• June marks the month of the newest CPS software update, and is it ever going to be good! The new release will be much more user friendly and will be the boldest update yet!

  Our newsletter will be taking a summer break, so you won't receive a full Enlighten issue until August, but we will be sending you a reminder when the new version of CPS is finally released in June.

  Make sure to get your computer updated with the new version, so that you are ready to hit the ground running when school starts!

• Please keep the residents of Greensburg, KS in your thoughts and prayers. They are a town about 70 miles west of where we live and their town, including their schools, were decimated by an F5 tornado on May 4th.

• Teaching Area and Perimeter Using Google Earth
• Don't Forget...ExamView/CPS Special Is Ending June 30,2007!
• 100+ Web 2.0 Ideas for Educators
• Web 2.0...the Machine is Us/ing Us
• ExamView Question Bank Exchange

...EVERY teacher I have taught how to use the RF clickers now wants to use them and are stunned by their effectiveness (that's why there is a waiting line now!). (A colleague) came back to me on Thursday after I set him up and after one use said, "Gary, that was very humbling!. I found out that the kids did not know as much as I thought and I now know where to concentrate my reteaching." Being a good professional, he did just that and saw great results. For a teacher that has about as many years of experience as I do, I thought that was a very telling experience. I am afraid to show them to anyone else or I will never get them back!

I am not overstating anything when I say these are the most powerful pedagogical tool I have seen in 40 years of teaching. NO kid can remain passive. They must participate (anonymously to their peers but not to me) and I should take a picture of the kids' faces when we are going over the questions and they are participating and competing! It is not uncommon for me to get a 60% cumulative class score the first time around on new/difficult concepts and then 97% - 100% the second time with only 5 seconds to respond. Not only that, but I can pause after every question and reteach the misconception (or missed concept) the kids have right on the spot. Asking, "Are there any questions?" to passive teenagers isn't cutting it anymore!

I gave a quiz yesterday after a clicker review and the average paper and pencil score was 94%+ (some of the kids are still uneasy about quizzes with the clickers) and would have been better if Mr. Schlapfer hadn't asked one ambiguous question that the kids and the clickers identified for him!

Another unintended positive outcome occurs when I reveal the top 10 scorers during the review "game" and it turns out to be peers the kids never thought of as being outstanding or smart. They stand out like the sports stars by virtue of their performances and leave the room wearing their success as a badge of honor. One of those is a sped kid who has reading problems but once he sees a word in a question can see the associated answer in a heartbeat and I thought he was going to burst when he walked out of the room with the highest score that day. I also have a class full of athletes and a 4' 8" girl beats them very often even as they climb over the table to respond and she sets there calmly pushing the correct button.

I have a clicker contest in the works where we are going to make up High 5 teams with brackets and have a real academic contest with the entire class watching. How cool is that going to be?

I can't emphasize enough that I think these units should be given first priority in technology expenditures. I have never seen such an effective strategy to individualize learning and focus instruction. I would be more than happy to address any group to promote their use in any EPS classroom.

Gary D. Schlapfer
Science Teacher
Elkhorn Ridge Middle School
17880 Marcy St
Omaha, NE 68118

****Gary did send this to us later. "I also have some hard data to work with. With the clickers I have seen a 2% - 4% rise in test scores. That is significant because my scores were around 90% already."

Are you a CPS fan and have a story to share? CPS is too good a tool to keep to yourself! Share your story with us HERE!



UPCOMING DEMOS & TRAINING...

May 8	GCCC, Garden City, KS - CPS Demo
May 17	CLAAS of Omaha - CPS Training
May 24	Waverly, NE - CPS Demo
May 30	Elkhorn, NE - CPS Training
May 31	UNMC, Omaha, NE - PDS
June 7	Russell, KS - PDS
Aug 16	McCook, NE - PDS
Aug 21	Doniphan-Trumball, NE - PDS

FYI...Most PDS trainings are open to local attendees. Please contact us if you see a PDS on this list or on our calendar that you would like to attend!

Do you have a suggestion for an education-related conference, trade show, or meeting not on our calendar? We'd love to know about it and might even be able to attend, so please contact us and tell us about it!



HAS SENIORITIS KICKED IN?

See our other CPS Users HERE!



THOUGHT FOR THE DAY...

This will be our last newsletter for the school year, and we’ll be rejoining you next school year from Omaha, Nebraska. As many of you know, we are relocating our office to Omaha and should be settled in by the end of June.

We have several training dates scheduled throughout the summer, so please let us know if you’d like to attend or are interested in setting up your own summer training!

Have a great summer!

Sincerely,

Dustin K. Frank

Do you need additional information about eInstruction’s CPS or have pricing or training questions we can answer? Feel free to contact us!