Getting Ready for the New School Year with PLTW

Yes, Courses replaces the myPLTW LMS (Canvas). Teachers who have used the LMS in the past may continue to do so until Sept. 30 to retrieve or export any materials or resources they wish to save for future use or reference. After Sept. 30, teachers will no longer have access to the LMS.

No. Students will experience the same great content and programs, just delivered in an engaging new way. The new tool provides an experience that’s reflective of the apps and technology students use daily and full of new features to support student learning and mastery.

We have been listening to feedback from teachers about how we deliver PLTW curriculum for many years, and more specifically since we rolled out the current PLTW LMS. With the expansion of the LMS market and growing LMS adoption across districts and schools, we conducted a more formal survey on the topic in early 2015. One of the major themes of the survey was that teachers were spending too much time learning how to navigate the new system or switching back and forth between systems that were required by their schools to use. The introduction of these new tools reflects our focus on enabling teachers to bring PLTW curriculum to life for their students in a powerful way and creating experiences that work with the range of decisions districts and schools are making about their LMS and device use. We also want to create greater consistency, so that whether a person walks into a kindergarten classroom, a capstone classroom, or anything in between, they will know instantly that it is a PLTW classroom.

Yes. We’ve been listening to feedback from our teachers and students about how we deliver PLTW curriculum for many years, and more specifically since we introduced the PLTW LMS. In early 2015, we conducted a survey of PLTW teachers and administrators to further our understanding of how PLTW curriculum was being used by teachers and students in the classroom.

We continued to rely on the findings of this survey, along with a variety of other network feedback channels, as we made the decision to move to Courses. Additionally, we’ve engaged Master Teachers, Core Training participants, and students to use and provide feedback on the new Courses experience.

The new tool offers a variety of features to support student learning and concept mastery, as well as resources for teachers:

• Content organized for students and teachers to easily find what they need
• App-like navigation and a clean user interface that incorporates user-experience best practices like those we teach our students
• Mobile-responsive design that supports access to content from any device
• Interactive elements such as embedded videos, glossary terms, slideshows, digital flashcards, drag-and-drop explorations, digital conclusion questions, and more
• Digital notebook for note taking and highlighting
• Glossary and key terminology supports
• Access to the Course student view and Teacher Guides
• Options to download content for offline use on tablets and mobile devices
• Option to “share” content with your school or district’s LMS
• Access to the latest version of the content, including simple-to-adopt, real-time curriculum updates

The new tool offers a variety of features to support student engagement, learning, and concept mastery such as:

• 24/7 access to curriculum from all devices, including mobile and tablet
• Options to download content for offline use on tablets and mobile devices
• Table of contents so students can easily find what they need
• Student-specific digital notebook for note taking and highlighting
• Glossary and key terminology supports for quick reference
• Enhanced multimedia supports including embedded videos, closed captioning, and more
• A variety of interactive elements including quizzes with feedback, 3D objects, digital flashcards, slideshows, drag and drop explorations, and more

We’ve created this resource to help you prepare for the new experience and address common questions teachers and administrators may have regarding the transition. In addition to reviewing the information provided here, we encourage you to:

• Check out the new Courses experience by logging in to myPLTW and clicking the Courses icon located on the homepage.
• Sign up for the upcoming myPLTW update webinar to explore Courses with us:
  • Thursday, July 6 at 3 – 4 p.m. EDT | Register
  • Wednesday, July 12 at 10 a.m. – 11 a.m. EDT | Register
• Ensure your students are rostered prior to, or at the start of, the school year so they can access the new learning experience.
• Review your current PLTW LMS resources and download or export any materials you wish to save prior to Sept. 30.
• Keep an eye on myPLTW Direct emails for webinar opportunities to learn more about the experience and ask questions.

We’d love to hear from teachers and students as they engage with the new learning experience. We’ll be taking the feedback and insights into consideration as we continue enhancing PLTW curriculum and the Courses tool. Keep an eye out for a new network feedback form in myPLTW coming soon.

To access Courses, log in to myPLTW and click the Courses icon located on the homepage app menu. Teachers will have access to both the teacher and student versions of any course in which they are credentialed.

Yes, Courses is the only way to access PLTW curriculum. You’ll no longer use the myPLTW LMS (Canvas). Students will need to be rostered in order to receive access to Courses. Once students are rostered and have access, teachers may choose to direct students to the content through their school’s LMS via the “sharing” feature.

To grant students access to Courses, you’ll need to roster them prior to, or at the start of, the school year. For more information on how to roster students for the 2017-18 school year, read the Student Roster Instructions and use the Student Roster Template to prepare your file.

To access Courses, students log in using the myPLTW student login page and click the Courses icon located on the homepage app menu.

PLTW conforms to FERPA regulations regarding the transfer, storage, and distribution of student identifiable information. We will only make student-identifiable data available to teachers, principals, and school district personnel identified by the individual school. State Departments of Education can officially request student-identifiable information if they provide PLTW with appropriate documentation. Please refer to the PLTW Terms and Conditions or visit the following site for additional information about FERPA guidelines.

