New Features, New Improvements for Home Base in 2017-18

Welcome back to school from the Division of Digital Teaching and Learning!  The Home Base team at DPI has been busy over the summer to ensure our educators across the state have what you need for a successful 2017-18 school year. Highlights of our work this summer include: system upgrades, product enhancements, professional learning, implementation of new functionality and product offerings.

The summer is a great time for professional learning. We provided opportunities to teachers, administrators and data stewards through the Home Base Tools for Teachers, PowerTeacher Pro for Admins and PowerTeacher Pro for Teachers, Canvas Roadshows, Digital Learning Competencies and Charter School Huddles.

As we launch a new school year, we will continue to provide NC educators with a suite of digital tools and relevant professional learning to facilitate an easier and more productive work life for our user base. As you read this special Back-to-School Issue of our Home Base Newsletter, please sure to look for all the new features and resources available in Home Base.

We wish you all the best as you welcome our NC students back to the classroom. Thanks for all you do!

Verna Lalbeharie, Director, Digital Teaching and Learning

Rosalyn Galloway, Home Base Manager

If you haven’t already heard the commotion of students in your hallways, get ready, they’re coming!

It’s back-to-school season, and most educators are preparing with schedules, first-day routines, assemblies, etc. Have you also prepared yourself with data?

Data will keep you honest, and numbers don't spare any feelings. In reviewing your EOG and EOC data from last year, educators can already identify some congratulatory celebration points as well as areas for improvement. Based on data shared on assessments by domain, you can identify gaps in the current performance of your students this year.

Read more ...

What's New In Schoolnet ...

Stay in the know with these updates

Schoolnet 19.0 has been released

Please look for the sleek new design with sidebar navigation, more visual representations of data, and reports that are exportable in Excel. This version also requires ScanIt Version 9, which can be accessed from the homepage.

Other updates include:

• Classroom assessment monitor widget has a new look. You can access the standards performance report or view the assessments by standard from this area. 
• Standards performance has a new look. You can display with percentage correct or Proficiency/Score Groups.
• Graphic gap match and hot text are new item types. They CANNOT be created but can be searched for by using the advanced search feature in Item Central.
• Data can now be exported from several reports. Reports can be edited, and you can now set dates for the analysis spreadsheet.
• Program Data is now available for AIG, EL and Discipline (discipline is for Leadership only).
• New Learning Plan tab on student profile to track notes ...

            + May be helpful for MTSS or intervention tracking
            + See the learning plan tab for new for new additions
                   - Added Student Strengths/Potential Barriers
                   - Added Goals section
                   - Added options for Interventions, ESOL and Behaviors

Score Groups – Color and Level Change

In the new Schoolnet 19.0 release, we will have the lower group of "Red 59-below"

broken down into three smaller groups: 59-40, 39-20, 19-0. Score groups start with Blue now (switched with Green). The former red (59-0) subgroup has been changed to three smaller groups (59-40-orange, 39-20-burnt orange, 19-0-dark red). We are hoping that this will help us better define students in the former "59-below" category. Please note that "Blue" is now the highest category.

Assessment Items refreshed and updated

NC Math 1, 2, and 3 items are in your live site now. For those of you creating benchmarks for secondary math, please use these items. They now have NC Math 1, 2, or 3 in the objective. We also have new Certica items that include 78,242 new items and 2,748 Spanish translated items (they have an English equivalent in the system). Information on these can be retrieved from the Coverage Report.

Schoolnet in Canvas

We are working on an integration between Schoolnet and Canvas, slated for October. This will allow students to take a Schoolnet test in Canvas without leaving the Canvas browser.

NEW CTE Courses

We also have seven new CTE courses, with items available in September. They will be added to the item count document. 

To learn more about the current items in Schoolnet, please see this document.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1hvO6unKojtafYlrbMTu-fg1eZA9ZvN8HuxBSpDrZ8ig/edit#gid=0

Schoolnet Instructional Materials Updates

With the new 19.0 version of Schoolnet, DPI has added numerous QRCs from Pearson.

These are tailored to version 19.0 and will assist you in accessing the new features as well as helping navigate menus that just look a bit different. You will find lots of helpful documents under Classrooms > Instructional Materials >Select Home Base Training as the Subject and search on a keyword. If you search the word Pearson, you will find the new QRCs and videos.

We are still in the process of updating NC specific documents that we have shared with you in the past. As always, LEA/Charter level Schoolnet contacts may call the Support Center or submit a help ticket with questions through the Remedy web portal https://nc-myit.us.onbmc.com or (919) 807-4357.

Schoolnet Remains in Place Through 2018-19

Contract Extended for One Year

Yes, discussions have started about a potential successor to Schoolnet, the instructional improvement system that has been a part of Home Base since the Department of Public Instruction launched the statewide suite of digital tools in 2013.

But no, Schoolnet won't be going away anytime soon. The current school year is the last of the state's five-year contract with Schoolnet, and the contract will be extended for an additional year through the 2018-19 school year. 

Rest assured that DPI is committed to ensuring that all schools in North Carolina continue to have access to a robust and effective assessment platform and ensuring a seamless transition when that time comes. 

NC Mathematics Collaboratory Access Sign up before Sept 1st!

