The Kentucky Department of Education and Schoolnet, Inc. have announced a contract which allows Schoolnet to provide software systems and services to the state’s 174 public school districts. Schoolnet responded to a state RFP for a Continuous Instructional Improvement Technology System (CIITS), a system that combines instructional leadership, curriculum planning, student performance, teacher practice, and professional learning to raise academic achievement among Kentucky’s 645,000 students.
“Schoolnet’s CIITS will provide a full set of tools for every Kentucky teacher to improve every student’s learning,” said Kentucky Education Commissioner Terry Holliday. “Teachers can access student data to see areas of need, find exemplary lesson/unit plans and even view podcasts from master teachers or higher education faculty on key concepts across the standards. Plus, the online environment will allow educators to use social networking tools to share information with each other. Teachers’ use and application of the CIITS in their daily classroom practice will become an important aspect of their ongoing professional learning.”
“Kentucky is taking bold steps to raise academic achievement by launching a Continuous Instructional Improvement System as defined in its Race to The Top application,” said Jonathan D. Harber, Schoolnet CEO. “We are looking forward to our partnership with Kentucky and see it as an opportunity to support the State’s commitment to raising academic achievement by aligning student assessment with curriculum and instruction, supporting data-informed decision making, and enabling targeted instruction for every student.”
Among other initiatives, the Kentucky Department of Education’s CIITS program sought an online environment that organizes and houses student data while providing teaching resources directly to the areas that need it most. The Department of Education issued an RFP, which was responded to by a variety of companies, selected top contenders, and invited finalists in for in-person presentations. Schoolnet was awarded the contract this month for its ability to organize and store student data in a central online portal, identify areas needing attention, and provide integrated professional learning opportunities.
