System and method for online collaboration in a learning environment

• US 20050266388A1
• Filed: 05/02/2005
• Published: 12/01/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/30/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: 24X6, Inc.
• Original Assignee: 24X6, Inc.
• Inventors: Gross, Mark, Burns, Thomas Edward
• Application Number:
  US11/120,542
• Publication Number:
  US 20050266388A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 434/350
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/00 Electrically-operated educational appliances working with questions and answers G09B7/00; simulators G09B9/00; advertising or displaying in general G09F

Abstract

A system and method is provided for the collection and automate dispatching of assignments and news from a teacher to their students and parents. This involves registering members and assigning them roles, scopes and groups based on scheduling and other data pulled from the school/district'"'"'s database, capturing assignment data from the teacher or student assistant through a web form, constructing custom homepages and assignment messages for each student and parents, and transmitting those messages to the right parties. Additionally, a system and method for relationship-based messaging between members to facilitate communication made difficult or impossible in a traditional school environment. This involves assigning roles and defining the relationships between those roles (factoring in scheduling information), granting and limiting publishing scope based on the same, and providing a system for web messaging and email distribution. Finally, a system and method for creating student digital portfolios. This involves aggregating information already published to the system along with grades and attendance information pulled from the SIS, student work submitted through digital dropboxes, plans and comments from teachers and staff, membership data, and school participation data as expressed through membership and messaging through the system. This information is available on a single web page accessed through directories, rosters and special groups by school and district staff.

Claims

1. A method of automating the distribution of assignments, news and other content from a teacher and school staff to their students and parents in a school environment comprising the steps of:

storing membership data including email addresses;

gathering system data from a student information system;

capturing assignment data from the teacher through a web form;

storing the assignment data;

constructing a custom web page for each student and parent based upon the assignment data and the system data;

constructing a custom email assignment message for each student and parent based upon the assignment data and the system data; and

transmitting the message to the students and parents via email.

2. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the custom web page and the custom email assignment message for the parent is constructed in the native language of the parent.

3. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the data from the student information system is comprising student identification numbers and schedule information.

4. A method of allowing relationship-based messaging that facilities communication and collaboration across traditional boundaries in school environments, comprising the steps of:

defining a set of user roles and user groups;

assigning a user to a user role and one or more user groups;

defining a set of relationships between the user roles and the user groups unique to a school environment;

providing access by the user to the user groups based upon the user groups and the user role assigned to the user; and

identifying the user by a real name of the user.

5. A method of creating and providing access to a student digital portfolio that aggregates and centralizes information about a student in a school for collaboration among school staff, comprising the steps of:

receiving first student information from teachers of the student;

storing the student information;

receiving second student information from a student information system for the school;

providing a digital drop box for the input by the student of student work;

storing a student plan for the student created by the school staff;

aggregating the first student information, the second student information, the student work and the student plan based upon identify of the student and schedule information relating to the student from the student information system; and

providing access to the school staff to the aggregated information.