While we recommend all students have their own account, we recognize that, in some cases, it may be more feasible to have all students in a class accessing one Courses account.

Courses supports the ability for students to share an account, but teachers should take note of the following considerations when using this feature:

• All students must be rostered at the start of the school year, regardless of whether students will use individual or shared Courses accounts.
• The notes and highlights features in Courses cannot be turned off on a shared account, so highlights and notes made by students will be viewable to any other student using that account.

Yes. Program Coordinators and Site Coordinators will have access to the student view of curriculum content for any course, unit, or module in which students at their district or school are rostered.

To roster students for the 2017-18 school year, read the Student Roster Instructions and use the Student Roster Template to prepare your file. Students need to be rostered prior to, or at the start of, the school year.

We encourage schools to roster students prior to the first day of classes to ensure students have access to Courses as they begin PLTW coursework.

The following myPLTW roles have rostering permissions:

• Program Coordinators: This role can upload student rosters for any site offering PLTW within their account.
• Site Coordinators: This role can upload student rosters for any site offering PLTW where they are designated as a Site Coordinator.
• Teachers: This role can upload student rosters for any PLTW courses they are credentialed in that do not have an End-of-Course (EoC) assessment.

Note: PLTW courses with an EoC assessment must have student rosters uploaded by a Program Coordinator or Site Coordinator. A full list of PLTW courses with EoC assessments is available in the PLTW Student Roster Instructions.

To upload a student roster, follow the instructions below:

1. Log in to mypltw.org.
2. Click on My Sites in the menu bar.
3. Click the applicable site.
4. Select the Roster Students icon on the left.
5. Use the Student Roster Template to prepare your file. Complete the template using the formatting rules included in the PLTW Student Roster Instructions.
6. Once your student roster file is ready, browse to find the file on your computer. The file must be saved as .CSV to be uploaded.
7. Click Submit.
8. Congratulations! You have uploaded your student roster. Teachers can now generate student access to Courses by going to the Class page and clicking the Create Courses Account button.

Note: If your student roster file has formatting errors, you will receive a message onscreen explaining the errors and how to correct them. If you need further assistance, please contact the PLTW Solution Center at 877.335.7589 or [email protected].

Upon successfully rostering PLTW classrooms, you will receive a confirmation message in your notifications. You can also confirm that your file upload was successful by going to the Class page and confirming the students you rostered are now showing as active within the class.

Here are some common issues that might help you troubleshoot your roster upload:

• Empty rows at the end of the .csv file: Empty rows will cause the import to fail. These can be difficult to see in Excel, but can be located in a plain text editor. To do this, open the file in an editor like notepad, scroll to the bottom of the document, and look for commas with no values between them.
• Empty columns at the end of rows: This is similar to the above problem. Open the document in a plain text editor, scroll to the right, and look for extra commas with no values between them.
• First row must be a header: If the template header is altered, the file will be rejected. If you encounter this error, you may want to copy and paste your data into a new template.
• Incorrect teacher email: This means we do not have the correct email address on file or the teacher does not exist in myPLTW. Make sure the teacher has created a myPLTW account and that his or her email is updated using the My Profile feature in myPLTW.

Please contact the PLTW Solution Center at 877.335.7589 or [email protected].

1. Click My Sites on the menu bar.
2. Select the applicable site and class for which you want to roster the student.
3. Click Add Student.
4. Enter the required information for the student you wish to add.
5. Click Add Student.

Note: All requests submitted by a teacher for a class with a corresponding EoC assessment will remain pending until approved by a Program Coordinator or Site Coordinator.

1. Click My Sites on the menu bar.
2. Select the applicable site and class from which you want to drop a student.
3. Select the checkbox next the student you wish to remove from the course.
4. Select Drop from the Select Action dropdown menu.
5. Click Submit Change.
6. Click Drop Student to confirm the drop.

Note: All requests submitted by a teacher for a class with a corresponding EoC assessment will remain pending until approved by a Program Coordinator or Site Coordinator.

1. Click My Sites on the menu bar.
2. Select the applicable site and class from which you want to transfer the student.
3. Select the checkbox next to the student you wish to transfer from the course.
4. Select Transfer from the Select Action dropdown menu.
5. Click Submit Change.
6. Select the Teacher’s name for the section you wish to transfer the student to. Only courses that have been rostered and are not registered for EoC assessments will be displayed.
7. Click Transfer Student to confirm the transfer.

Note: All requests submitted by a teacher for a class with a corresponding EoC assessment will remain pending until approved by a Program Coordinator or Site Coordinator.

1. Click My Sites on the menu bar.
2. Select the applicable site and class for which you would like to reset a student password.
3. Select the checkbox next the student(s) you wish to reset a password for.
4. Select Reset Password from the Selection Action dropdown menu.
5. From the pop-up window, select whether you would like to reset using a system-generated password or create your own. (Note: Teachers can reset student passwords for individual students or create a common password to be used by all students within the class using the reset password feature. Student passwords must contain between six and 16 characters and at least one number.)
6. Click Reset Password to confirm the password reset.

