Information Services
Massachusetts Online Network for Education (MassONE)

Newsletter - March/April 2008

Happy Spring!

In nature, spring is associated with growth and migration. This spring, MassONE is taking a cue from nature. As its user base continues to grow, MassONE plans to migrate to new servers to provide better stability and service for the long term.

Calendar Tool to Be Discontinued

Unfortunately, the calendar feature of MassONE is not aging gracefully and will not be able to run on the new servers. As a result, MassONE will no longer be able to offer the calendar tool as of July, 2008. If you are using currently using the calendar tool, please be sure to plan accordingly.

Do You Know Your MassONE Admin?

Most districts have a MassONE Admin who can facilitate account registrations for teachers and students and set up MassONE resources for schools. If you need help with a technical problem, you should start by contacting your district's MassONE Admin. Your local MassONE Admin is a good source of technical information, since MassONE communicates regularly with the Admins.

To find out who your district's MassONE Admin is, check the list on the MassONE web site. If you happen to notice an error in the listing, please report it to MassONE at massonehelp@doe.mass.edu.

Resources Available Through Thinkfinity

Thinkfinity (formerly known as Marco Polo), is a comprehensive program and online portal that provides teachers with over 55,000 educational resources, including standards-based, grade-specific, K-12 lesson plans and interactive tools and materials. Thinkfinity is available through MassONE's Teaching and Learning Resources (TLR).

Through a Verizon Foundation grant to Lesley University and a partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the Department is working to create a network of Thinkfinity trainers in twenty districts across the state. The grant is also making it possible for the Department to validate the alignment of Thinkfinity resources with the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks.

To learn about upcoming local professional development opportunities, check the Thinkfinity page on the Department's web site.

ELPBO Frameworks Now Available on MassONE

MassONE now offers a searchable version of the English Language Proficiency Benchmarks and Outcomes for English Language Learners (ELPBO). To access the ELPBO standards, click "Curriculum Tool" and then "Search academic frameworks." Next select ELPBO from the dropdown menu. Like the other frameworks, the ELPBO frameworks can also be accessed through MassONE's lesson plan tool (one of the Curriculum Tools), which enables you to create lesson plans that are aligned to the frameworks.

Summer Online Courses

The Partnership for Online Professional Development (POPD) has been offering courses on a pilot basis to educators in eight districts that received competitive grants from the Department. These districts are working with curriculum specialists and online learning experts, in cooperation with the Department, to develop and teach the courses. The courses focus on improving student learning of the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks and K-12 Instructional Technology Standards.

This spring, selected participants will also receive training in facilitating online courses. In the summer of 2008, the newly trained facilitators will teach online courses to educators in the districts receiving the grants (Brockton, Cambridge, Community Day Charter, Easthampton, New Bedford, Northampton/Smith Vocational, Springfield, Winchendon). If the courses do not fill, they will be offered statewide on a space-available basis. If you are interested in taking a course, check the MassONE headlines in May to find out if there are openings in any of the courses.

Koplik Certificate of Mastery Moving to DropBox Central

For several years, MassONE has served as the portal for all materials relating to the Stanley Z. Koplik Certificate of Mastery Tuition Waiver. However, as of April 7 all Koplik materials--for example, the files of initially eligible students, the template for the Certificate, the form letters, the application form, etc., will be moved to Drop Box Central, the Department's Security Portal. For more information on this program, see the program's web site or contact Richard Salus at rsalus@doe.mass.edu or 781-338-6252.

Learn to Use MassONE

If you'd like to know more about how to use MassONE's tools, there are several resources that can help. Once you have logged into MassONE, look for these resources:

• On the main announcements page, there are links to our MassONE Quickguide and our Student Quickguide. These quick tutorials will help you get up and running.

• For more in-depth information on using MassONE in teaching, you can take the MassONE Orientation. To access it, click the TLR in the menu bar on the left. Then click "Online Courses" and then "MassONE Orientation."

• For help with specific tools, you can use the MassONE Help tutorials. To access them, click the Help icon in the toolbar at the top of the screen. Then select the topic.

Back Issues of Newsletters

If you missed any previous issues of the MassONE newsletter, you can now find them on the MassONE web site. To access them, go to MassONE News Archives on the MassONE home page.