1:1 Supplement
Providing Supplemental Resources During the Pandemic to a 1:1 District
Case Study Background
Mildred ISD is a small school district located in Corsicana, Texas serving 750 students. Located 50 miles south of Dallas, the district transitioned fully to one-to-one devices in early 2020. Following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, they struggled to provide the resources needed by teachers to make the transition to teaching digitally.
Gwen McCluney
Instructional Materials Coordinator
Instructional Materials Coordinator Gwen McCluney worked with Boardworks to address low adoption rates of existing digital hardware and platforms by teachers. This gave them a toolset that was easy to use, quick to implement, and supportive of how they were teaching at the time.
The Challenge
McCluney sought a solution that would help address challenges with the transition to being a 1:1 school district while still relying on an older curriculum.
“At the beginning of 2020, following a bond election that allowed us to shift to 1:1 so quickly, we made a major push to Google Classroom. The result was a hodgepodge of expectations and resources that many teachers struggled with. A lot of our curriculum was old as well, so when we were presented with Boardworks, we knew it was a good fit, covering both the digital need for materials and helping fill that gap with older curriculum materials.”
“Without access to classroom materials and tools that our teachers were accustomed to using before the pandemic, including whiteboards and hands-on manipulatives, teachers lacked the visuals and tools needed to support their lessons. Teachers were required to populate Google Classroom with materials, but textbooks were older and digital supplements in Flash were no longer supported, so many teachers struggled to find high-quality TEKs aligned content for this purpose.”
The Solution
“We needed a resource that was easy to use and required minimal or no professional development to implement. With the abrupt transition to a remote learning environment, Boardworks became the best pre-COVID purchase our district had made. It benefitted us immensely when everything shut down.”
“We were not prepared for the range of digital tools and resources our teachers needed to have when COVID hit. We scrambled to meet their needs, and Boardworks was a perfect fit. Our teachers could readily access Boardworks and didn’t require extensive training on how it works. It was exactly what we needed at that time. This was something easy that we could give them and know would be used immediately. All they had to do was log in and search for what they needed and they were set.”
“The biggest selling point for us was the ease of use. Our teachers did not have to prepare anything and could customize presentations if needed to fit their specific needs. Seeing these two features made Boardworks the right fit for our needs. The ability to customize presentations and the amount of content provided helped solve the massive problem we had of providing a digital component for every subject area that was interactive and engaging. Now we have what we need.”
Gwen McCluney, Instructional Materials Coordinator
Implementation
The Results
“As we’ve returned to the classroom, we’ve seen a ‘COVID slide’ for many students, and Boardworks has been very helpful in addressing it. For example, one of our sixth-grade math teachers could go back to Boardworks and pull a fifth-grade math presentation addressing the items some of their students missed and either do a review or reteach or a first time teach of that material without having to create new lesson materials from scratch. It offers a means to go back and refresh or reteach, and to ensure all students have a presentation that can be shared with them regardless of where they are.
“Teachers have commented repeatedly on how easy Boardworks is to use. They can search for whatever they need quickly and easily and get it to their kids right away to make an impact. They can focus on teaching and ensuring students have what they need to improve.”
“Boardworks was a huge help for us in addressing teacher stress levels. Because they didn’t have to go out and search for resources – they were all right there on their computer screen – they had what they needed when they needed it. We have a new math teacher, for example, teaching many concepts for the first time, so Boardworks has given her something extra she can use that’s interactive and engaging. It just makes it easier for teachers to connect with their kids.”
“Not only did our new math teacher benefit from Boardworks this year, but our Chemistry and Physic teacher was able to replace all of the digital components for her textbook when Adobe Flash was no longer available. She now has something that teaches those same concepts without needing Flash which is a big support for her.”