Note: Upon resetting a student password, teachers will receive a pop-up window with the new password(s) and an option to print. It is important to note that there is no way to retrieve this information again after closing the window.

No, students will only have access to courses for which they have been rostered in the current school year. Course access will re-set each year on July 1, therefore students will lose access to any prior courses along with any notes they may have taken.

In addition to the student accessibility standards inherent in the way we develop PLTW courses, PLTW supports purposeful student accessibility in the following ways:

• Courses supports standard accessibility practices and techniques including the use of video captions, alternative text descriptions, and compatibility with screen readers. (Note: Features may vary based on course development date.)
• Some of our newer PLTW course developments feature a Student Accommodation section to help support teachers in adjusting course activities, projects, or problems to be accessible for their students.
• A non-digital, PDF version of the student course curriculum is available to support student accommodations in the event of IEP/504 plan requirements, technology barriers (e.g. student loses their device), purposes of translation (e.g. translations to braille), or some other classroom situation where accessing the digital version of course content is not possible or feasible.

More information about Student Accessibility resources can be found in Courses within the Teacher Guide of each course in the Course Resources section.

Please contact the PLTW Solution Center at 877.335.7589 or [email protected].

While the majority of PLTW-created videos feature closed captioning, not all externally created videos embedded or referenced in PLTW curriculum support closed captioning.

Default players begin with closed captioning turned off, but to turn on closed captioning, teachers and students should click the Closed Caption icon in the bottom right-hand corner of the view screen. Captions are timed with the audio so that they will only appear with narration.

Please contact the PLTW Solution Center at at 877.335.7589 or [email protected].

The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA) applies to operators of commercial websites and online services (including mobile apps) directed to children under 13 that collect, use, or disclose personal information from children, and operators of general audience websites or online services with actual knowledge that they are collecting, using, or disclosing personal information from children under 13.

The Courses platform is powered by Inkling, and students in Project Lead The Way courses do not access the Inkling system using personally identifiable information (PII). Rather, students access Courses (Inkling) via myPLTW with unique student accounts that are generated through the use of alternative, non-personally identifiable information. Because no PII for students is shared, created, stored, or accessed by Inkling, and nor is there anywhere in the Inkling system for the student to enter PII, COPPA regulations do not apply.

You can use a web browser on any device to access Courses. In addition, there is a Courses app available on the Apple App Store and Google Play store. As you prepare your classroom for the academic year, please visit PLTW Program Software for the most up-to-date current hardware (computers, tablets, projectors, etc.) and software/App information.

There is a device limit of 1,000 devices per student or teacher account, and there are no restrictions to the number of devices that can be accessing the same course content simultaneously.

Search for and download Inkling Axis from the App Store or Google Play store. The company code is pltw.

Deregistering a device removes all user data and content. All notes and highlights made by a user are saved to the cloud and can be downloaded when the user logs in again.

To deregister a device, please follow the instructions below:

iPad:

1. Tap Account.
2. Tap Deregister This Device.
3. Tap Deregister This Device to confirm.

iPhone:

1. Tap the Account icon in the upper right-hand corner of the home screen.
2. Tap Deregister This Device.
3. Tap Deregister This Device to confirm.

Android:

1. Tap your device's Menu button.
2. Tap Settings.
3. Tap Log Out.

Courses fully supports the latest versions of these browsers for use on desktop and mobile devices:

• Chrome
• Edge
• Firefox
• Internet Explorer 11 (See important note below)
• Safari
• iOS devices: running iOS 9.0 and higher
• Android devices: stock browser and Chrome, running 4.4 (KitKat) and higher

You can test for browser compatibility by using this link in the browser: https://www.ssllabs.com/ssltest/viewMyClient.html.

If you use Microsoft browsers, you must use IE 11 or Edge. We do not support IE versions 7-10 because they do not fully support Courses features and functionality.

Yes, you can use Courses via the Courses app anywhere you can bring your tablet or mobile device and access almost all of your content at any time. Notes and highlights are always available and will sync automatically with our servers when you’re online. Accessing certain types of content – such as downloadable documents and resources, streaming video, and music – requires an Internet connection. There is currently no way to save this streaming content locally.

Important to note: At this time, Courses for Web does not support offline viewing.

When delivered through Courses, the curriculum is more interactive thanks to features like quizzes with feedback, video, 3D objects, embedded links, shared notes, and more. The possibilities are endless as we design new courses, and we want you and your students to be able to take full advantage of these interactive elements. It’s because of these features that you can’t download Courses content to your computer, however you can view it offline with a tablet or mobile device. Note that streaming videos require an Internet connection.

When you use the web browser, you’ll receive updates in real-time. Mobile users have the option to update at their convenience.

