itslearning was updated on 9 February 2012. This time we have focused on improvements that will make life easier for teachers. We have improved the calendar and grade book, enhanced some of the content blocks, released a new version of the editor and much more.

How should schools deal with students that leave class to go abroad – for example on vacation? Is it possible to turn their absence into something positive? Yes, says Marit Spildo, the inventor of an itslearning-based project aimed at students who go abroad for shorter periods of time.

At the end of 2011, YouTube announced something that the educational community had wanted for years: YouTube for schools. A specially filtered YouTube site with thousands of educational content, it has a great deal to offer; but you still need a good learning platform to make sure the videos apply directly to students’ learning. Here are a few ways to do just that.

Secondary school teacher Elisabeth Engum from Bergen, Norway, has been described as a prime example of how personal learning environments can contribute to innovative teaching. Inspired by the ideas of the "flipped classroom" she is finding new ways to structure her teaching and motivate students.   Basically, flipping the classroom means to deliver instructional videos online that students can watch outside of class and move the homework into the classroom.

Just2Easy is dedicated to bringing creative tools to the classroom so students can create, share and learn in a safe environment. For the third year running, Just2Easy has made the BETT Awards shortlist – and four of their tools are available as apps inside itslearning with free trials. Just2Easy’s tools are designed to allow students to become creators.

itslearning, Inc. appoints new U.S. President as part of aggressive growth plan Kevin Pawsey to lead U.S.

Recent research of 1,000 students in England reveals what students think of itslearning – and how they like to use it. About Albin Wallace With 30 years of experience in the field of ICT and education in Australia and the UK, Albin holds a firm belief that teachers are the key to achieving sustained ecological change in schools. Since May 2003, he has been Group ICT and e-Learning Director for the United Church Schools Trust and the United Learning Trust, one of the most diverse and success scho...

How can you make your vocational training directly applicable to work situations? Anne Brunborg is a nurse by profession and works as a health education teacher at Røyken Upper Secondary School in Norway. To make her nurse training course more practical, she uses itslearning to create a fictional nursing home and uses storyline – a pedagogical method for active learning – to bring life to the teaching.

A new free teaching module from Bridgeman Education enables students to explore past Olympic posters, and place them in a historical and artistic content, before creating their own posters for London 2012. Ahead of the London 2012 Olympics, Bridgeman Education has teamed up with The Olympic Museum to launch a free Olympic Games teaching module. The topical, self-contained learning unit helps both teachers and students to explore the history and message of the Olympics in the lead-up to London 20...

itslearning was updated on 17 November 2011. This time we've updated the look and feel, but we've got other news as well. In addition to the design refresh, learners and their supervisors can now access important information through the new person profile.

Inger Skjøstad of Arstad School in Hedmark, Norway, was one of the nominees in the Creative use of itslearning category during the Share & use Conference in Sandvika in 2010. She was nominated for her work with individual learning plans (ILPs) for pupils in 5th to 7th grade. "In my opinion the ILP is the best feature in itslearning," says Inger.

A teaching content revolution has begun in the Netherlands that could change the face of teaching across the country. The idea is simple: to make digital content available for all teachers and students via itslearning. The vision is huge: to have a fully plugged in teaching community that gets fresh and current content every day.

Technology is changing the way students learn and teachers work. Here are five skills that every teacher should have in order to be able to prepare today’s students for tomorrow Basic computer literacy You don’t need to be a computer geek, but you do need to be use basic programs (at the very least, Microsoft’s Word, Outlook and PowerPoint). The good news is that most computer programs share common features and icons, which means skills learnt in one program are usually transferable.

Research has shown that a systematic approach to assessment for learning can increase learning outcomes for learners, which makes it a priority area in education. We talked to itslearning's assessment expert Inger Alice Andersen about assessment for learning. But first, what is assessment for learning?

Most students moving from primary to secondary school have diverse backgrounds. Rådalslien School in Bergen, Norway, accepts new students from a range of different primary schools, and experience has shown that their computer skills are varied. The school saw the need for a common introduction to ICT, and teacher Jonny Eriksen was assigned the task of creating a solution.

