Eduphoria! 1 Question and Answer Document Eduphoria! Frequently Asked Questions

1. What are the different components/modules of the Eduphoria! system? Eduphoria! has multiple modules available for purchase, and EM-S ISD has purchased the entire suite. The following modules are tools for teachers:  Eduphoria! Aware: Data Management  Eudphoria! Forethought: Curriculum Management, Lesson and Team Planning  Eduphoria! PDAS: Teacher Appraisal Management  Eduphoria! Workshop: Professional Development Course Registration and Portfolio  Eduphoria! Helpdesk: Maintenance and Technology Workorder Request System

2. Will the in-district Curriculum Website still be available for use? We will keep the Curriculum server up until the 2009-2010 school year. Until 2009-2010, curriculum will reside in two places as we transition-- on the district server and on Eduphoria! Forethought

3. How will the components/modules be implemented? We implemented Eduphoria! Aware, PDAS, Workshop, and Helpdesk in 2008-2009 and will implement Forethought in 2009-2010. However, Forethought will be available for teachers to use and get acquainted with in the spring of 2008-2009.

4. Why are we waiting to implement over two years? The curriculum component requires more set up time at the district level and was not ready for launch at the same time as the other components. It also takes some time to train teachers on its use.

5. Did we just purchase a “canned” curriculum? Are we getting rid of all the curriculum we have been writing? No, we did not purchase a curriculum. Eduphoria! Forethought is a “shell” where our EM-S ISD curriculum will be housed and managed.

6. Why do we need to do this? What are the benefits of changing? Eduphoria! will allow teachers to:  Easily access curriculum from anywhere 24/7  Search and find curriculum by TEK, TAK, Topic, Unit or Content  Collaborate and plan online with department and team  Access timely student assessment data and graphs  Access exemplary activities and lessons  Drop and drag information into the lesson plan without having to type  Much, much more!

7. What will be required in Forethought? Eduphoria! 2 Question and Answer Document In the 2009-2010 school year teachers will be required to utilize the curriculum and lesson plan components of Eduphoria! Forethought. Other options within the program are recommended but not required.

8. Who will see my lesson plans? Your building principal will be monitoring your lesson plans electronically through the system. Directors and Central Office administrators can view teacher plans as well. A teacher can choose to share their plans with other teachers on the campus.

9. Will we have the ability to archive our lessons, materials, etc? Yes, teachers will have the ability to archive their lessons and materials in their own “lesson bank.” They can also choose to share lessons and materials with their team electronically.

10. Does this interface with Gradebook? No part of the eduphoria! system integrates with either elementary or secondary gradebooks.

11. Can I print if I want to? Yes, you can print whatever documents you would like to print from Eduphoria!

12. Will our curriculum be secure from unauthorized users? Yes. Only EMSISD teachers and staff can get into Eduphoria!

13. Will there be a contact person for every campus? Yes, your campus IT is your first level of support. You can also contact a district technology instructor or Susan Sutherland at [email protected].

14. Will the student data in Eduphoria! Aware house only current year data or will it house longitudinal (multi-year) data? The system will house longitudinal data for TAKS, EOC, Benchmarks, etc.

15. Will administrators be able to pull different reports than teachers will have access to? There will be reports and functions to Eduphoria! Aware that certain groups of people have access and others don’t. There are some reports that administrators have access to that teachers do not.

16. If some teachers are ready to start using the Curriculum in Eduphoria! Forethought, can they access it? Yes, our plan is to make the curriculum available both in Forethought and on the district server in February 2009. Any teachers that want to use Forethought will be welcome to do so. We will encourage teachers to navigate and try Forethought; however, the district curriculum server will still be up until the 2009-10 school year.

17. Can parents see my lesson plans? No, parents do not have access to Forethought, Aware or PDAS. This system will be password protected and housed on the intranet. Eduphoria! 3 Question and Answer Document

18. How can teachers add and share lesson plans to the system? There is a planning feature to Eduphoria! Forethought that allows teachers within and among grade levels on a campus to share lesson plans and do “virtual planning.” Lesson plans can be placed into a bank of model lessons through Eduphoria! for use district-wide.

19. Can Eduphoria! house videos and video streaming? Yes, these can be integrated into the units of study or lessons.