For mobile users: When any of your Courses are updated, you should receive a pop-up alerting you that a new version of the curriculum is available and asking you if you would like to update. If you are not ready to download the update, it will be available to download later. The course title will show an 'Update Available' banner to let you know you still need to update to the newest version.

Here are the steps to manually download an update:

1. Tap the first Table of Contents chapter to close and then scroll to the top of the screen.
2. There should be a blue Update button which you can tap to download your content updates.

We know that Courses content competes with other movies, music, and apps on teachers’ and students’ devices; that’s why all video content is streaming, instead of making it local to your device, which saves you space.

If you need to free up space, here’s how:

1. Delete course content you don’t need. For iPad, iPhone, and Android:

• Tap and hold any downloaded content in your library until the delete option appears.
• Tap to delete the curriculum course or Teacher Guide from your device.

Remember: All your highlights, notes, and reading history are automatically saved and restored when you download your content again.

2. Download only the parts of a course you need.

Instead of downloading all content in a course, look for the “Download” icon next to individual lessons to save space on your device and only access the parts you need.

We built the new learning experience to be intuitive and reflective of the apps and technology students use daily, so we expect that students will adapt very quickly and find the new experience to be engaging. The best way to prepare students for the new learning experience is to make sure they are rostered prior to the first day of the 2017-18 school year so that they’ll be able to access their account.

For more information on how to roster students for the 2017-18 school year, read the Student Roster Instructions and use the Student Roster Template to prepare your file.

Course answers keys are available within the Teacher Guide for each PLTW course. The Teacher Guide for each course is labeled “Teacher” on the course tile.

No, Courses is not a Learning Management System (LMS), so it does not offer features like a SpeedGrader, grade book, or the ability for students to submit assignments. We encourage teachers to use their school’s LMS for these purposes, or to consider taking advantage of a free LMS offering for these purposes. You can find a list of free LMSs in the “Sharing Courses Content with Your School’s LMS” section.

With Courses, you can “share” the content with your school or district’s LMS. Since Courses is not a new LMS, there are no integrations required for you to share content, and you don’t have to move back and forth between systems. Content-sharing is simple between Courses and any LMS, including Google Classroom, Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle, Schoology, and others.

Teachers will not have full capability to control what students see or access; however, they will have the ability to focus or direct students to specific parts of the curriculum through the sharing feature.

No, students will not submit assignments or complete quizzes via the new Courses tool, but certain resources within the course curriculum will be available in downloadable or digital formats (e.g. QTI files or Google Form links) so teachers can use them with their school’s LMS.

No, the Courses tool is not a LMS, so it does not offer features like a SpeedGrader, rubric creator, gradebook, and the ability for students to submit assignments. And because there are so many LMSs in use by schools across the PLTW network, we encourage PLTW teachers to continue to use their own grading rubrics with the LMS used by their school.

No, teachers are not able to view student engagement information and analytics via the Courses tool at this time.

No. A student’s notebook contents will only be available to the student. The notebook is meant to be a feature to support student learning, reflection, and concept mastery.

No, Courses does not offer features for teachers and students to communicate directly with one another. We encourage teachers to communicate with students via their school’s LMS or other approved teacher-student channels.

No, students will not have a forum to interact with other students via the Courses tool. We recommend using your school or district’s LMS or other school-approved platform as a digital channel for students to interact with classmates.

Depending on the course, any applicable presentations now exist in one of two ways: (1) embedded slideshows to drive student engagement and/or (2) as supplemental resources in either or both teacher and student versions of the course.

There are a variety of resources available for students and teachers to download for use with their own LMS or print for general use in the class. Resources vary by course, but below are some examples of supplemental files that will be available for download and print:

• General student resources
• Rubric and peer feedback forms
• Framework and standards alignment documents
• Case reports and autopsy reports (PLTW Biomedical Science)
• Wet lab instructions and documentation (PLTW Biomedical Science)
• Student response sheets (PLTW Biomedical Science)
• Worksheets and student handouts (PLTW Launch)
• Build files (PLTW Engineering)
• Source code and rubrics (PLTW Computer Science)
• Equipment and build manuals and materials

Resources sections appear at the top of each Teacher Resource page as well as relevant activity pages in the student version. For more specifics about supplement resources available in your PLTW course, log in to myPLTW and click the “Courses” icon on the homepage app menu.

No, at this time, you cannot print directly from Courses, however there are a variety of supplemental resources available for students and teachers to download and print within PLTW courses.

You can copy and paste text in most Courses content, with some reasonable limitations. The volume of text you can copy and paste varies by course, as well as the client you are using (iPad, iPhone, or web). PLTW strongly discourages copying and pasting content from Courses for use in a separate platform because teachers and students will lose access to interactive elements and real-time updates.

At this time, students cannot print the answers they input into Courses, nor any notes and highlights they’ve made.

Curriculum content in the Courses tool is not directly editable by teachers, however there are a number of supplemental files and resources that are available for print, download, and editing. To edit these resources, simply download, make any applicable updates, and share them using your school’s LMS, email, or another method that works for you and your students.

