update the DALC Tech website  throughout the year with useful articles, tutorials, equipment instructions,  notes from conferences and workshops, and lessons ideas using technology.  The address is:

DALCtech.wikispaces.com

The first page always contains a “What’s New” section, listing the latest updates to the site.  You can also subscribe using the form on the sidebar to receive updates in your email box.

Equipment Available for Teachers

A variety of equipment is available  in classrooms and for check-out  to use in Dover, Rochester, DHS, or other remote sites. A detailed list is located in the staff handbook, and includes

• Desktop Computers
• iPads
• Projectors
• Document Cameras
• Portable Interactive Whiteboard Systems
• Laptop Lab
• Computer Lab

I am available to set up equipment if you would like assistance—just drop me an email or give me a call.   Contact me or check the sign-out book in the Dover office to reserve equipment.

Computer Literacy Classes

I will be teaching Beginning and Intermediate Computer Literacy  and Keyboarding classes this year which are free for DALC ABE and ESOL students and others for a fee. See the flyer for details.

Digital Literacy

To meet the requirements of WIOA, teachers are expected to have a  certain level of digital literacy skills. I have created a page on the DALC Tech website where you can self-assess your digital literacy skills, and complete online self-paced training. You can find it here at:

DALCTech.wikispaces.com/Digital+Literacy

Of course, I’m always available for your digital literacy training needs...just ask!

Cloud Attendance

This year, we are continuing to use our Google Drive cloud attendance system for our classes. 

Directions and tutorials are available at

DALCTech.wikispaces.com/Cloud+Attendance

New staff, please contact me so I can give you access to the system (you will need your own Google account) and we can also arrange a training time. Returning staff can also contact me if you need a refresher.

Some updates:

• The Blank Attendance file in your folder has been updated with more columns and rows for teachers who needed more room for students and/or extra days.
• To keep last year’s attendance separate from this year’s new files, create a folder inside your folder called 16-17 and drag last year’s files into it. See me for help if you don’t know how to do this.

DALC Student Wi-Fi

The DALC Student Wireless network is available for student-owned and staff-owned devices in McConnell Center classrooms. There is a new password each year, and students must sign the DALC Technology Use Policy each year to receive the new password. Staff only need to sign the policy once, so new staff should sign a copy and return it to me.

Feel free to copy the use policy and wi-fi password for any of your students that request access. 

As always, let me know if I can help you with your classroom technology needs in any way! I'm here to help! Have a great start to the 2017-2018 school year!

Spring DALC Technology News

Hello everyone! Please read my spring technology newsletter for some important DALC Technology information!

Email and Security

You may have noticed a flurry of news reports lately about malicious software attacking the networks and data of businesses and organizations both large and small. Many of these attacks are the result of individual employees opening malicious code or responding to messages which arrive in electronic mail and websites that look legitimate. To safeguard our computer network, we all need to be vigilant when on the DALC network, whether you are accessing a DALC email account or your own personal email account. Here are some tips for avoiding problems:

• No staff member will ever request your passwords or account information via electronic mail or websites. Never reply to a message requesting this type of information.
• Never open any email attachment that (a) you didn't expect to receive or (b) doesn't include a clear explanation from a trusted source, regardless of whether or not you recognize the sender. Sometimes a malicious email may appear like it's coming from someone you know.
• If you ever have a question or are unsure about an email you received, please don't hesitate to ask me about it.

Just this past week, an attack occurred on the Dover school district email system, which included our DALC email accounts. It was initiated by one of these "phishing" email messages which allowed malicious software into our mail system. I'll continue to keep everyone informed so we can be vigilant about keeping our network safe, and I'm happy to answer any questions or concerns you may have. Thank you!

Keyboarding Class

The final computer literacy class of the year, Keyboarding, begins on April 20. It runs for 6 weeks on Wednesday afternoons from 1-2pm. If any of your students are interested, please have them sign up in the main office soon!

Technology Micro Lessons

Want to use some more technology in your classroom? Give a Micro Lesson a try! I'll help you develop a lesson where students can expand their technology skills, and I'll come to your class to teach it with you. Examples of lessons I've done in the past are: creating flash cards, writing a business letter, and creating an interactive timeline using QR codes. We can use the laptop cart, the computer lab, iPads and more! Interested? Send me an email and let me know!

Computer Lab and Laptop Cart 

It's been great to see classes using the computer lab and the laptop cart! Here are a few helpful notes to keep things running smoothly:

• Monday mornings the computer lab is generally available for use, now that we are not using the lab for employment testing. If you wish to use the lab on a Monday morning, please reserve it in the binder in the main office.
• If you use the laptops, please make sure that they are plugged back in - the individual laptops and the main plug from the cart to the wall. This ensures that the laptops are charged for the next class that needs them. Several times I have opened the cart to find the laptops placed in backwards and not plugged in. 
• If you use the computer lab, please make sure the door is shut completely and locked when you leave. This week I arrived in the morning to find the lab door was left ajar. Please help safeguard our valuable technology and double the check the door when you leave. 

Thanks everyone! 

Technology around the Web

Here are some links to explore with technology in adult education ideas:

Mentor Tips Blog

From our own NH Adult Ed Mentor team, adult education teaching tips including technology!

