Many schools have signed up for our Adaptemy pilot programme for Junior Cert maths since the beginning of term, with 23 new signups last week ahead of the closing date for applications as we enter the final stage of the pilot. These teachers hit the ground running and have been busy setting up their classrooms and learning how to use the system’s basic features, which often remain central to the toolkits of more experienced users. The midterm break gives teachers a chance to step back and assess where they are in terms of progress for the year, and teachers who are using the Adaptemy system can use this headspace to explore some of its more complex features. Learning how to use features such as the teacher dashboard, assignments, and reports will allow both new and experienced teachers to get the most from their Adaptemy experience.
Teacher dashboard
While the teacher dashboard is an essential feature of the Adaptemy system, teachers may find this method of classroom management to be quite strange at first. The dashboard is designed to be monitored by the teacher throughout the class, indicating which students are struggling and allowing the teacher to give their help where it’s needed most. As such, getting used to monitoring the dashboard rather than walking around the classroom can take time. Teachers should take the time to set up their classes and ensure that each student can be easily identified by their nickname on the system. Notice that the dashboard displays each student’s login status and alerts the teacher to those who need assistance. The teacher dashboard is an essential feature of the Adaptemy system, and learning how to use it properly will increase the system’s effectiveness and ease of use.
Assignments
Many of our teachers have reported that the assignments feature is particularly useful, and familiarising yourself with different types of assignments will improve the Adaptemy experience for you and your students. Assignments can be set in terms of minutes spent on a task or concepts completed, and experimenting with these options will allow teachers to find the right balance for their class. Teachers who have set assignments to be completed over the break can monitor their students’ progress. Setting assignments encourages students to log in and keep working at home, and weekly assignments should be treated like traditional homework that must be completed between Adaptemy sessions. The assignments feature allows teachers to set tasks and monitor student progress, encouraging students to use the system at home.
Reports
The Adaptemy system is far from a black box, and reports give teachers an insight into their students’ progress and improvement. Teachers can choose a particular timeframe and monitor each student’s activity, including the amount of time they have spent on the system and how many concepts they have completed. This information is also presented graphically and can be used as a basis for discussion with parents or as an indication of which topics to focus on after the break. Teachers should familiarise themselves with the reports feature as soon as possible and continue to use reports throughout the year in order to follow the progress of each student as they become experienced users of the Adaptemy system.
The teacher dashboard, assignments, and reports are essential features of the Adaptemy system, and taking the time this midterm break to understand how to get the most out of these features will benefit teachers and their students. We wish our new teachers the very best of luck as they begin to work on the system – don’t hesitate to contact us for more information, and tweet us @adaptemy or post to our Facebook page to let us know your tips!