As we have grown, we have created many new opportunities for students based on the outcomes of the EoC assessments, including recognition opportunities with colleges and companies and the AP + PLTW achievement. The EoC assessments are based on the knowledge and skills in the courses as designed and written. The Higher Learning Commission and other accrediting bodies are increasing scrutiny on dual credit and who teaches those courses. Against this backdrop, it is essential for us to do everything possible to ensure the security, fidelity, and replicability of outcomes of our courses and exams.

Below are a few of the specific ways we continue to support teacher adaptation of PLTW content, assuming the learning objectives of the course are still met:

• Use of alternative equipment or software in specified areas of the curriculum based on preference or what you have in-house.
• Ability to customize problems to be specific to your community or local context once you have taught the course and are familiar with the content and APB approach.

Teachers will not be able to add links or upload documents directly to Courses. However, when content is shared to another learning management system, teachers will have the ability to add links or provide additional instructions from within their LMS. In addition, we encourage teachers to use the new Community tool to share custom resources and ideas. The PLTW logo may not be used on custom curricular resources.

For web:

1. Select the text you’d like to make a note about.
2. Click Add a Note.
3. Type the note or comment.
4. Click Save.

For iPad:

1. Press and hold anywhere on the text you’d like to make a note about.
2. Release when you see a magnifying glass.
3. Adjust the start and end points by dragging the blue dots on each end.
4. Tap Add a Note.
5. Type the note or comment.
6. Click Save.

For Smartphones: This feature is currently not supported.

For web:

1. Click the “Notebook” icon.
2. Find the note you want to edit or delete in the left-hand column.
3. Click on the text of the note to begin editing.
4. To save your edits, click Save.
5. To delete the note or comment, click Delete.

For iPad:

1. Tap the notebook icon and then tap on the discussion you’re interested in editing.
2. Tap on your note or comment.
3. Tap Edit or Delete.
4. If you’re editing, edit your comment and tap Save.

For web:

1. Select the text you’d like to highlight.
2. Click Highlight.
3. The selected text will be highlighted in yellow.

For iPad and Smartphones:

1. Press and hold anywhere on the text you’d like to highlight.
2. Slide your finger to highlight.

For web:

1. Select the highlighted text exactly.
2. Click Remove Highlight.

For iPad/iPhone:

1. Tap the highlighted text.
2. Tap Remove Highlight.

When you return to a particular course, Courses will automatically return you to where you were last reading. If you’d like to bookmark a page, here’s how:

For web:

1. Open one of your courses.
2. Find what you’re interested in bookmarking.
3. Click the star icon in the top right-hand corner of the page.
4. The star will change to yellow to indicate you’ve bookmarked the content.

For iPad:

1. Open one of your courses.
2. Find what you’re interested in bookmarking.
3. Tap the share icon in the upper right-hand corner.
4. Tap Bookmark.

For iPhone:

1. Open one of your courses.
2. Find what you’re interested in bookmarking.
3. Tap the screen for the top navigation strip to appear.
4. Tap the star icon.
5. The star will change to yellow to indicate you’ve bookmarked content.

Note: Bookmarks are not currently supported in Courses for Android.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Click the Community icon on the app menu.
3. Select the group you would like to share information or resources with using the Groups page.
4. Use the Post feature located just under the group name, type a message, and add any links or resources you would like to share using the corresponding file and link icons.
5. Click Share.

For web:

1. Click the notebook icon in the left panel.
2. To show only notes or highlights, click the default All next to Show.

For iPad:

1. Tap the notebook icon in the upper left-hand corner within any title.
2. You will see a list of your annotations, or you can search for the particular annotation that interests you.

For iPhone:

1. Tap the magnifying glass icon at the top right of the screen.
2. Tap Highlights. (Notes for iPhone are currently not supported.)

While the majority of PLTW-created videos feature closed captioning, not all externally created videos embedded or referenced in PLTW curriculum support closed captioning.

Default players begin with closed captioning turned off, but to turn on closed captioning, click the Closed Caption icon in the bottom right-hand corner of the view screen. Captions are timed with the audio so that they will only appear with narration.

Yes, teachers can share content within Courses to LMSs. We provide basic instructions throughout this section for sharing content to some of the most commonly used platforms.

You can share content from Courses to Google Classroom in two ways:

Share content from Courses as assignments in Google Classroom by installing the Share to Classroom extension in your browser:

1. Go to the Chrome Web Store.
2. Type Google Classroom in the store search field.
3. Click Add to Chrome on the Share to Classroom listing.
4. Click Add Extension in the pop-up window. Once you’ve added the extension, the Google Classroom icon should appear in the upper right-hand corner of your web browser. To share an assignment from Courses directly to a class you have set up in Google Classroom, simply follow these steps:

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Select the course you’re interested in sharing.
3. Once you’re in the course, click on the part of the course you plan to share using the table of contents. (Note: You’re able to share a full course or individual pages within a course.)
4. Click on the Google Classroom icon located in your web browser.
5. Choose the class you would like to share the content with in the Google Classroom window that appears.
6. Make a selection for how you’d like to share the content – as an assignment, a question to students, or an announcement.
7. Add any additional notes prior to posting (e.g. assignment name, due date, topic)
8. Click Assign.

