Educational Technology

Over the recent years, we have been promoting the use of Microsoft's Reading Progress tool, a feature within Class Teams Assignments. This tool tracks students' reading fluency, allowing educators to focus on areas needing improvement and providing actionable insights. The tool's ease of use and advanced features, like AI-generated follow-up reading practice, help teachers personalize learning and save time.

During the 2023/2024 academic school year, Fresno Unified School District partnered with Microsoft and LearnPlatform to evaluate the impact of Reading Progress on FUSD K-6 students’ reading achievement. Read the full Reading Progress in Fresno Unified School District (2023-24) study.

In summary, the study showed that consistent use of Reading Progress positively impacted reading outcomes for FUSD students in kindergarten through sixth grade. Students using the tool regularly demonstrated improved reading accuracy and speed, particularly among English learners and those from disadvantaged backgrounds. For example, English learners who used Reading Progress saw their reading scores jump from the 50th to the 59th percentile, equivalent to a full grade level improvement.

• Students using Reading Progress consistently showed significantly higher gains in iReady reading scores for both K-2 and grades 3-6 students compared to non-users.
• Reading Progress was shown to benefit English language learners and students who qualified for free/reduced lunch.
• Students who used Reading Progress more frequently demonstrated higher reading accuracy and faster reading speeds.

Teachers in FUSD have praised the tool for making it easier to monitor and support students' reading progress, allowing them to focus class time on deeper comprehension activities. The key takeaway? Consistent engagement with tools like Reading Progress can significantly enhance early literacy, setting students up for long-term academic success.

Our commitment to early literacy, supported by cutting-edge technology, is helping to close achievement gaps and ensure that all students have the skills they need to succeed in school and beyond.

- View the full article on Microsoft's blog -

Do you ever wish you had one-page cheat-sheets for using the various digital tools within Microsoft EDU, like learning accelerators and Teams assignments? Well, guess what? – They exist!!!

That’s right, you can find them on the Microsoft Education website in the resource center. They are called Quick Guides and they were created by Microsoft Innovative Educator, Miss Aird (@miss_aird).

These tools include Reading Progress, Speaker Coach, Immersive Reader, Live Captions, Speech to Text, Reflect, and more. You can download and save/print each quick guide for free, and don’t forget to share them with colleagues 😊.

Attention FUSD teachers!!!

It’s that time of year again! Last year’s Class Teams have been archived and new Class Teams have been generated and rostered for all class sections in ATLAS.

The document linked below provides important information regarding how and when Class Teams are created, archived, and eventually deleted. It is critical for all teachers to be aware of this process, so that, if desired, they can back up their content or even preserve their Class Teams.  

We also recommend creating a Team for the purpose of housing assignments and content permanently. In this scenario, you can pull your assignments into your generated Class Team when you want to use them.

Teams Creation and Archiving Process
Related Content: Microsoft Teams Support Page

Have you seen the latest advancements in Class Teams Assignments recently? There are now five innovative AI features that are designed to improve the assignment design experience and enhance student learning. These updates include AI-powered assignment instructions and rubrics, as well as tools for generating reading passages, comprehension questions, and classwork modules. The integration of AI in education aims to personalize learning, increase efficiency, and provide insightful data to educators, ultimately fostering a more engaging and effective educational environment. Want to see these new AI features in action? I thought you might. Check out the video below from Microsoft's own Mike Tholfsen!

Are you a fan of Learning Accelerators, the Reflect app, Reading Progress, CoPilot, or ClipChamp? Well, you are going to want to watch the May edition of What’s New in Microsoft EDU. In this episode, Microsoft EDU experts share some exciting new features, some of which are available now, while others are to be released very soon.

We are very excited about new Learning Accelerators – Speaker Progress and Speaker Coach. These tools will further empower students with real-time feedback on their speaking/presenting skills. The Reflect app now includes more brain-break activities and resources. The improvement to Reading Progress/Coach includes the ability for students to keep up their reading over the summer by creating or uploading their own stories and unlocking characters. And in the area of AI, we now have more entry points into Copilot to help us with planning and research. Finally, our staff favorite is the announcement regarding the ClipChamp video editor, which will be available through our school accounts when we come back in August, 2024!🎉

Want to learn more? We’ve got you covered! Watch the recorded episode in the video below or click here for the presentation slide deck.

Starting on July 8th, 2024, we are changing the way you login to Clever for a smoother and more secure experience. You may notice a slight change in the login screen, but your email and password will remain the same.

Thank you for your continued flexibility and dedication to learning, and we’re looking forward to seeing the positive impact of this improvement in your classrooms.

Check out the video below to see the new change to the login screen.

We’re excited to announce that our IT team will be upgrading all compatible devices to Windows 11 during the 2024/25 school year. New device deployments will come with Windows 11, and existing computers will receive the update in a staggered deployment through Windows Updates starting in the fall of 2024.

The update will download and install in the background, minimizing interruptions. Windows 11 offers new features and improvements to enhance our workflows and user experience. We will provide support and resources to ensure a smooth transition.

For more information and tutorials visit our Windows support page. We look forward to this new chapter in our technology journey!

Stream Classic will be sunsetting on May 15, 2024. We are excited to share that your Stream videos have been migrated to OneDrive or to new SharePoint Sites. Here’s what you need to know:

• Video destinations depend on how the videos were uploaded to Stream Classic.
• The table below outlines the video types and their destinations.

• Stream Classic video links will forward to the new video location for a limited time. Please update any direct links you created to your videos over the next two months.
• The new Stream 2.0 will still be available for use.

Watch the video below on how to locate your migrated videos.