Going to School with Schoology
Updated May 17, 2017
Going to School with Schoology
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Overall Satisfaction with Schoology
Currently, Schoology is the learning management system across our school district, EC-12. Although, in grades 9-12, staff has the option to use Moodle in addition to Schoology. Schoology is being used in all facets of our educational system from classrooms, site leaders, groups/clubs, professional development, district information, etc. It is truly our platform to house all resources and relevant information.
For us, it streamlines our workflow. In the past, we've had teachers/staff working from several different platforms. It was difficult for staff to manage which system housed which set of information. Schoology has allowed us to ensure a one-stop shop for all school/work related items. If staff need bus schedules, curriculum content, online professional development, etc., they will find it all on Schoology. Schoology has addressed an organizational and management piece that was missing from our school system.
For us, it streamlines our workflow. In the past, we've had teachers/staff working from several different platforms. It was difficult for staff to manage which system housed which set of information. Schoology has allowed us to ensure a one-stop shop for all school/work related items. If staff need bus schedules, curriculum content, online professional development, etc., they will find it all on Schoology. Schoology has addressed an organizational and management piece that was missing from our school system.
- Schoology allows for a variety of content to be embedded and uploaded into Schoology. From a teaching standpoint, this truly allows for personalization of learning. Teachers are able to offer multiple modalities of learning all through one platform. Students are given a voice and choice in how they want to demonstrate their learning, as a result of the aforementioned.
- Schoology continually grows and changes with their clients. As users request features, Schoology spends time researching and vetting these within the platform. In the three years we have used Schoology, we have noticed several new and positive changes. The changes Schoology has made have not been just to make changes, but rather to address the needs of the clientele. This shows that Schoology is willing to listen to its users and ready to adapt.
- Schoology is user friendly. We spent quite a bit of time researching and exploring other learning management system. We continually came back to the idea that Schoology would be easy enough for our staff to learn and adapt to. Most things are relatively straightforward, but Schoology has a robust help center, as well as a public resources center. The options to connect with other Schoology users are endless. As a result, it is easy to learn and continue to grow within the Schoology platform.
- It would be great to see Schoology continue to develop their mobile app. Their web version is great, but the mobile app lags behind. As a 1:1 iPad (K-8) school district, increasing this functionality would truly allow our students to use the app to its fullest potential.
- Schoology has a badging system which is perfect for gamification. However, those badges currently must be entered manually. While it is a not a game changer, automated badging would continue to improve the system. This would allow teachers/staff to create gamified and engaging courses.
- There are some minor gradebook enhancements that would also help to improve the functionality of Schoology. Despite the fact that users can create separate grade categories, there is no way to view the overall grade for just one specific category. The basic functionality of the gradebook is there, but there are minor adjustments that would truly make the platform robust.
- Schoology does not integrate with Campus, which is our current system for grading. This would be a huge help to us, as just another way to make workflow more efficient.
- Prior to Schoology, our district used another LMS. At that time, only a handful of elementary and middle school teachers used the LMS. Some used websites, and many others avoided a digital platform all together. Since adopting Schoology, all of our 7-12 grade teachers have a presence in an LMS. K-6, nearly all of our staff use Schoology in some capacity. This is a huge shift from our previous LMS.
- We have been able to offer professional development in an online environment. Staff are able to enroll in courses (that are also offered for graduate credit) via Schoology. We have been able to continue learning that might have only been done on a lone professional development day. We have offered three sessions of online/blended learning courses to our staff. Prior to adopting Schoology, we had not offered any.
- It's hard to put it into numbers, but Schoology has helped our teachers/staff to transition into a 1:1 environment. We have been able to streamline the workflow, engage students, and offer a personalized learning environment. It is not that we could not have done this before, but Schoology has made these things easier and more efficient.
When we set out on the journey to adopt an LMS, we were looking for a system that would integrate with our current systems, allow for personalized learning and differentiation, user friendly, device agnostic, include online support/help, can integrate standards and learning objectives, allow for various types of assessments and measurements, progress monitor, employee empowerment, provide for equitable access to resources, create partnership opportunities, among others. With the exception of integrating with our Campus gradebook system, Schoology has done all of that and more.
Using Schoology
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Like to use Relatively simple Easy to use Technical support not required Well integrated Consistent Quick to learn Convenient Feel confident using | None |
- Setting up a course and adding materials is very easy. With a few clicks of a button, and the rich-text editor, you can add quality content to any course.
- Grading is very straightforward. Tests/quizzes, with the exception of short answer, are graded for you. The final result goes directly into the Schoology gradebook. Additionally, grading assignments and discussions is very simple. A discussion can be graded directly from the post. Assignments have the added functionality of given audio or text feedback.
- There is a learning curve to section linking. For instance, if one doesn't know in advance, once you unlink sections you lose all information. It is important to understand just how section linking works and why you would want to use it before going forward with it.
- When assignments/materials are in the past, there is no way to hide the content without also removing it from the gradebook. Teachers have to create a workaround in order to make this work for students.
Yes - The mobile interface works well. There are some needed adjustments, as it lags a bit behind the web version. I do believe that Schoology is always improving and updating, so I have seen vast improvements in the mobile interface since my first Schoology encounter. It would be nice if students could view badges and work on portfolios view the mobile app, but they instead have to go into the web version.