Copy a link from Courses and post in Google Classroom as a student post or assignment:

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Select the course you’re interested in sharing.
3. Using the table of contents, navigate to the part of the course you plan to share. (Note: You’re able to share a full course or individual pages within a course.)
4. Right-click and select Copy Link Address.
5. Go to Google Classroom and select the class you want to share the content with.
6. Click the + sign in the bottom right of the class page.
7. Make a selection for how you’d like to share the content – as an assignment, a question to students, or an announcement.
8. Add the link to Courses content using the link icon in the pop-up window.
9. Add any additional notes or attachments prior to posting.
10. Click Assign.

Note: When accessing shared content, students will be taken directly to the part of the curriculum shared by the teacher. If their myPLTW session has timed out, the system will prompt them to log in before taking them directly to the shared content.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Select the course you’re interested in sharing.
3. Using the table of contents, navigate to the part of the course you plan to share. (Note: You’re able to share a full course or individual activities or lessons contained within a course.)
4. Right-click and select Copy Link Address.
5. Go to Canvas and select the class you wish to share the course with.
6. Click Assignments from the left-hand menu.
7. Click the + Assignment button in the top right.
8. Click the Link to URL button above the description box.
9. Paste the PLTW link into the box and click Insert Link.
10. Add any additional notes or attachments prior to posting.
11. Click Save & Publish.

Note: When accessing shared content, students will be taken directly to the part of the curriculum shared by the teacher. If their myPLTW session has timed out, the system will prompt them to log in before taking them directly to the shared content.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Select the course you’re interested in sharing.
3. Using the table of contents, navigate to the part of the course you plan to share. (Note: You’re able to share a full course or individual pages within a course.)
4. Right-click and select Copy Link Address.
5. Go to Edmodo and select the class you want to share content with.
6. Make a selection for how you’d like to share the content – as a note, assignment, quiz, or poll.
7. Add any pertinent information prior to posting (e.g. assignment name, due date, topic).
8. Add the link to Courses content using the link icon located at the bottom of the post section.
9. Click Send.

Note: When accessing shared content, students will be taken directly to the part of the curriculum shared by the teacher. If their myPLTW session has timed out, the system will prompt them to log in before taking them directly to the shared content.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Select the course you’re interested in sharing.
3. Using the table of contents, navigate to the part of the course you plan to share. (Note: You’re able to share a full course or individual activities or lessons contained within a course.)
4. Right-click and select Copy Link Address.
5. Go to Blackboard and select the class you wish to share the course with.
6. Using the tabs on your module page, select the type of assignment you wish the course to show up as, and this will prompt you to make the assignment.
7. Click the Insert File button in the “Instructions” section and select Source URL.
8. Paste the link into the Specify Source URL box and click the white Submit button and then the blue Submit button.
9. Add any additional notes or attachments prior to posting.
10. Click Submit.

Note: When accessing shared content, students will be taken directly to the part of the curriculum shared by the teacher. If their myPLTW session has timed out, the system will prompt them to log in before taking them directly to the shared content.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Select the course you’re interested in sharing.
3. Using the table of contents, navigate to the part of the course you plan to share.
4. Right-click and select Copy Link Address.
5. Go to Moodle and select the class you wish to share course content with.
6. Click Add an activity or resource in the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. (Note: editing must be turned on in your settings.)
7. Make a selection for how you’d like to share the content (e.g. as an assignment, a question to students, or an announcement).
8. In the tab of the Description box, click the Link button and paste the course link into the box and click Create Link.
9. Add any additional notes or attachments prior to posting.
10. Click Save and Display.

Note: When accessing shared content, students will be taken directly to the part of the curriculum shared by the teacher. If their myPLTW session has timed out, the system will prompt them to log in before taking them directly to the shared content.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Select the course you’re interested in sharing.
3. Using the table of contents, navigate to the part of the course you plan to share. (Note: You’re able to share a full course or individual activities or lessons contained within a course.)
4. Right-click and select Copy Link Address.
5. Go to Schoology and select the class you wish to share the course with.
6. Click the Add Materials button located at the top of your course or class profile.
7. Make a selection for how you’d like to share the content (e.g. as an assignment, a question to students, or an announcement).
8. Click the link or file icon in the Assignment window and paste the PLTW link.
9. Add any additional notes or attachments prior to posting.
10. Click Create.

Note: When accessing shared content, students will be taken directly to the part of the curriculum shared by the teacher. If their myPLTW session has timed out, the system will prompt them to log in before taking them directly to the shared content.

