|
|
|
|
Peoria Unified School District
|
The Peoria Unified School District uses Microsoft® Windows Media® and Microsoft Producer for PowerPoint® 2002 to train its teachers and staff and to facilitate rich media creation for the classroom. The district has saved $250,000 in training costs and has improved the process of
|
|
learning how to use new software and devices for staff and teachers. Students benefit from receiving enhanced classroom instruction, and learn to create their own rich media content using Microsoft tools.
With 28 elementary schools, 5 high schools, and an annual budget of $250 million dollars, the Peoria Unified School District (PUSD) in Glendale, Arizona, is the fourth largest school district in Arizona. PUSD employs more than 3,000 teachers and staff and currently enrolls approximately 35,000 elementary and high school students.
Deploying educational technology tools that will improve student outcomes and employee efficiency is the mission of PUSDs Department of Technology. Currently each classroom has a teacher workstation; the elementary schools include a K-6th grade technology lab and 7th-8th grade technology lab; and each high school is equipped with four to five technology labs. All desktops and labs are rich with software and devices.
To better utilize the tools available in labs and on workstations, the district needed to find a simple and cost-effective way to train teachers and staff to use new technologies. In addition to training, PUSD wanted to provide tools to teachers, students, and district staff that would facilitate the use of rich media in the classroom and community.
 Back to the top
PUSD is using Microsoft Windows Media and Microsoft Producer for PowerPoint 2002 to provide on-demand instruction to teachers and staff. The Technology Products, Services and Training division, within the Information Management and Technology Department (IMT), is responsible for testing and deploying streaming media services as well as for providing technical training to district staff.
IMT uses Windows Media to produce technical training modules called Smallest Learning Objects (SLO). An SLO uses quick text instruction and video demonstration to give the user directions on how to complete a particular task. For example, an SLO on Microsoft Outlook® 2000 and Microsoft Windows® 2000 answers questions such as ‘How do I create a Contact?’ or ‘How do I create a folder?’. These small lessons are very popular with staff and teachers, who can easily access them through the districts training Web site and view the video segments using Microsoft Windows Media Player 7.1.
To create an SLO, the IMT staff uses SnagIt, a third-party product, for full motion screen capture, and then uses the Windows Media Encoder 7.01 to convert the AVI files to Windows Media Video files.
IMT also uses Microsoft Producer to enhance training content. A few recent examples include tutorials on how to use the SMART Board Interactive Whiteboard, the Mimio electronic whiteboard, and a CD duplicator tower.
In addition to training, Windows Media is being used by teachers and students who are incorporating rich media into classroom instruction and projects.
To facilitate the creation of multimedia, IMT set up a media production center. During the previous school year, 40 to 50 teachers used the media server to publish presentations, and students and staff have used it to access and view streaming media content. Staff members can use the hardware and software, including Windows Media Encoder, Microsoft Producer, and other video editing software. Equipment is available to capture analog video to a digital format, plus the center provides software for editing and adding special effects to digital videos.
In 2000, PUSD implemented its eSchool program, an online learning system from Blackboard, Inc. and customized by the district. Teachers can use eSchool to create and publish online learning units that incorporate rich media content.
Second grade teacher Jeannette McCaleb says, "I've used digital video in my eSchool unit about Australian animals. Students are able to access video clips to add to their learning experiences." McCaleb used Windows Media to encode the video, and included this lesson in her eSchool unit where it is viewed using the Windows Media Player.
Students are creating rich media content as well. For example, students from Ironwood High School visited Ground Zero and created a video called ‘Teen Talk in New York: The Unity Issue,’ about the events of September 11, 2001. Incorporating still photos, news clips from the day, music, interviews with firefighters, and clips showing students making and distributing unity bracelets at Ground Zero and New York schools, the video is streamed from the district Web site. A sample of the video is available at the link above.
In addition, streaming media is used to promote district events and programs such as the annual back to school event.
Back to the top
Peoria Unified School District expects substantial learning benefits to result from making rich media applications and technologies available to staff, teachers, and students. According to Ladd Bausch, director of Technology Products, Services and Training, "Windows Media and Producer give us the tools to do things we otherwise could not do. For example, we estimate that using live, instructor-led classes to deliver the technology training we now provide online would cost the school district an additional $250,000 each school year—far outside our instruction budget. Digital media not only stretches our resources, it also enables effective teaching and leaning in creative new ways."
Using Windows Media and Microsoft Producer to provide training on new technologies means that fewer trainers are required, content can be viewed anytime from work or home, and a wider range of training objectives can be met.
"I have found Producer to be a very easy application to use. Plus, our staff members have found Producer rich media presentations to be a convenient alternative to traditional, live training sessions," says Cindy Callaway, Technology Products, Services and Training Specialist.
Students benefit from enhanced classroom experiences, and more teachers are beginning to adopt this methodology. "The Arts Education Department is currently piloting the use of multimedia images in its computer generated electronic lessons. This technology allows our arts students to view clips of actual musicians, actors, and dancers instead of still photos accompanied by music on a tape or CD. Students are much more interested in the learning process if teachers are able to use current rather than old technology," says Art Experiences Coordinator Ron Gordon.
Music teachers can take advantage of the sensory stimulus rich media provides. "Digital video allows my students the opportunity to view and hear musical performances within the framework of an interactive, online lesson," says Tatia Key, a K-8th grade music teacher. "The videos make the lesson more meaningful, while the format allows students to work at their own pace."
Back to the top
This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.
© 2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
Microsoft, Windows, and Windows Media are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
Back to the top
|
|
|
