Here is a success story about Insight 360.
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1. Teacher: Martin Palermo
Department: Science
# of Years Teaching: 8
District: William Floyd School District
Location: Mastic Beach, New York
William Floyd High School
ENHANCING STUDENT LEARNING WITH TECHNOLOGY
As new technology and teaching methodologies are introduced, teachers like Martin Palermo
at William Floyd High School in New York welcome the opportunity to adapt their classroom
environment to enhance student learning. Now in his eighth year of teaching Chemistry and
Biology, Mr. Palermo has found ways to increase test scores and prepare his students to be more
successful in their future.
“Technological literacy is one of the most important skills we can teach our students as we
prepare them for future careers in a technological society,” said Mr. Palermo. He said he also
found that using technology in the classroom on a daily basis allows students to become more
fluent in its use and promote a greater understanding of how to use it effectively.
Mr. Palermo’s first exposure to the effectiveness of technology in the classroom was from a
student perspective while attending Stony Brook University. During a challenging Physics class
in a large lecture hall, Mr. Palermo recalls feeling “more connected” with the use of student
response devices (clickers). It also allowed him to assess his understanding of the concepts or
problems being presented by the professor.
DELIVERING QUALITY INSTRUCTION WITH FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
In his first few years of teaching, Mr. Palermo found very few teachers using technology to conduct real-time formative assessment during instruction.
In 2007 when his district purchased eInstruction’s CPS™ clickers and offered professional development, teachers began to experiment with the
devices in the classroom. For approximately four years, Mr. Palermo used CPS until switching to the Insight 360 classroom instruction system for its
ease of use and added features such as CueTag™ technology that allows him to easly tag questions from any computer, then launch a question and
collect student results instantly.
With Insight 360, Mr. Palermo is able to gather and interpret student data quickly and effectively, so
instruction can be altered to fit the needs of students on an individual and class basis. It also allows
him to use class time more effectively to promote learning and understanding of the content.
Insight 360 also changed the way Mr. Palermo teaches and interacts with his students. “My students
are more engaged in the lessons because they are now more connected to their learning and can
contribute to their own learning. The formative assessment aspect of Insight 360 has also allowed me
to determine where students are struggling as well as identify misconceptions.”
MOVING BEYOND THE TRADITIONAL CLASSROOM MODEL
In addition to using eInstruction®
technology, Mr. Palermo uses a flipped classroom to leverage
learning in the classroom. Students prepare for a lesson at home by watching instructional content
such as screencasts or animations and completing homework questions. They then come to class
with background information on the subject matter or topic.
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Driving student engagement and
test scores with Insight 360™
“Technological literacy
is one of the most
important skills we can
teach our students
as we prepare them
for future careers in a
technological society.”
-Martin Palermo,
Science teacher
2. When arriving in class the next day, students enter their homework answers using Pulse 360™ clickers so
Mr. Palermo can immediately assess their understanding of the content and focus the class lesson around
their needs. Students then work in groups to solve critical thinking problems and with hands-on activities to
achieve a better understanding of the content. Instruction also can be differentiated from class to class and
student to student.
“With Insight 360, I can assess understanding throughout the unit. For example, students use the Mobi™
Learners for assessment of group activities and take online checkpoint quizzes so I can evaluate their
progress and provide additional help or instruction if needed before the end of the unit,” said Mr. Palermo.
MEASURING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF INSIGHT 360
To measure effectiveness of technology and his pedagogy, Mr. Palermo looked at student achievement and the learning environment. With the
implementation of technology and use of a flipped classroom, he saw an immediate increase in student achievement by 15 percent on standardized
tests. At the individual level, department exams increased by as much as 30 percent. Through the use of questionnaires, students reported being
less apprehensive about participating in classroom discussions, more connected to the content, and generally excited about the learning process.
OVERCOMING BARRIERS TO TECHNOLOGY USE
Many schools face barriers to bringing technology into the classroom and using it effectively. Mr. Palermo recognizes that technology may not be the
answer to all problems in education, but when used effectively it can dramatically change the classroom learning environment and promote greater
student achievement and learning.
He advises educators seek out grants or contact technology companies directly to inquire about trial software. If support is an issue, online networks
and professional development classes can be beneficial. Additionally, he suggests reaching out to neighboring schools or districts to inquire if they
are using the same technology and use them as a resource.
EINSTRUCTION
eInstruction is a leading, global education technology company committed to providing interactive teaching and learning solutions that help educators
and students advance learning every day. eInstruction offers innovative classroom instruction systems, student response systems (clickers), fixed
interactive whiteboards, mobile interactive whiteboards, research-based software, and professional development solutions that facilitate significantly
higher levels of collaboration, engagement, and student achievement across all stages of the learning process.
To learn more, visit einstruction.com or call 866.496.4949.
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Driving student engagement and test scores with Insight 360™ • William Floyd High School
Student
achievement
increased
by 15% on
standardized
tests with the
implementation
of technology and
use of a flipped
classroom.