The Coronavirus has given us a moment to reflect on the digital tools and practices our teachers are already using to extend and enhance learning. As our school community experiences social distancing, we are highlighting the opportunities to stay connected digitally, and provide supplemental learning opportunities online. Each of the links below will help you better understand the key resources we use to support you and your child with digital learning.
*New* Digital Tools Status Page Index - Prior to submitting a support ticket, you can check the status of many of our key systems at this page to see if the providers are already aware of and working on a solution with their systems.
Support Center- Parkland staff and students can submit support tickets if they are having an issue with the devices or applications we use (login with your ID number and regular network password). Please include as many details as possible such as the specific error message you see & steps taken to get to the error. Screenshots are always helpful!
Once your ticket has been submitted, you can check the status by going back into the Support Center, and selecting Check Ticket Status. Someone from our team likely will have left you a message including next steps or directions. Here are instructions on how to submit a support ticket.
Password Resets- If you cannot login to the support portal, please email psdtechhelp@parklandsd.org. If you are a parent requesting a password reset for Schoology, please email spp@parklandsd.org. You may also reach us by phone for support at (610) 351-5601.
Chromebook Support - Information on Chromebooks and how they work can be found here.
Clear Cache & Cookies - Many common issues can be solved by clearing your browsing data. Here's how you do that in Google Chrome. If you're trying to log in to Clever and it loops you back to the login page, this step will fix it.
Removing Chrome Profile -
The following steps fix many issues such as sound, wifi, logon and other small setting glitches.
On the login screen, move the mouse just to the right of your name and click on the down arrow.
Click on Remove this user.
You will be prompt with a warning message, and again you need to click on Remove this user.
Sharing Chrome with Others - If parents and children are sharing the same Mac or PC to do work at home, setting up Chrome profiles for each person will help a bunch! It keeps your Google accounts from getting mixed up, and gives everyone their own space. Note: when signing into your school Google account, be sure to turn the sync on and say yes to link data.
Schoology - Here are the most common fixes for Schoology issues:
Kami will still work on an iPad via the Safari web browser, though the assignment integration with Schoology will not. Here's a video guide of using Kami on an iPad. Students would not have a "Turn In" button. Instead, they can save and share it back to their teacher.
Webcam Troubleshooting - If you aren't able to activate your webcam on a videoconference, the first and best step is to restart your computer. For privacy reasons, you also have to give permissions to the app to access your camera and microphone. If you missed the dialogue box that asked permission the first time, here's how you can change the setting in Chrome: Click the icon to the left of the website address, then click on site settings. Verify the webcam and microphone are set to "allow" for the site.
Network Troubleshooting
District computing devices are configured to allow connections to home and public WiFi networks. The Technology Department is unable to provide support for home networks. However, here are a few basic troubleshooting steps you can try before checking with your ISP or network hardware manufacturer’s website for support links.
If you are connected but finding general slowness, try limiting other network activity such as streaming video services or gaming. You can also try moving closer to the Wi-Fi router if you are getting weak signal strength.
Restart your computer or mobile device.
Restart your modem and/or Wi-Fi router.
Try connecting to your home Wi-Fi network again.
Ensure that you are entering the correct Wi-Fi password.
If you are still unable to connect to your home Wi-Fi, please check with your ISP or network hardware manufacturer’s website for support links.
Support Links to Local Internet Service Providers (ISP)
Clever - There are instructions on how students and teachers can access Parkland's Clever Portal at this link. Clever is Parkland's one-stop shop for accessing instructional applications, links, and resources. Students can access educational videos & content, tools for creativity & collaboration, and more, often without having to enter a second login. Clever has also provided resources specific to this situation at clever.com/learningathome.
Schoology - There are a series of videos and guides that illustrate Schoology and the many tools that integrate with it to facilitate online learning at this link. Teachers use Schoology to post their classroom materials online; provide a safe forum for students to discuss their ideas and collaborate on projects; and to assign and collect homework electronically. It helps students stay organized and it keeps the class connected.
