Adaptive Learning through the Eyes of an Educator: Using Effective Tools

My goal of this post is to hone in on and explain how teachers can use Dreambox to their fullest potential. I am hoping to find more computer based programs that are as beneficial as Dreambox. This past year  I learned about the Dreambox Dashboard. The Dashboard is an account for educators to use to assist in making meaningful lessons. There is a plethora of information that can be obtained by regularly monitoring the Dashboard. The are tools that equip an educator to be more effective. 

The Dashboard informs an educator the following: 

• The standards where students are showing success
• The standards where students are showing difficulty
• Amount of lessons completed and the amount of time to complete
• The number of times a lesson is repeated
• The amount of time spent on games vs. learning
• Suggested areas of review
• Allows educators to assign individual standards
• Gives educators videos to help explain the concept the students are learning

The features listed help hold the students accountable for their learning. The information allows me to support students in their learning. The captioned screenshots below give more information of what useful information is in the Dashboard.

The assign focus feature allows an educator to assign a specific standard to hone in on and practice. 

A student has been unsuccessful with this standard so, I can play the lesson and see where I can support the learner.

This is class data and sorted by standard. The green circle is a successful completed standard. The half circles are in progress and the blank circles have not been attempted yet.

The learner completed this lesson five times and has spent 2 minutes on the lesson. That being said, this student has shown mastery with this standard and would benefit to move on to the next standard. 

The tools help educators complete to following: 

• increase intervention effectiveness: you can track progress and see where students progress vs. the expectation. This in turn, gives information needed for meaningful instruction. 
• The AssignFocus tool allows for differentiated material for every student: with a click of a mouse, you can assign the standards needed. Click here to learn how Dreambox differentiates the instruction and how a teacher uses that information.
• Track progress through the standards: my screenshot shows only the completed of the second grade standards. That being said, I can track progress with any grade level. Academic levels vary in the classroom and I may have students complete first grade or fourth grade standards depending on the student. The students are supported and challenged accordingly to their need (Dreambox, 2018). Click here for a more in depth overview of the dashboard. 

References

Dreambox (2018). Reporting Features. Retrieved from http://www.dreambox.com/reporting