Classroom Learning Platform Gets Plagiarism Control, New Reporting Tools

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 01/13/10

Ed tech developer It's Learning has enhanced its Web-based learning platform with new safety and collaboration features. The platform encompasses multiple functions for use in the classroom, including blog and eportfolio software, sound and video recorders, discussion forums, plagiarism control, a gradebook, testing tools, attendance reporting, and alerts.

At the FETC 2010 conference this week in Orlando, FL, the company showed a new attendance and behavior collection and reporting module that enables teachers to track student participation. The platform provides integration with a school's existing student information system, which means a teacher won't have to log into a separate school administration system to do attendance. The attendance user interface has also been updated to include school-defined attendance codes.

The newest release of the software-as-a-service application has added an advertising-free version of Gmail from Google in the dashboard available to students and teachers. The company will set up a named domain for each client or migrate existing Gmail accounts into its platform. District IT administrators can then set up e-mail lists that follow the same academic hierarchies as the classroom platform follows, allowing teachers to communicate with entire classes, groups, or individual students. This classroom-friendly version of Gmail allows users to manage all of their email accounts by bringing them into a single location and includes safety features.

The integrated Google Postini service is designed to stop spam and viruses, prevent phishing, and prevent denial of service, directory harvest, and other attacks. Administrators control who has communication rights and who can see specific profiles. For example, in an instance of cyber-bullying, protection features can be enabled to restrict communication between certain individuals.

Also, the company has updated its software development kit to include support for third-party plugins, in addition to traditional application integration.

The service costs between $10 and $15 per user per year, the company said.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • abstract geometric pattern of glowing interconnected triangles, hexagons, and circles in blue, gold, and white, spread across a dark navy-to-black gradient background

    OpenAI Introduces 'Operator' AI for Performing Web Tasks

    OpenAI has announced "Operator," an AI agent designed to perform web-based tasks autonomously using its own browser. Currently available as a research preview for Pro users in the United States, the tool aims to automate everyday activities such as filling out forms, ordering groceries, and even creating memes.

  • digital illustration of Estonia with glowing neural network-like connections spreading across the map

    Estonia to Roll Out ChatGPT Edu for all Secondary Schools

    In a nationwide artificial intelligence program dubbed "AI Leap 2025," the country of Estonia plans to provide free access to leading AI applications for all secondary school students and teachers. The initiative will launch with a rollout of ChatGPT Edu to 20,000 high school students in grades 10-11 and their 3,000 teachers, beginning Sept. 1.

  • glowing digital brain made of blue circuitry hovers above multiple stylized clouds of interconnected network nodes against a dark, futuristic background

    Report: 85% of Organizations Are Leveraging AI

    Eighty-five percent of organizations today are utilizing some form of AI, according to the latest State of AI in the Cloud 2025 report from Wiz. While AI's role in innovation and disruption continues to expand, security vulnerabilities and governance challenges remain pressing concerns.

  • DreamBox Math

    Discovery Education Announces Accessibility Enhancements for DreamBox Math

    Discovery Education has updated DreamBox Math, an online math program for K–8 students to supplement core instruction, to improve accessibility for K–5 students, according to a news release. DreamBox Math provides personalized instruction by adapting to individual learners’ responses and providing an engaging, dynamic learning environment.