Online+Learning+Portal

=Learning Management System “Portal”=

The Citadel Group schools' educational program is designed so that the basic core curriculum instruction can take place by a project-based component that allows students to apply instructional content to real-world careers, situations, and problems. Technology infusion throughout the program provides sophisticated multimedia and communication tools for projects, a system for archiving student work, an online learning portal, simplifying the process of tracking each individual student’s progress. A sophisticated online learning system supplies supplemental curriculum, insuring that students have access to a thorough curriculum to meet their learning needs and encourage independent exploration of knowledge. The Learning Management System “Portal” (Portal) proposed is a web-based, single sign-on hosted solution that houses resources required from the electronic delivery of curriculum, including learning content, communication tools, data tracking, grading applications, and record keeping.


 * Project Foundry - Learning Management System (LMS):** Our students will earn credit through "hours logged" and "standards met" instead of traditional seat time in courses. How do you manage that kind of learning? With a powerful, online tool called [|Project Foundry].

Building on the strengths of student-centered project-based learning, Project Foundry™ was developed to engage students and dramatically reduce the amount the paperwork traditionally associated with this highly effective learning model. Students record daily journals, log project hours and complete various assessments and rubrics. In a matter of one click, Teachers can quickly discern what a student is working on, the ways he/she can help the student along as well as how well the student is progressing towards his/her academic goals. By aligning every student project with school learning standards, a school can quickly and easily see not only how a student is progressing towards graduation, but also, know how well the student accomplished the standards.

The Academy School@44 actually has two "instances" of Project Foundry: one for teachers to work with their students, and the other for the Educational Program Team to work with the teachers.


 * APEX - Online Learning System:** The Citadel Group educational program is further enhanced via on-line curriculum and learning resources. The curriculum and learning resources housed within the Portal are provided by APEX Learning System and have been selected based on their educational value and research results with thousands of students across the nation. The curriculum is aligned to state standards as are many of the learning resources contained within the Portal. All the curriculum and resources have been evaluated for their engaging qualities given that today’s students require rich media and interactive-intensive material to remain engaged.

These curriculum and learning resources include core content areas—English language arts, mathematics, social studies, science—plus health, second languages, and other engaging electives. Resources also include a searchable streaming video learning library with more than 30,000 video clips indexed to state standards. [|http://www.apexvs.com] || Every student at Academy School @44 is currently enrolled in an appropriate mathematics, science, English/language arts and social studies course via the APEX Learning System. Although the students have a wide variety of abilities and learning styles that can be extremely difficult to manage using traditional methods, the web-based curriculum allows for course content to be individualized based on students’ aptitudes, interests, and learning styles.
 * || ==[[image:acadsch-tchrguide:logo_apex.gif align="left" caption="logo_apex.gif"]]**APEX Learning System**==

Additional Online Resources

 * AutoSkill - Helping Us Meet Our Literacy Challenges:** The Academy School @ 44 has selected Academy of READING to address the literacy needs of our students. Based on extensive research and proven in thousands of elementary, middle and high schools, the [|AutoSkill] Academy of READING delivers a powerful intervention software solution that helps at-risk students achieve rapid, permanent gains in reading. The Academy of READING uses a patented methodology with an adaptive intervention engine, skill mastery based on automaticity, and motivational principles to build fluency in the foundation skills of reading.


 * TakingItGlobal - Making Global Connections:** [|TakingITGlobal.org] is an online community that connects youth to find inspiration, access information, get involved, and take action in their local and global communities. It's the world's most popular online community for young people interested in making a difference, with hundreds of thousands of unique visitors each month. They are one of our new curricular partners. Access to the TakingItGlobal.org and TIGed.org resources are a critical part of our tenet of "Contextualizing Locally; Connecting Globally."


 * Digital Video Libraries:** A rich variety of world-class, online resources is available to greatly enhance the daily educational process, including a digital video library. The video library includes more than 30,000 educational video clips all indexed to state standards. It includes more than 3,000 full-length videos divided into more than 30,000 video clips on all core subject areas. The video library is fully searchable by the instructor, can be assigned to students within the LMS, and can be played by students on-line or downloaded for local viewing. The videos have been produced by organizations such as the Discovery Channel and are high-quality, engaging content with graphics and animations that are particularly helpful for the visual learner.

The Schools We Need Project
//Because some students need more than direct instruction.//

The Schools We Need Project is a joint project of the [|Maine Center for Meaningful Engaged Learning] at the [|University of Maine at Farmington]