Posting grades to Edline

1. First, enter your grades for each class and student in GradeQuick.
   1. Sign in to Edline, then click on Gradebook (top of page) and then on Semester 1.  (Next semester, you’ll click on Semester 2.)
   2. Create a new test/assignment/quiz  by clicking to the right of the last test/assignment/quiz, (or to the right of student names if this is the first assignment.)
   3. Add a short name – this is required, since this is what shows on Edline reports.
   4. You may add a long name, which can help explain more about the specific assignment.
   5. Unless you are weighting grades (20% for quizzes, 40% for tests, 40% for homework, for example), leave the category field blank.  Weighting gets handled separately.  If you need help with this, please ask me for help. 
   6. Leave the weighting field blank. 
   7. If you want the date to reflect the date an assignment was due, change the date (Edline automatically uses the date you first create the test/assignment/quiz.)   I have found it’s worth using the due date to reduce parent and student questions.
   8. Enter the number of points for this assignment under Possible.
   9. Enter grades for each student.  Be sure to press enter after the last grade is entered (says the voice of experience).
2. Then post the grades to Edline.
   1. Within one class in GradeQuick:
   2. Click on Reports, then Edline Reports, then Single Term Only.  You’ll see what the report looks like for one of the students.
   3. c.       (I’ll provide more help with the fine points of reports in a future email.)
   4. Then click on Print (top left of screen).
   5. e.      You then have a choice:  if you’re doing a whole class, click next to Select All Students of Current File. 
   6. You have other choices if you want to just post one student or a few students.  “Send several files” doesn’t work, so don’t click on that.
   7. Click on OK.
   8. WWW Report Description shows.  Don’t change the class ID.  Under Enter Report Description, click in the blank space.  I find it easiest to enter the words Progress Report and then press Send this report.  Next time, click in the blank space, and Progress Report will show – click on that, then on Send this report.  Some people like to have different names for each report, but this isn’t necessary (however, if you name them all Progress Report, only the most recent one will show.)
   9. Another Edline page will load, and you’ll eventually get a message about how many records were updated.  Wait for this to display before doing anything further in GradeQuick. 
   10. To post for another class, go back to GradeQuick, click on the red X in the top right corner to close that report, and select the new class. 

If you need help, please let me know.

Low cost and free professional development

Professional Development Online (inexpensive and free)

With professional development budgets being what they are, it always helps to have low cost and free sources of professional development. Many of our professional organizations offer low cost and some free PD, so see what they have to offer below:

Math

NCTM (National Council of Teachers of Mathematics)

E-workshops ($149/course)

http://www.nctm.org/profdev/content.aspx?id=11804

History/Social Studies

NCSS (National Council for the Social Studies)

http://www.socialstudies.org/professionaldevelopment summer workshops, etc.

http://communities.ncss.org/ – communities – must be a member of the organization to participate

Science

NSTA (National Science Teachers Association)

http://learningcenter.nsta.org/ – general professional development. Includes FREE web seminars

Art

NAEA (National Art Education Association)

http://www.arteducators.org/olc/pub/NAEA/learning/learning_page_4.html Monthly mentor

http://www.arteducators.org/olc/pub/NAEA/learning/learning_page_3.html professional development links

Religion

NCEA (National Catholic Educators Association)

http://www.ncea.org/programs/index.asp Professional Development

English

NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English)

http://ncte.org/seminars web seminars ($80-100)

http://www.ncte.org/pathways – Pathways – year-long online classes which include access to all archived NCTE web seminars ($120-160)

http://www.ncte.org/newsletter Free weekly e-newsletter with news, ideas, lesson idea links

Foreign Language

CCLT (Connecticut Council of Language Teachers )

http://www.ctcolt.org/ has three conferences each year.

The next conference is http://www.ctcolt.org/fall_conference.htm $100-130.

All subject areas

PBS Teacherline

http://www.pbs.org/teacherline/ Online classes (generally $199)

You can use their resources for free by looking at the Syllabus of interesting classes, Googling the articles mentioned (you can find many this way), and getting yourself to do the exercises. You miss the collegiality of the classes (which can be rewarding and enriching), but there is no cost.

ASCD (Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development)

http://shop.ascd.org/search_results.cfm?mycategory=PD_Online ($99/course)

(Also web seminars periodically, cost a bit higher)

CEC (Council for Exceptional Children, children with disabilities, gifted)

http://www.cec.sped.org/Content/NavigationMenu/AboutCEC/Communities/Blog/default.htm?from=tlcHome – blogs with current information of interest (free)

http://www.cec.sped.org/Source/Meetings/webinars.cfm?section=Professional_Development# – web seminars ($150-200)

http://www.cec.sped.org/Content/NavigationMenu/ProfessionalDevelopment/Audio_Files.htm audiofiles ($100-150)

Annenberg Media
http://www.learner.org
Free online classes across the curriculum. Choose discipline and age group.

For similar information www.franblo.edublogs.org

Internet tools, Uncategorized | Comment (0)

Not just Wikipedia

You may have noticed your students using still more websites with Wiki somewhere in the title as sources in their research.  Like Wikipedia, these Wiki websites can be modified by anybody – in fact that’s the whole point – so I suspect we’re going to have to tell our students that any website with Wiki in the title cannot be used as a legitimate source for research. 

Wikis are intended to be modified by many people collaborating, and can be wonderful resources since many people are sharing ideas, but since anybody can change a Wiki, a Wiki really cannot be considered a valid research source.

Your peers are doing amazing things with Edline pages

Would you like to see what other teachers are doing with their Edline pages?  Well you can. 

Once you’re logged in to Edline, on the St. Bernard Homepage, look on the column over on the right. 

If you click on “Classes”  in this column you’ll get a list of all the classes in the school.  These are sorted by how recently they have been updated, and then by title of class (so all Advanced classes show first).

Click on the class name and you’ll see what interesting links, pictures, mp3 files (podcasts) and other materials your colleagues have posted on their class Edline pages.

This is a great place to get ideas.  Kudos to all of you for having such interesting and varied Edline pages.

My first experience using Edublogs

To make the information more easily available, I have posted many old email “posts” from last year since it’s so much easier to find old posts in a blog.

As you can see, I am still having a bit of trouble with the formatting.  First, when I copy from Word, the size font doesn’t always work.  And second, the Snagit pictures that I had so carefully included in the old emails (and Word documents) that I sent out won’t copy over.  

I suspect this will get easier with practice.  Anyway, I feel a great deal of satisfaction in getting this work posted, and am looking forward to using the blog in the fall when school starts.