Using the table of contents, you can choose what parts of the curriculum you would like to share – full course or individual activities, lessons, or pages – with your students.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Select the course you’re interested in sharing.
3. Using the table of contents, navigate to the part of the course you plan to share.
4. Right click and select Copy Link Address.
5. Post the link to the classroom of your choice using your school’s Learning Management System.

Note: When accessing shared content, students will be taken directly to the part of the curriculum shared by the teacher. If their myPLTW session has timed out, the system will prompt them to log in before taking them directly to the shared content.

Some of our courses feature quizzes that we’ll make available in a few different formats for teachers to use with their students. These formats include paper, pencil, and QTI format.

Over time, we’ll be working to expand formative assessment options in PLTW courses and offering those in several different formats for teachers to access.

Please contact your LMS provider or visit their Help site for more specific instructions on how to set-up your course.

Schools don’t need to have a LMS to use Courses, but for those that would like to use one, there are a number of free options available to teachers:

• Google Classroom
• Moodle
• Blackboard
• Schoology
• Canvas
• Edmodo

Teachers may continue to access the PLTW LMS until Sept. 30, 2017, to retrieve or export any materials or resources they wish to save for future use or reference. After Sept. 30, teachers will no longer have access to the PLTW LMS.

From July 1 through Sept. 30, teachers who need to access the PLTW LMS will need to create a direct login to the system by following the instructions below:

1. Open the following URL within your browser: https://pltw.instructure.com/login/canvas
2. Click Forgot Password.
3. Enter the email address used for your myPLTW account and click Request Password.
4. You will receive an email notification from [email protected].
5. Within the email, select the Change password link provided.
6. Select your email address from the Which login to change dropdown.
7. Enter a new password and select Update Password.
8. Once you set a new password, you will be automatically logged into the myPLTW LMS.
9. You can now access the LMS via https://pltw.instructure.com/login/canvas using your email address and new password.

If you do not receive a reset password email, you may want to confirm the following:

• You have checked your junk or spam folders.
• You entered the email address used for your myPLTW account to request the password. The system will not recognize and send the password reset email to any other email addresses.
• You are a teacher who had an active course in the myPLTW LMS during the 2016-17 school year. Note: All newly trained PLTW teachers will not have access to resources in the LMS.
• Your school has completed the whitelisting process to ensure you are able to receive emails sent from various sites used by PLTW programs. Click here for more information on whitelisting.

If you still have not received your password reset email after confirming the above, please contact the PLTW Solution Center at 877.335.7589 or [email protected]. Support hours are Monday-Friday from 7 a.m.-11 p.m. ET.

No. Any resources, quizzes, or assignments teachers have created in the PLTW LMS will not transition over to the new Courses. Teachers will have until Sept. 30 to export these files from the PLTW LMS to their computers or their school or district’s LMS.

Click here for step-by-step instructions for how to export a course in Common Cartridge format from the PLTW LMS.

Below is a list of items that can be exported:

• Assignments
• Discussions
• Events
• Files
• Modules
• Outcomes
• Pages
• Quizzes
• Rubrics
• Settings
• Syllabus

Items that are not exportable include:

• Student data
• Student Submissions

Click here for step-by-step instructions for how to export grades from the Gradebook in the PLTW LMS.

You can download folders from the Files section of your course in a ZIP format. Click here for step-by-step instructions for how to download a folder in ZIP format as an instructor.

You can download quiz content as QTI ZIP files. Click here for step-by-step instructions for how to export quiz content from your course. Note: Quiz exports do not include question banks. Question banks only export with full-course exports.

The new Community tool in myPLTW provides a new way for PLTW teachers to connect with each other. Through the tool, PLTW teachers can connect with one another, share ideas, and learn from their peers. Groups in Community include features that teachers have told us are important, such as highly searchable conversation feeds, easy ways to post comments and files, and the ability to follow topics teachers care about.

Yes, Community is the PLTW new way for PLTW teachers to connect with each other, and is replacing the PLTW PLCs.

To access Community, log in to myPLTW and click on the Community icon located on the homepage app menu.

All myPLTW users have access to Community, though some users will not have access to groups at this time.

Community features a number of exciting enhancements for users to network and stay engaged, including the ability to ask questions and comment, like, and bookmark posts. Additionally, teachers can share files and follow peers to stay connected and share insights, advice, and best practices.

In July, we will establish the following types of groups within Community to support PLTW teachers in networking and staying connected as they begin the 2017-18 school year.

• Program and Course Credential Groups: Upon being credentialed in a PLTW course, teachers receive access to a corresponding course and program group so they can engage and learn from other teachers credentialed in their course and program. For example, a Design and Modeling credentialed teacher will have access to the PLTW Gateway program group as well as the Design and Modeling course group.

• Master Teacher Instructor Groups: Similar to course credential groups, Master Teachers receive access to a group of like-credentialed instructors. Master Teachers will use the Master Teacher Community groups to collaborate as they prepare for and implement Core Training.

• Core Training Groups: To support new teachers as they complete Core Training and enter their first year of leading the PLTW classroom experience, teachers will receive access to their Core Training group beginning their first day of training. Each Core Training cohort will have a separate group.

