Tech Connect January 2025

To enhance communication during remote learning days, teachers can set up a phone call option for parents by creating a new meeting in Google Meet. By selecting "Create a meeting for later," teachers will receive both a Google Meet video link and a dial-in number with a PIN. This dial-in number is especially important as it allows parents and students to connect via audio only, making it accessible for those who may not have reliable internet access. Having this option during remote learning ensures that parents can reach out with any urgent questions or concern.

Another option would be to create a Calendar Event and invite your students using their DCS email, as it will automatically generate Google Meet information.

Remember that our Zoom subscriptions have expired and we only have 40 minutes available for meetings on Zoom. However, we do have Google Meet and Microsoft still available to us!

Google Meet Key Features

• High-Quality Video and Audio: Provides up to 1080p video quality with advanced audio processing for clear communication.

• Screen Sharing: Users can share their entire screen, specific windows, or Chrome tabs during meetings.

• Real-Time Captions: Offers live captions to improve accessibility for participants.

• Integration with Google Workspace: Seamlessly connects with Gmail, Google Calendar, and other Google services for easy scheduling and collaboration.

• Host Controls: Allows meeting hosts to manage participant permissions, mute attendees, and control screen sharing options.

• Virtual Backgrounds and Noise Cancellation: Users can customize backgrounds and utilize noise reduction features to minimize distractions.

Microsoft Teams Key Features

• Chat Functionality: Supports both individual and group messaging, allowing users to easily transition from chat to video calls.

• Breakout Rooms: Enables smaller group discussions within larger meetings for enhanced collaboration.

• Meeting Recordings and Transcripts: Allows users to record meetings for future reference, with automatic transcription services available.

• Customizable Backgrounds: Users can blur or change backgrounds during video calls to reduce distractions.

• Polling Feature: Facilitates quick decision-making by allowing users to create polls within meetings or chats.

• Integration with Microsoft 365: Works seamlessly with other Microsoft applications like Word, Excel, and OneDrive, enhancing productivity across the platform.

Home Base's next Schoolnet Training Webinar will be focused on Technology Enhanced Items (TEI). This session will provide participants with the essential skills to create, modify, and locate TEI within the Schoolnet platform. Attendees will learn about the various types of technology-enhanced items, their applications in assessments, and best practices for effective implementation. Whether you are a seasoned user or new to Schoolnet, this webinar will enhance your understanding and usage of TEIs to improve student engagement and assessment quality. Don't miss this opportunity to elevate your assessment strategies!

When: Monday, January 13 from 4:00pm - 5:00pm

As educators, you're always looking for ways to streamline your work and enhance your teaching. NotebookLM, an AI-powered tool for research and note-taking, could be a game-changer for you. This innovative tool can help you efficiently gather and organize information for lesson planning and professional development, saving you valuable time. Its summarization feature can quickly condense educational materials or student work, allowing you to review content more effectively. With Google Drive integration, you can easily share and collaborate with colleagues on curriculum development or departmental projects. NotebookLM also helps you keep your notes and research organized, which is crucial when managing multiple classes and subjects. By streamlining these processes, you'll have more time for what really matters - direct student interaction and instruction. While it's not related to Google Meet's call-in option, NotebookLM could be a valuable addition to your teaching toolkit, helping you work smarter, not harder.

Scenes allow you to create customized sets of rules for student browsing, which can be applied to your classroom sessions. By setting up a scene, you can control which websites students can access during class, ensuring they stay on task and minimizing distractions. For instance, you can create a testing environment where only the test-related webpages are accessible, or automatically open specific tabs needed for a lesson, like a Google Doc or an educational article. This not only helps keep students focused but also saves valuable instructional time by eliminating the need for students to manually search for resources. Additionally, scenes can be tailored to different groups within the same class, allowing for differentiated instruction and resource allocation. Overall, using scenes in GoGuardian empowers you to create a more organized and effective digital learning environment.

** PLEASE MAKE SURE ON REMOTE LEARNING DAYS THAT YOU TURN OFF YOUR SCENES & SCHEDULES **

• Create a “Heads Up” game.
  (5 MINUTE HOW-TO VIDEO - BINGO AND HEADS UP)

• 1. Ask Magic School’s Raina chatbot or SchoolAI’s CoTeacher chatbot for a list of terms and 1 sentence descriptions to be exported in table format.

• 2. Copy/ paste table to Google Sheets to save it. (Example)

• 3. Copy/ paste table to Quizlet’s flashcards creator. (Example)

• 4. Play by projecting terms on the screen behind the student.

Make sure to regularly check the DCS AI Dashboard, as it is frequently updated with new information regarding Generative AI in our schools and available resources. There have been several updates and additions to the Dashboard in the last few weeks. This dashboard serves as a valuable tool for staying informed about the latest developments, best practices, and guidelines related to the use of AI technologies in education. By keeping up with these updates, you can better understand how to effectively integrate Generative AI into your teaching and support your students’ learning experiences.

** A link to the DCS AI Dashboard can be found on ClassLink **

Sue Tobin - suetobin@davidson.k12.nc.us

Allyson Medlin - amedlin@davidson.k12.nc.us

Libby Moretz - libbymoretz@davidson.k12.nc.us

** Libby is out on Maternity Leave until Mid-March, please contact Sue or Allyson **

Listed below are the schools that each of us serve - please feel free to reach out to us!