This Saturday, June 28, kicks off the four-day ISTE 2014 conference and we’re happy to share some exciting stories about how people are using OneNote in education. Today we take a look at how the teachers at Cary Academy in Cary, North Carolina, seamlessly integrate OneNote into their classrooms to elevate the education of students through presentation, organization, and real-time collaboration with both students and other educators.
Leslie Williams, a seventh grade mathematics teacher, uses OneNote extensively in her classroom. It serves as her main presentation tool. She projects her OneNote notebook directly onto her classroom’s smart board so students can follow along as she works out problems using the inking feature on her all-in-one device. During class, students have the same OneNote notebook open on their devices and work the problems alongside their teacher. After class, she shares her notebook – with the completed problems – with the students so they can refer to the day’s work as they’re completing homework or reviewing for tests.
In addition to sharing their OneNote notebooks with students, teachers have access to all their students’ OneNote notebooks for class. Homework collection has become a thing of the past at Cary Academy. Now, students complete assignments in OneNote, and teachers at can simply access their notebook, check that the work was completed, and provide immediate feedback.
The ability to see students’ notebooks also allows teachers to keep an unobtrusive eye on any student who is having trouble. The teacher can easily access the student’s notebook at any time, in class, or at home, to check on progress, offer encouragement and guidance, and correct problems. It serves as a great way to help students who are struggling without making their peers aware.
OneNote is also an amazing tool for the faculty to use amongst itself. Sixth grade teachers Katie Moore and Matthew Ripley-Moffit teach a shared history and social studies curriculum. OneNote allows them to collaborate on lesson plans and assignments, put together reviews, and tests.
If they are developing a new lesson on China’s Silk Road, for example, Ms. Moore can create and insert a lesson framework with in-class presentations and reading assignments. Mr. Ripley-Moffit can instantly see what she’s done, and offer his thoughts about in-class activities and group projects, which are automatically saved in the shared notebook. The teachers can continue to collaborate on developing the final parts of the plan together, in real time, from their own classrooms or homes.
OneNote is a great tool for one-to-one learning environments but teachers in more traditional classrooms can use OneNote as well. Having lesson plans together in a single, easily editable format lets teachers spend less time recreating the wheel week after week, year after year and more time teaching and inspiring students.
Watch the video to see how the faculty at Cary Academy is using OneNote to enhance their classrooms and make learning more engaging, inclusive, and responsive. Then, visit OneNote.com to try using OneNote to do some of the things shown in the video and described here.