Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Hosting HTML, CSS, and Flash websites in Google Drive

Earlier this year I discovered a hidden gem in Google Drive. Using a few steps, it is now possible to host a website within Google Drive. As a web design teacher, this is a great feature for my students. Now, with Google Drive, students can upload completed products and provide a link for their live website to anyone. And, using a tool like gdriv.es, they can create a website alias that is easy to share.

So far we have found that this service works best with HTML and CSS pages. It can also work with embedded javascript, though we occasionally have some problems when trying to use tools such as jquery. One feature I love is that it can store and properly load Flash files. A free host for Flash! Bonus!! Just follow the steps below...

Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Educator Evaluation Evidence Collection & Google Drive

Though this post refers to a program in Massachusetts, the evidence collection method outlined will likely be pertinent to many school districts across the country in the coming years.

In 2012, as part of Race to the Top, my school district in Ashland, Massachusetts was one of a handful chosen to pilot the new educator evaluation system devised by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). As a pilot school we had the opportunity to be at the forefront of this new venture. My colleague, Scott Smith, and I spent a significant amount of time this past fall and spring working on our digital solution for one of the key components of the new evaluation tool: collecting evidence (aka - artifacts). We also employed support from our IT department to work out some kinks. Below are three things for you to learn from our experience:
  • The easy stuff
  • The tough lessons
  • An outline of our process