Source: World ORT
As Israelis swelter through the summer vacation, a small band of devoted educationalists is putting the finishing touches to a new website that will help teachers at the country’s World ORT affiliated schools to collaborate on boosting their classroom performance. Due to be up and running in time for the new school year, the website is a simple and attractive on-line platform for sharing lessons that have been prepared for Smart classes, 1,000 of which World ORT is installing in schools throughout Israel’s outlying northern and southern regions.
The portal, which has been earmarked for teachers at the 30 schools which have affiliated to World ORT, uses Moodle e-learning software to enable them to share resources, learn from the accumulated expertise of their peers and so improve the quality of their lessons.
World ORT has spearheaded the introduction of Interactive Whiteboards and associated classroom technology to Israel since 2007 but the speed with which it has been replacing the traditional talk’n’chalk blackboards has increased markedly over the past two years thanks to Canadian philanthropist Seymour Schulich and the partnership of the Israel Ministries of Education and the Development of the Negev and the Galilee.
The portal, which has already been seven months in the making, will help technology integration by allowing teachers to upload the lessons they have prepared so that their peers can adapt them for their own use. Users will be able to give the lessons ratings according to various practical criteria to not only steer colleagues towards the best material but also provide constructive feedback. In addition, World ORT is preparing a series of instructional videos for the site and will also place academic and practical articles to provide a broader understanding of the technology’s potential and tips on best practice.
Read the entire article at World ORT.