Using Facebook Groups in Adult Education

Some great information and videos of classes using private Facebook groups to create classroom community and connect with students outside of class.

• PDF presentation on Facebook in Adult Education
• ESOL Video
• CTE Video

Free Classroom Response System

Check out Plickers - a free classroom response system - poll your class, have students answer questions and watch the results live on your projector.

Thanks for reading everyone! Have a great day!

~Tiffany

Updates - Adult Education Website Links

In today's staff meeting, we discussed many online resources on the NH Adult Education website and in Sarah Bennett's newsletter. To make it easier to reach these links, I've updated the Adult Education Websites page on the DALC Tech site. Links include the NH Adult Education Educator Portal, the new NH Adult Education Math Guidebook, as well as many sites with lesson ideas, webinars, professional development opportunities, and more.

DALC Tech Adult Education Websites Page

If you have any sites that you think other teachers might find useful, please send them to me and I'll add them to this page. Thanks!

~ Tiffany

Winter - Spring Computer Literacy Classes

The next session of computer literacy classes begin in February. Once again, I'll be offering Beginning and Intermediate Computer Literacy classes as well as a Keyboarding class. These are free for DALC ABE and ESOL students. You can download a flyer and an enrollment form with the links below, and there are also flyers available on the credenza in Dover.

Winter-Spring 2016 Computer Literacy Classes Flyer
Computer Literacy Classes Enrollment Form

I'd love to come into your classes again and talk to your students about my classes. Please let me know if there is a good time to visit. Thank you!

~Tiffany

Plickers Classroom Response System

Have you heard of those "clicker" systems that let you poll your classroom and have each student respond? This tool is a classroom response system that uses paper rather than expensive clicker devices to let each student have a voice.

http://www.plickers.com

Just sign up for a free account, download the Plickers app for your iPad, and print out a set of Plickers cards. Each student gets their own bar code. Use the Plickers app to pose a question - multiple choice or true/false. Each student will hold up their bar code with their response letter on top. Use the iPad app and camera to quickly scan the room and student responses will be recorded. It's that easy! Students responses are anonymous too, since other students can't tell which answer their classmates are holding up.

You can add your classes to your Plickers account with student names assigned to each bar code, or just use the demo class if you don't need to have responses tied to a particular student.


Here are some ideas for using Plickers:

• Use an interactive website like Grammar Bytes or NewsELA quizzes and poll the class before choosing an answer. That way every student gets a chance to respond.
• Do a quick check for understanding - Do you understand this?
• Poll the students on what activity to do next - responses are immediately graphed to see the most popular response.

Here are some videos of Plickers in action:

• What the Plickers app looks like when scanning
• A demo of Plickers being used in a K12 classroom

Find the Getting Started Guide at the Plickers website.

Enjoy!

~Tiffany

Fall Technology News

Hello everyone! Here's what's happening with technology at DALC this fall:

Keyboarding Class Starts 11/10

My 6-week keyboarding class is due to start in November. If you have any more interested students, please have them sign up in the office - it is free for DALC ABE/ESOL students. Here is the description:

The focus of this class is to enable students to quickly improve their touch typing skills. You will

• Learn proper finger placement
• Memorize letters and basic punctuation keys
• Drill using online keyboarding software and from paper copy into a word processor.

Dates/Times:

Tuesdays, Nov. 10 – Dec. 15, 12:30 – 1:30 pm, McConnell Center, 61 Locust St. Dover - Rm. 301 Computer Lab

Portable Interactive Whiteboard Training

I'm offering two training sessions if you'd like to learn how to use our portable interactive whiteboard systems. They will be:

Monday November 9 or Friday November 20  at 12:30 pm in Room 220

I'll demonstrate how to set up the system and its features, and then you can take time to play with the system and try it out. We can go from 1-2 hours, depending on how many people are there and how long you'd like to practice.

If you'd like to attend, please send me an email message and let me know what session you'd like.

New Website Resources on DALC Tech

Here are a few new educational resource websites found on the DALC Tech Websites by Subject page.

• USAlearns.org - A free website with online English lessons. They also have corresponding low-cost mobile apps for English learning on the go.
• Newsela - News articles with multiple versions based on reading level
• LiveBinder of Social Studies resources - from a COABE webinar on technology in Social Studies
• LearningExpress - Study tools and practice tests for Accuplacer, HiSET and more. See me for the account login information.

Let me know if I can help with any technology needs! Happy Fall!

~ Tiffany

IPEVO Portable Interactive Whiteboard System

We have some new equipment at DALC that allows you to interact with a computer (not an iPad) using your projector and a special pen. You can use the pen as a mouse to access interactive applications and websites, as well as annotating on top of any image/web page. We have purchased two of them. One resides in the laptop cart, and the other is currently in the cart in room 208B.

Here is some useful information about the IPEVO system:

Video demonstration of the Ipevo Portable Interactive Whiteboard system.

IPEVO IWB Setup Instructions

Annotator Software Guide

I'm currently putting together a workshop on how to use the system, but if you want a quick tutorial on how to use it, please let me know and I can give you a personal demonstration!

~Tiffany