Indiana Department of Education Acquires smartDESKTOP

Web-based service for teachers to be integrated with Department’s P-20 data initiative

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - The Indiana Department of Education and The Learning Collaborative, an affiliate of the Indiana Humanities Council, today announced the transfer from the IHC to the IDOE of the smartDESKTOP service for teachers. The smartDESKTOP, developed with support from the Lilly Endowment, is a suite of web-based tools for teachers launched in 2005 offering online resources in the areas of instruction, collaboration, curriculum development and student assessment.

“Bringing the smartDESKTOP on board marks an important step in our ongoing efforts to offer teachers the tools they need to be effective in their classrooms,” observed State Superintendent of Public Instruction Suellen Reed. “The smartDESKTOP serves as a welcome complement to our existing resources as we develop additional services that support student achievement in the future.”

Approximately 6,500 educators across the state already have smartDESKTOP accounts and several schools are using advanced subscription-only features. Additionally, a growing number of education-focused organizations and university projects use the smartDESKTOP to collaborate with classroom teachers. Indiana teachers are encouraged to request accounts at: http://www.smartdesktop.org.

 “We are excited about this new homeroom for the smartDESKTOP and believe that the Department will build on the successful foundation by expanding access and providing long-term sustainability for a service on which many Indiana educators depend,” said Larry Rowland, chairman of The Learning Collaborative and Indiana Humanities Council Board of Directors. “This move underscores the Department’s commitment to provide schools with a robust set of 21st century teaching tools.”

All current features provided by the smartDESKTOP will continue when the service officially transfers to the Department of Education on Nov. 1. Other education initiatives of the Indiana Humanities Council, including the Resource Connection, a database of teaching and learning resources representing approximately 70 state and national organizations producing content for teachers and students, will not be transferred. The Resource Connection collection can be viewed at: http://resource.smartdesktop.org. These resources will continue to be available to teachers through the smartDESKTOP.

For more information about the smartDESKTOP, please contact Dr. John Keller (jbkeller@doe.state.in.us). For more information on the Resource Connection or other programs of the Indiana Humanities Council, visit http://www.indianahumanities.org or contact Catherine O’Connor (mcoconno@iupui.edu).

Source: Indiana Department of Education

Technorati Tags: News State Education Government Indiana Department of Education - IDOE Indiana Humanities Council - IHC Larry Rowland smartDESKTOP Suellen Reed

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