Over time, we’ll be establishing additional groups for other types of users in myPLTW like Program Coordinators, Site Coordinators, and IT Professionals.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Click the Community icon on the app menu.
3. Click the Groups option in the Community menu located at the top of the page.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Click the Community icon on the app menu.
3. Select the group for which you would like to view member details.
4. Click View All under the members section to view member details.

At this time, users will not be able to create or request to join groups. Access to a specific group is enabled when a user meets that group’s membership criteria. (e.g. When a teacher becomes credentialed in Design and Modeling, they receive access to the Design and Modeling course group and the PLTW Gateway program group.)

To ensure you are up to date on the latest happenings in Community you will receive a weekly personal email digest including the updates you see in your own Community feed, such as activity about the people, records, and files you follow and your groups.

Community group email digest conveniently summarize recent group activity so you don’t miss important discussions. You can customize the frequency by which you receive these updates through the Manage Notifications feature.

Users can manage email notifications for each of their groups by following the steps below.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Click the Community icon on the app menu.
3. Select the group for which you would like to manage email notifications.
4. Click Manage Notifications.
5. Select the frequency by which you would like to receive group updates. (Options include: Every Post, Daily Digest, Weekly Digest, Limited)

PLTW outlines appropriate user engagement practices in the myPLTW Terms of Service. If you feel a user’s activity within Community is inappropriate, you may report it to PLTW by flagging the post or comment.

To flag content posted by a user in Community:

• Log in to myPLTW.
• Click the Community icon on the app menu.
• Select the applicable group.
• Find the applicable user post and select Flag from the dropdown menu located on the post.
• Provide basic information for why you are flagging the content for PLTW’s review

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Click the Community icon on the app menu.
3. Select the group you would like to post to.
4. Use the Post feature at the top of the page to type your message and then click Share.

Yes. If you are the owner of the document that was shared, you are able to delete the document from the Files page.

Yes. We encourage teachers to connect and share resources with one another. Group members can download all files shared within a group by going to the Files page, clicking the dropdown menu for that particular file, and selecting Download.

Yes. You can follow any user within a group that you belong to by simply clicking that user’s name and then clicking the +Follow button on their user page.

If you are the owner of a document, you are able to upload new versions of the document from the Files page.

1. Log in to myPLTW.
2. Click the Community icon on the app menu.
3. Navigate to the post you would like to delete.
4. Click on the dropdown menu located in the upper right-hand corner of the post and click Delete.
5. Confirm the post deletion by clicking Delete again.

Each file is a downloadable link within the discussion post. If you would like to download all files from a course, use the File section within the PLTW LMS. The discussion post files are stored within the 'Unfiled' folder.

To unfollow a user in Community, simply click on the user’s name, and then click the Unfollow button on their user page.

You can view all files that have been shared within a particular group from that group’s homepage. There is a section located on the right-hand portion of the page labeled Files. Click View All to see all shared files and more detailed information about the owner and date shared.

Users can add topics to posts to organize them or to increase their visibility. You can add topics to your own posts immediately after posting, or you can add topics to any posts at any time directly in the feed. We have loaded a basic set of topics to start, but feel free to add your own.

We’ve been working hard behind the scenes to continue enhancing myPLTW, adding exciting new services and enhanced tools to simplify program management and allow you to focus on students. Below are a few additional enhancements that you’ll notice in myPLTW:

• Self-service Account Creation: To make it easier for network members to get started with PLTW, users can create their own account and then search for and request to join sites within the PLTW network.
• New Profile Management Features: Users now have the ability to view earned course credentials and upload a profile picture using the “My Profile” feature.

• Enhanced Program Management Tools: Managing PLTW programs should be simple, so to support you, we’ve released new tools ranging from the ability to view programs confirmed for next year to expanded help resources and in-portal notifications.

You can learn more about appropriate user engagement practices for Community, along with all other myPLTW features and services, in the myPLTW Terms of Service.

PLTW will be releasing exciting new Ongoing professional development opportunities for new and veteran PLTW teachers in the coming months through the Professional Development tool in myPLTW.

Any member of the group in which you comment or share resources can view your post and any resources you’ve made available.

While some content and highly utilized resources will be made available in the new Community tool, most of the current content in the PLCs will not transition over. If there are items you need or would like to reference in the future, we encourage you to visit your PLC groups and download or export any resources prior to Sept. 30.

PLTW will respond to content or resources flagged by users as inappropriate in the Community, but will largely not be monitoring the groups or responding to user comments, questions, and posts.

Yes. With Courses, teachers will maintain access to the same version of course curriculum from year-to-year, making it easier to maintain notes and highlights. As course updates and enhancements are made, teachers will receive those in real-time within their course curriculum using the browser version of Courses. If teacher needs to reference or view their historical notes or highlights prior to receiving the update, they can do so using the Courses app. Keep in mind that once an update is received, you will lose access to the former course content and any related notes or highlights.