Waterford Cloud users get easy, automatic product updates throughout the year—just one of the many benefits of cloud-based software! As we wrap up another school year, here’s a round-up of some of the year’s most significant new features, and a sneak peek at what’s ahead.
iPad
Extending our products to the iPad has been a top priority for us, and in July 2015 Waterford Reading was iPad-compatible. Students can move back and forth between an iPad and a computer and stay on track in their individualized sequence. And we haven’t stopped at Waterford Reading! Keep an eye out for SmartStart and Waterford Math & Science on the iPad in the 2016-2017 school year!
Home Access
Also since July 2015, students can continue learning at home through our new Home Access feature. Home Access encourages more parent engagement and opens up completely new learning models like extended school day and response to intervention. If you renew for next year, you can also use Home Access to help combat the summer slide.
In November 2015, Home Access usage was added to reports. This let teachers see how much time the student spent using Waterford Early Learning at home versus at school.
SmartStart
In the 2014-2015 school year we released SmartStart, a completely new, full curriculum for PreK. In October 2015, we added new reporting tools to the manager for this product. The reports coordinate with the Activity Library and Teacher Guide to help teachers act on report data by tailoring classroom activities and lessons based on students’ needs.
New Reporting Tools
In March 2016, we added a brand-new report: the Objective Details Report. Before this, teachers could see which objectives a student was failing with the Objective Difficulty Report and a summary of the student’s performance per branch in the Progress Report. The Objective Details Report now drills down to a level of data that was previously unavailable–the teacher can now see each student’s performance at the objective level. The Objective Details Report shows the last date a student played an objective, how many times the student has attempted the objective, the student’s most recent score, and whether or not that score was high enough to master the skill. This report is available in all of Waterford’s school products: Waterford Reading, Waterford Math & Science, and SmartStart.
We have a lot more planned for next year, including SmartStart and Waterford Math & Science on iPad and new online and offline activities. Stay up to date on every new feature and improvement by reading our Tech Notes at www.waterford.org/technotes.
