Renaissance Learning Acquires UClass

Dear UClass Users and Supporters,

UClass was started in a Brooklyn basement by a couple of teachers in 2012 and today we are thrilled to announce that we have been acquired by Renaissance Learning, the world leader in K12 assessment and learning analytics.

Over the last three years, we have worked with thousands of educators who work tirelessly each day to open opportunities for students. You are our inspiration. We believe that you are the forces for change in schools and our mission is to continue to serve you and your students. Adding Renaissance’s data to UClass’s district content is a powerful combination that will significantly increase our ability to support you in your choice of the right content at the right learning moment for your students.

It has been our honor to work with you and we couldn’t be more thrilled that we will get to continue to do so with Renaissance Learning, a company that has a 28 year history of putting teachers first.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts,
Zak Ringelstein and the UClass Team

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Learn more from the press release below

Announcing 2 New Search & Sharing Features

UClass has just rolled out 2 new features on its platform! Take a look at what we’ve added to make searching and sharing resources even snappier.

Search “My Resources”

If your UClass file system is full of resources and you’re having trouble keeping track of your own authored materials–don’t worry, we’ve got you covered! As part of advanced search, UClass users can narrow search results to their own created resources. Simply select “My Resources” as the source in the left-most advanced search dropdown!

“Request Access” to Shared Folders

We’re taking folder sharing and collaboration a step further with our newly added folder dropdown option. Say hello to the new “Request Access” option! For a shared folder to which you have view-only access, you can now ask the folder’s owner for editing permissions. Once you are granted editing capabilities, feel free to adjust the shared folder’s contents. Just remember, all changes made to the shared folder will also appear for all other recipients.

7 (CCSS-Aligned) Ways to Honor Black History Month in Your Classroom

It’s February–which means Black History Month has arrived! Since, at UClass, we’re all about connecting great educators with great content, we want to take this opportunity to share a handful of our favorite resources in honor of African American history.

Check out these hand-picked, Common Core aligned resources and take ’em straight to the classroom! Enjoy!

 1. African American World: Timeline

Walk through African American history from the 1400s to modern day with this interactive timeline, complete with more than 50 supporting resource links!

Standard(s): RH.6-8.7
Grade Level (s): Grades 6-8

2. Contrasting Philosophies: MLK vs. Malcolm X (Complete Lesson)

Compare and contrast the philosophies of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. during the Civil Rights Movement. Enclosed with the teacher lesson plan and student materials is a PowerPoint presentation of images from the era.

Author: Meghan Sullivan, High School French and World History, Ohio
Standard(s): RH.9-10.1, RH.9-10.2
Grade Level (s): Grade 9, Grade 10

3. Nelson Mandela: How He Changed the World (Complete Lesson)

Follow the legacy of revolutionary politician and philanthropist, Nelson Mandela, with a comprehensive lesson package including a lesson plan, student materials, videos, and assessments.

Author: Meghan Sullivan, High School French and World History, Ohio
Standard(s): RI.9-10.4, RH.9-10.2, RH.9-10.3
Grade Level (s): Grade 9, Grade 10

4. A Class Divided (Complete Lesson)

Engage students in an experiment that explores the effects of segregation. This interactive lesson includes includes a supplemental PowerPoint presentation, videos, and reflection questions.

Author: Cynthia Weber, Elementary School, Michigan
Standard(s): SL.1.1a, SL.1.1b, SL.2.1c, SL.2.4
Grade Level (s): Grade 1, Grade 2

5. Ruby Bridges Remembers

Watch the now-grown Ruby Bridges recount her experience as the first black child attending an all-white elementary school. Along with this student-run video interview is an accompanying nonfiction text, Ruby Bridges Remembers.

Standard(s): CCRA.SL.3
Grade Level (s): Grades K-12

6. Symbolism in The Negro Speaks of Rivers

Analyze the symbolism in Langston Hughes’ poem, The Negro Speaks of Rivers, as you watch this poetic segment of the A Walk Through Harlem video series.

Standard(s): RL.9-10.4
Grade Level (s): Grade 9, Grade 10

7. What Would Harriet Do? (Complete Lesson)

Highlight the work of Harriet Tubman and the Human Bill of Rights by asking “What Would Harriet Do?” and using this assembled pack of resources.

Author: Jessica Lura, Middleschool ELA and curriculum administrator, California
Standard(s): RH.6-8.7,RI.8.10, SL.8.4, SL.8.5, WHST.6-8.2, WHST.6-8.8,WHST.6-8.9
Grade Level (s): Grades 6-8

 

Districts subscribed to UClass can access millions more resources like these in addition to pooling their own content in a customized district resource bank! Visit UClass.io to find out more.

Why Students in 2015 Crave Multimedia

It’s 2015 and classrooms have been conquered by a new wave of digital natives who crave fresh new means of retaining knowledge. With wireless media already at their fingertips, today’s students need learning environments that are just as stimulating as their daily fix of social media–if not more!

According to the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning, students have a limited amount of real estate in their working memory and they retain more when both auditory and visual channels of information processing are stimulated. A series of studies published in a 1992 edition of Multimedia and Videodisc Monitor adds that use of interactive multimedia shortens instructional learning curves by 60%. Compared to students in a conventional textbook lecture-style classroom, content retention for students who received interactive video instruction increased by 25-50% over a period of three to six months.