Teachers of NC Math 1, NC Math 2, and NC Math 3, have a great resource to access discussions and resources for use in the classroom. Although we are currently refreshing this site, it is imperative that we get you access. Log in to your NCEdCloud account and click on the blue Canvas icon to see the course. 

If you teach Math 1, 2 or 3 and do not have access to the course after clicking the icon, please fill out this link http://bit.ly/ncdpimc. After you have added your information, you will have access within 24 to 48 hours. 

If you have any questions about NC Math 1, 2, or 3 teachers accessing this resource, please contact Yanisha Mann yanisha.mann@dpi.nc.gov. 

What's new in PowerSchool ...

PowerSchool Gets an Upgrade

A major upgrade to PowerSchool was completed during our July maintenance weekend.  The application was upgraded from version 9.2.4 to version 10.1.3.  New and enhanced features include:

·      Implementation of Enterprise Reporting

·      PowerSchool SIS/PowerSchool Registration Signature Integration

·      PowerSchool SIS/PowerSchool Assessment and Analytics Integration

·      PowerSchool API

·      Graduation Planner Enhancements

·      Mobile App Enhancements 

Enhanced Summer School Functionality - Additional features of the upgrade include new functionality around summer school, which NCDPI will work to vet during the coming year to determine if the functionality can work for North Carolina.  More information to come on this new feature.

Parent/Student Portal Password Reset Extended - When a password reset request was submitted from the public portal, the link was expiring in 30 minutes. The link will now expire in 24 hours

Enhanced reporting capabilities are being rolled out to give users the ability to run more detailed reports.

PowerTeacher Pro Goes Live for Cohort 1

The most prominent new feature accompanying this upgrade was the implementation of PowerTeacher Pro, the next generation gradebook. PowerTeacher Pro (PTP) was implemented into Cohort I (80 districts and 29 charters) this summer.  It combines intuitive user interface with robust functionality for standards-based grading and traditional grading.  Several new features under School Setup for managing classroom preferences from the school or district levels’ perspective were added.  Canvas integration for Year-Round Schools has been completed, and Canvas and Schoolnet integration for Cohort I districts have been prioritized. 

To read more about PowerTeacher Pro and other enhancements provided in this upgrade, link to the PowerSchool 10.0 Release Notes and the PowerSchool 10.1.3 Release Notes posted on the NC SIS Release Highlights page.  Also, don’t forget to check out the PowerTeacher Pro Resources for teachers and administrators.

Please note: The next PowerTeacher Pro Cohort will begin in school year 2018-19 and will involve all schools/districts that did not migrate during the 2017-18 school year.  Because of system configurations that need to be in place prior to any conversion, NCDPI is not supporting any mid-year conversions to PowerTeacher Pro.

What's New in Truenorthlogic ...

Updates to NCEES Evaluation System

• Principals can now assign staff their evaluations plan type (Comprehensive, Abbreviated, or Standard). Note: Late Hire plan use is determined by the LEA/Charter. This will ensure that teachers are assigned to the correct evaluation plan at the beginning of the school year.
• All PDP plans are set at “Individual” by default. This will ensure that teachers are assigned to a PDP plan at the beginning of the school year. 
• NEW optional Peer Observer Role has been added to the Standard, Abbreviated, and Late Hire plans
• NEW Performance Journal (optional) -  has been added to all evaluation plans for the Principal/AP. It can be displayed and used during or outside of observations. Principals will be able to record notes from observations in the Performance Journal to help determine ratings.
• NEW function for Administration to create Staff Groups enabling easier staff group management and targeting. Staff groups can be used for targeting evaluations, observations, and courses. 
• NEW option for Administration to access Archived Plans in Administration Staff Management. This is a View Only function.

ASW has been discontinued for 2017-18 school year 

• The Analysis of Student Work Process to assess growth for Advanced Placement, Arts Education, Healthful Living, International Baccalaureate, and World Language courses has been eliminated by legislative action (Session Law 2017-57. Section 7.23E.(a)) beginning with the 2017-18 school year.
•  Due to budget cuts to the Department of Public Instruction, the paid component of the 2016-17 review process ended on June 23. A small cadre of reviewers worked to review the remaining Evidence Collections for CEU credit until July 31. The final decision as to whether the 2016-17 results will be released to teachers will be made by DPI leadership. There are no plans at this time to replace the ASW process. Teachers who formerly participated in the ASW process or locally developed plans will not have a growth measure moving forward. Teachers who participated in the ASW process will not receive school-level growth.
• Please send any questions to educatoreffectiveness@dpi.nc.gov

Online Professional Development

Online Professional Development will continue to offer quality professional development with flexible learning. Recently released self-paced modules include:

• North Carolina K-3 Formative Assessment Process for Teachers worth 1.0 CEU on completion. Literacy credit.
• Administrator Guide to Effective School Counseling and Evaluation 0.5 CEU on successful completion. 
• North Carolina K-3 Formative Assessment Process for Administrators worth 0.3 CEU on successful completion. Literacy credit.
• Digital Literacies 2: Visual Information Literacy worth 1.0 CEU on completion.
• Digital Literacies 1: Reading, Writing, and Research worth 1.2 CEU on completion.
• Instructional Strategies to Support K-3 Oral Language Development worth 1.0 CEU on completion. Literacy credit.

A complete list of online professional learning opportunities offered by Educator Effectiveness, NCDPI is available at http://rt3nc.org/