echo learning

Echo360, iDesign target the transition to active learning


New partnership pairs technology platform with hands-on support to help faculty implement modalities to better engage students

Echo360 has selected instructional design firm, iDesign, to support the implementation of a technology platform that helps faculty apply active learning techniques to improve student engagement.

“Technology alone won’t engage students or transform the classroom,” said Perry Samson, head of teaching innovation at Echo360. “Evidence-based instructional design is paramount. Great instructional designers armed with analytics can play a powerful role in guiding faculty through pedagogical shifts that maximize the potential of classroom technologies and data.”

Active learning engages students in activities, such as reading, writing, discussion, or problem solving that promote analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of class content before, during, and after class. Echo360 is used by over three million college students to take time-synched lecture notes, ask questions in class, revisit lecture content, flag areas of confusion, and collaborate with peers and faculty during and after class. Faculty use the platform to see real-time data on student behavior to identify challenges early, and inform and adapt their instructional strategy.

iDesign brings deep instructional design expertise and a hands-on approach to guide faculty through the implementation of new pedagogical practices that utilize technology, such as online, flipped, or blended classrooms. The data captured through implementation of active learning is both instructionally relevant and used to inform predictive analytics for colleges and universities looking for risk indicators – and better predictors of student success.

“Our focus is on designing the ultimate student-centered learning experience with faculty,” says Paxton Riter, chief executive officer of iDesign. “When faculty feel comfortable, informed, and equipped with the right design support, they can make the best use of the toolsets and data, allowing the technology to fulfill its promise.”

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Laura Ascione

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