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T&L congratulates the winners of our 33rd annual Awards of Excellence program. You can find summaries of these winning products on the following pages, along with comments from our judges
SOFTWARE AND WEB-BASED: NEW PRODUCTS
ADVANCEfeedback
Insight Education Group
(www.insighteducationgroup.com/advance)
ADVANCEfeedback, powered by Insight Education Group, is a growth-centered human capital management system for teachers, coaches, and school leaders. The easy-to-use, cloud-based platform empowers every step of robust observation, evaluation, and professional learning processes, including both live and video-based observations, evidence and artifact integration, coaching, reporting, and scheduling. Judges cited the capability for administrators and teachers to use video in order to evaluate and improve practice as a standout feature. They also ranked ADVANCEfeedback as highly creative in terms of being the first video platform of its kind.
Bloomz App
Bloomz, Inc.
(www.bloomz.net)
Bloomz is a teacher communication app that provides real-time updates, event and volunteer coordination, and community building tools to engage with parents. Bloomz is built for the K-8 environment and enables teachers to save time in their communication with parents by easily sending messages, sharing pictures, scheduling parent-teacher conferences, and even signing up parents for volunteer opportunities. One judge noted that it was “very easy to get up to speed” on the app, and appreciated that Bloomz is available on the tablet, phone, and desktop. One judge added that the app could help “increase the flow of information from school to home and back again.”
SOFTWARE AND WEB-BASED: BEST UPGRADES
ClassFlow
Promethean
(www.classflow.com)
ClassFlow is a school system version of Promethean’s, cloud-based, interactive lesson delivery platform. Accessible from any device with an Internet connection, ClassFlow connects front-of-class displays, such as interactive whiteboards, flat panels, and projector systems, with individual student laptops and tablets to create a connected classroom where teachers can stimulate collaborative learning opportunities. ClassFlow for Schools brings together lesson creation and delivery with a range of features designed to take learning beyond the classroom and aggregate data from students’ progress against standards across an entire school or school system.
Tales2Go
Tales2Go Inc.
(www.tales2go.com)
Tales2Go is a Netflix-like subscription service that streams audio book titles from popular publishers to desktop, laptop, and mobile devices. Teachers can assign the same audio book to an entire class or grade. One judge found Tales2Go highly effective as an audio book platform, and thought it could help students with their comprehension skills, foster a love of reading, and boost listening skills in various ways.
HARDWARE AND NETWORK: NEW PRODUCTS
ActivPanel by Promethean
Promethean
(www.prometheanworld.com/activpanel)
Promethean’s ActivPanel interactive flat panel display modernizes the classroom by uniting vibrant HD images, lesson delivery software, and collaborative interactivity. The ActivPanel reveals brilliant colors and crisp details to boost readability. Students can actively participate in lessons at the display with just a swipe, pinch, or zoom. The intuitive interface provides a natural experience, whether writing with the digital pen or using multi-touch gestures. Judges raved over the quality of the ActivPanel and found it easy to get to grips with Promethean’s software. One judge added that the sturdy glass front allows students who are familiar with tablets to use the ActivPanel with ease, while teachers don’t need to worry about damage to the glass.
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