The bottom line for teachers here is that bolstering instruction with interactive multimedia achieves far greater learning results than verbal delivery teaching alone. Unfortunately, when it comes to varying media in our own classrooms, maintaining a birds-eye view of this is easier said than done. This is precisely why at UClass, we integrated a simple resource type pie chart into our suite of analytic tools. Use the pie chart of most used file types to track what resources your lessons are missing and fill in the gaps with content that your students will always remember!

Forbes Features UClass CEO as a Game Changer in Education

We’re kicking off the new year and doing it right! UClass CEO, Zak Ringelstein, has been selected for Forbes’ 2015 30 Under 30 list of influential names in education. The exclusive list highlights men and women in twenty varying industries who are already trailblazers before the age of thirty. Check out the list in the latest edition of Forbes Magazine or just click on the image below!

UClass Visits San Francisco School for Hour of Code

We just couldn’t pass up an opportunity to make a second appearance for the worldwide Hour of Code event! Last Thursday, the UClass development team paid a visit to San Francisco’s Creative Arts Charter School and inspired students with the magic of computer science programming. We led hour-long intro-to-coding sessions for two classrooms of ambitious sixth grade students and we’re elated to say, the event was a great success!

Students, regardless of prior coding experience, engaged in partner coding activities. We were glad to see participating students strategically deconstructing problems and experimenting with variables. By the end, we had an overwhelming number of students eagerly requesting further learning resources, which we were more than happy to provide!

Our experiences with Creative Arts Charter as well as Vermont Hour of Code have been incredibly rewarding! We are honored to have had the chance to spark new interests for students we met!

UClass 2014: A Year in Review

It’s been an incredibly eventful year for us here at UClass and we’re sad to see it come to an end. To sum up 2014, we’ve compiled a visual timeline of major events from this year. Take a look and relive this amazing year with us! And to the upcoming year ahead of us, we’re excited and ready for you!

 

For more information:

• Winter: Patnerships with Larkspur- Corte Madera, Richland and Isaac Begin
• Feb 15: UClass Teacher Board has its First Retreat in San Francisco
• Spring: Partnership with Aspire Public Schools Begins
• Spring: UClass Begins Hosting Over 16 Million OER Resources
• Summer: Reach $1 Million in Funding
• Jul 26: UClass Goes on Company Team Retreat to Yosemite
• Aug 27: Launch of UClass Curriculum Analytics
• Fall: Partnership with KIPP Begins
• Fall: SETDA Leadership Summit & National Education Week
• October: Curriculum Analytics Study
• Nov 11: New Homepage
• Dec 11: Launch of Analytics 1.5

UClass Participates in Hour of Code

Last Friday, UClass had the great pleasure of participating in Vermont’s Hour of Code Guest Speaker Series. Sponsored by the Agency of Education, Vita-Learning, and  Vermont’s Google Educator Group, the web conference video series features an array of inspirational figures in tech. Hour of Code is designed to expose students to the wonders of computer science and we were excited that we could play our part for the event. This week UClass will also be making a couple classroom appearances for Hour of Code at Creative Arts Charter School in San Francisco, California!

Click here to view our session!

Analytics Version 1.5 has Arrived!

Today, UClass released the newest version of Analytics! Get excited because along with this updated version of UClass come tons of new metric-centered features. Hooray, they made it here just in time for the holidays! Our team is dedicated to providing you with the most comprehensive curriculum assessment tool out there. Check out what we’ve added:

 

CCSS Coverage

Here, you get a bird’s-eye view of which standards have been covered. This data informs teachers and administrators of gaps in content and of areas to better invest in instruction and attention. Click into your coverage chart to navigate deeper into your covered subjects.

 

Multi-District Comparison

If your network includes multiple user groups, compare them all in one comprehensive graph. We now track downloads as well as views under the “Usage” category.

 

Metric-Integrated Info View

We pulled in valuable metrics directly into folder and resource info options! For all of your shared items, you can see who they have been shared with and the percentage of users who have viewed them.

 

Admin Panel Analytics

Our admin panel now displays basic user metrics, which you can use to filter and sort search results. Identify your most active users within your network.

 

Individual User Report

Individual reports provide an in-depth analysis of how users within your district use UClass. Identify user behavioral trends with custom time range graphs.

UClass Partners With Studentreasures to Inspire Young Authors

UClass has partnered with Studentreasures Publishing to help encourage student-published literature!

Studentreasures established its name over the last 25 years by partnering with nearly 400,000 teachers to create millions of young authors through its free book publishing program. An industry leader in school publishing, Studentreasures has chosen and contracted 3 of our UClass Teacher Board members to craft Common Core aligned book publishing lessons. Now available on UClass and Studentreasures website alike, these lessons have been designed to present an authentic hands-on means for teaching Common Core ELA standards.

Take a look at what our participating Teacher Board members have been working on and create your classroom of published authors! To view all of the lessons, Click Here.

Thankful for American Citizenship Book Project

This I believe Book Project

Nationwide Learning Book Kit

The Best Day Ever