1001JounalEntry

As the industries become more in tune with the advantages and added value of technology, by adopting slick new computer products aimed at the consumer market, items like the Iphone, Ipad and the software used to run them, sophisticated computer products are finally trickling down to education.

One of the more helpful computer tools that we employ at SeaCoast is Plato, an online learning environment used by students to make up credits for courses they failed to pass during the regular school year.

Plato is a useful computer tool that provides challenging courseware for students to master through comprehensive written and graphical tutorials, practice tests and, finally, end of section and course tests to prove mastery of the material.

Plato, when employed to review material previously taken in an instructor-led class, seems a competent tutor for most students to help to review or even relearn important concepts.

And for advanced students, Plato can be used to take additional subjects in areas where there is no existing teaching faculty, like Spanish or Art History.

In order for students to get maximum benefit to be effective, Plato demands a particular methodology. Students must read through the tutorials, take notes and pass the mastery tests, identifying areas that may need a relook, then repeating all or part of the tutorial.  While time consuming, this process is necessary for material comprehension.

During summer school, for the past two years, scores of RHS students have enrolled and, using this method, have breezed through multiple failed assignments in a few weeks.

For the past 3 years, SeaCoast High School has had much success offering Plato as an option. A few students have even completed up to a dozen courses to help them meet graduation requirements.

However, recently I have noticed a deviation from this methodology in Plato class. Rather than read (or even listen to) the tutorials, SeaCoast students are trying to "google" or find the answers to the tests by querying various websites including AskJeeves or Ask.Com, ultimately spending even more time to complete sections that they would have no trouble finishing otherwise. As a result, students are not comprehending the material, merely filling in the answers.

I have decided to implement the following changes during Plato class:

• Periodically run a Plato report which details how much time they spend on certain sections.
• Conference with students weekly to identify which sections they are currently working on in Plato and which sections they complete during the class time frame.
  

I will be eager to monitor if these changes will help keep students on track, making them more accountable for their daily activity in Plato class and providing data which I can use to analyze their status, both predicting progress and anticipating problems before they arise.