Hoonuit - With over 100,000 hours of content, Hoonuit is Parkland's comprehensive online learning library that's available for teachers, students, and even parents! Hoonuit has something for everyone. Technology topics such as Microsoft Office Suite, Google Apps Suite, Adobe Creative Cloud, device how-to resources, information security, & social media. Topics for parents & students such as career & soft skills, college readiness, student emotional health, paper writing & presentations.
The outpouring of resource lists, how-to guides, and recommendations to help parents keep their children in learning mode has been one of the more heartwarming stories to come out of this pandemic. The below list is by no means exhaustive, but is a great selection for parents that come from reputable sources and are designed to support our curriculum.
Common Sense Media - From the nation's leading nonprofit providing families and educators with the resources they need to harness the power of technology for learning and life, offers curated, age-based media content to help parents support their kids' learning at home. These top picks lists from Common Sense experts can help parents prepare for and make the most of online educational resources during school closures.
PBS for Parents - Suggestions on how to practice healthy habits with your children and talk to them about the Coronavirus. All Parkland students have access to PBS Learning Media in Clever.
Discovery Education - Discovery Education has created a special channel within Discovery Education Experience—the Viruses and Outbreak Channel—featuring digital content that helps educators discuss the Coronavirus outbreak with students. This content includes timely updates on what the Coronavirus is, information on how infectious diseases spread, and essential guidelines for staying healthy. Parkland users can find these resources here. All Parkland students have access to the full library of Discovery Education content in Clever.
Khan Academy - This link has sample schedules that are meant to be templates that you could adopt as is or copy and modify to better suit the needs of your children. Khan Academy has self-paced, interactive content--exercises, videos and articles--for students in every grade and in most major subject areas. All Parkland students can access Khan Academy through Clever.
Scholastic - Even when schools are closed, you can keep the learning going with these special cross-curricular journeys. Every day includes four separate learning experiences, each built around a thrilling, meaningful story or video. Kids can do them on their own, with their families, or with their teachers. Just find your grade level and let the learning begin.
Virtual Field Trips - A teacher created list of virtual field trip resources.
Flux Online STEAM Challenges - A series of daily, online STEAM challenges focused on creating, tinkering, making, for students of all ages.
Crayola Home Learning - To support families with creative learning at home, Crayola has created a landing page full of lessons, activities, and ideas. Feel free to use these free resources and share with colleagues, families, and students
Digital Citizenship - We have a robust K-12 digital citizenship curriculum that students participate in at Parkland provided by Common Sense Media. A collection of resources and tools, including many parent facing items, can be found on this page. Consider utilizing the Parent toolkits or media use agreements with your children to help support a healthy and positive use of internet resources, and remind them to always be an upstander online.
Acceptable Use Policy - As an important reminder, all students should abide by the guidance in our acceptable use policy, even while school is not in session. Discussions should be appropriate and respectful.
Parents should be aware that all district issued Chromebooks have filtering active, even when they are at home.
We are committed to ensuring that every family has access to digital learning.
Digital Equity Resources - You can review the resources from this page and see that we have made digital equity a priority for a long time. Parkland is providing Kajeets - cellular hotspots - for any family that does not have internet access at home.
EveryoneOn - In response to the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on society, multiple Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have made updates to their low-cost internet service programs to ensure individuals and families stay connected to the internet during this challenging time. Service Electric is one of them. SECTV will offer free broadband modems to qualifying customers during this ongoing national emergency. For more information on modem access and a 60-day financial grace period, please contact a Customer Service representative at 800-232-9100.
Assistive Technology and Universal Design for Learning - Both Chromebooks and iPads have extensive abilities to make learning accessible, including voice typing, screen readers, and advanced navigation for people with disabilities. Learn more about those resources here.
Website Accessibility - We make every effort to ensure the web-based resources we provide are regularly tested and reviewed by users to verify that they are compliant with applicable standards.
