Wisconsin District Deploys Collaboration Software

  • By Kevin Hudson
  • 07/09/13

The Janesville School District (JSD) in southern Wisconsin has implemented software that will allow students this coming school year to view instructor content, capture, annotate, collaborate, take notes, and save their work via PC, laptop, tablet, and mobile devices.

The software the district has chosen for this increased emphasis on portability and collaboration is DisplayNote. The software is designed to allow sharing and presenting of materials across Windows, OS X, Android, and iOS platforms, and is intended to enable students to "interact in a creative and convenient way," according to a Tierney Brothers release.

To utilize the software, presenters open a DisplayNote session on their computer, which allows participants to join a session, via wireless network, using the DisplayNote app on their device.

Connected users will then receive content opened by the presenter on their device. "Students can capture slides, add their own notes, and work together in real-time," according to information released by the company. After the session, presenters or participants can save, store, and export resources for future review.

"We were looking to enhance the technology we've already implemented with additional tools to advance student achievement through collaboration tools," said Janesville School District CIO Robert Smiley, in a release. "This was the only solution that provided a comprehensive and rich feature set in single solution."

The Janesville School District is located in Janesville, WI, a city of more than 60,000 located in Rock County, about 40 miles south of Madison. JSD serves approximately 10,400 students in grades preK-12 at 21 schools.

About the Author

Kevin Hudson is a freelance journalist based in Portland, Oregon. He can be reached at [email protected].

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