PowerTeacher
Rich Internet Application
PowerTeacher is a fully web-based gradebook and is one of the earliest examples of a new category of software called the "Rich Internet Application" or RIA. RIAs are web applications that have the features and functionality of traditional desktop applications but run from a web browser and do not require software installation. PowerTeacher transfers the processing required to run the user interface to the teacher's computer, but keeps the bulk of the data (i.e., maintaining the state or the program, student data, etc.) on the main database. This provides teachers with a more traditional gradebook experience, but with all the convenience and security of a web-based technology.
Design
Modeled after iTunes®, PowerTeacher presents teachers with a clean design that layers advanced features beneath the surface. This makes PowerTeacher easier to learn and use than your average gradebook and maximizes end-user adoption.
PowerTeacher Mobile
One of the fastest growing classroom management solutions is now available for the iPad. With PowerTeacher Mobile, teachers are no longer constrained to their desk or laptop when using the gradebook. They can record student scores and make observations about student progress while roaming the classroom, out in the gym, on the playground, or at a sporting event or while on a field trip.
The Score Inspector
When grading a large number of assignments, a floating score inspector presents the teacher with a one-stop-shop of all the various attributes that might be entered for an assignment. This includes the score, assignment flags such as late or missing, and access to comment banks. Previous and next buttons make it easy to quickly switch from one assignment to another, or from one student to the next.
Category Management
A category management window allows teachers to add any number of categories to their gradebook. Categories can be given a number of characteristics, including color-coding, default points possible, a description that can be viewed by parents and students, and default publishing options.
Functional Groups
Create intervention groups, project teams or ad-hoc groups of students with just a couple clicks to support differentiated instruction and to review each group's longitudinal performance.
Standards-based Grading
Teachers can easily attach multiple standards to each student's daily work, and assess proficiency on the fly with the new Standards Drawer. This creative approach streamlines workflow and helps teachers collect and report on a large body of evidence without requiring massive amounts of data entry.
Copy Assignments
Assignments can be copied one at a time, duplicated in the same class (handy for repeating assignments), en masse from one class to another, or from term to term. This allows teachers to move all assignments from one school year to the next with just a few clicks!
Reports
PowerTeacher comes standard with 9 different types of reports. Each report has a wide array of various run-time options, allowing the teacher to run a report for a student, a select group of students or all students, add headers and footers, and much more.
Class Content
Because parents and students log in to view real time grades, attendance and assignments, teachers have the opportunity to take advantage of this attention by embedding links to resources that support a particular assignment or task. With the Class Content feature, teachers can maintain their own libraries of resources that can be linked to the assignments, or to the class description. This feature also allows school administrators to pre-populate, or push new resources out to different groups of teachers.
Final Grade Setup
For many gradebooks, the initial setup of final grade calculation can be confusing and result with incorrect grading methodologies. PowerTeacher uses a simple visual representation to make this process easy. Once set, teachers can copy their final grade setup to other classes, minimizing setup time and reducing the possibility of making a mistake.
Offline Capabilities
PowerTeacher is web-based, but is not "browser-constrained" and actually runs independent of the browser. Because of this, teachers will not lose data they enter into the gradebook if their connection to the network or Internet is lost. In fact, PowerTeacher will allow a teacher to input new scores while completely offline and save updated scores later once a connection has been made.
Import Scores Wizard
Teachers today work with multiple software systems, many of which produce student performance data. The Import Scores tool allows teachers to easily map scores from a spreadsheet or text file, to an assignment in PowerTeacher. This allows scores from these other systems to be counted in each student's grade and makes the score available to students and parents online.
Open Multiple Classes
PowerTeacher is web-based, but is not "browser-constrained" and actually runs independent of the browser. Because of this, teachers can open separate gradebook windows for every class they teach and work with them all at the same time.
Individualized Assessment
"Student Mode" presents the teacher with a holistic view of the student and provides for quick entry of a student's standards scores. At the end of the term, all standards-based report cards will be automatically generated in the front office, saving classroom teachers a tremendous amount of time by not having to manually fill out report cards.
Spell Checker
PowerTeacher will alert the teacher to typos and other spelling mistakes as they type. A right-click on the word will present the teacher with suggestions for correct spelling, or the teacher may elect to add the word to their own personal dictionary. This is handy for courses that include a variety of acronyms or other words not found in a dictionary.
"What is most amazing to me is the quality, stability and rich features that come with PowerTeacher. We rarely get even a phone call requesting support on this product. When we do, we can confidently say that it must be something to do with the way the teacher has set up their gradebook. I would have never imagined that things would be running this smoothly at this point in time!"
- Janet Toohey
Director of Information Systems,
Fairbanks North Star Borough School District
Yes, I'm Interested
Online Demos