Which new technologies will have a big impact on education in the next five years? Here are six to watch out for. About the NMC The New Media Consortium (NMC) is an international not-for-profit consortium of learning-focused organizations dedicated to the exploration and use of new media and new technologies.

itslearning was updated on 21 June 2011. This time we have improved the handling of multimedia files, and we're happy to introduce a brand new content block for notifying you about new and updated elements in your courses. In addition we have many more changes we hope you'll find interesting – from planner updates to export of data.

One of the leading researchers on blended learning, Michael B. Horn from Innosight Institute, has identified six main blended learning models. Will one of these models work in your school?

A clearly set out and structured course plan is important – not only for teachers and students, but also for parents. In itslearning, teachers can create a plan for each course that keeps all teaching materials associated with the subject in one place. This article gives you some useful tips and tricks on how to get the most out of the itslearning planner.

Cloud computing is basically a way of running your IT without doing all the hard work. And it could be the next big thing in education. Here are eight reasons why educational institutions around the world are shifting to the cloud.

Many countries have education acts that say students have a right to participate. But how can teachers put this into practice? Kjersti Engelstad Stokke – administrative head of studies and economics teacher at Sandvika Upper Secondary School in Norway – lets her students actively participate when creating semester plans in itslearning.

YouTube is packed with funny and educational videos that you can embed in course pages to use in class. But finding them isn’t easy. Here are a few of the best that we’ve come across.

Imagine you're a teacher at a school with 700 students, your class numbers 100 students – and you only have two computers without internet connection. This is the situation Moliehi Sekese and her colleagues face daily. But they make the most of the resources they have, because they know that education is the key to a better future.

How can educational institutions do more with less money? And how can they use technology to better prepare their students in the 21st century? In a recent webinar, award-winning ICT evangelist, author & broadcaster Russell Prue showed how educational institutions can use technology to teach students the creative and problem-solving skills they need in the 21st century – without breaking the budget.

How can you combine sound and video with itslearning – and how can both teachers and students benefit from using multimedia? In his experience with sound and video, Alexander Aak Eide, a teacher at Skranevatnet School in Norway, has found that using technology not only enhances creativity and interest from a student perspective, but also saves him time. "In itslearning it's just as easy to insert sound and video as it is to write text.

A learning platform gives you a digital environment where students can explore social media without exposing their data to the outside world. But there are still a number of issues you need to consider to ensure your student’s eSafety. 1.

BERGEN: Today, itslearning announced that it will acquire a 51% stake in educational technology provider Dactique. This cooperation will make itslearning the largest learning platform provider in the Netherlands, enabling the company to offer even better service and products to the Dutch educational sector. Norwegian-based educational ICT provider itslearning announced today that it will shortly acquire majority ownership of the Dutch company Dactique.

Elin Måge is a Norwegian language teacher at Risenga Secondary School in Asker, Norway, and she's known as an itslearning addict. She updates itslearning on a daily basis, and also makes sure that her colleagues can benefit from what she produces.   "I'm addicted to itslearning," Elin confesses.

Are you interested in new tools to enhance your teaching? Award-winning author and teacher Russell Stannard presents three exciting online tools that can bring new life to your teaching. In a recent webinar, Russell talked about Todaysmeet, Vocaroo and Jing which are all free.

BERGEN: 71% of teachers feel that a secure internet ‘parent portal’, where parents could see details about their child's schooling, would improve school-to-parent communication, according to a survey of 5805 teachers released today by leading educational ICT provider itslearning. In the survey of teachers in France, Germany, Norway, Sweden, the UK and the US, 75% of teachers also rated parental engagement as either ‘important’ or ‘very important’ for the success of a child’s education. However, ...

What’s the best way to judge the success of a learning platform implementation project? According to Global Business Development Manager Trond Skeie, the answer is usage. The best projects get more than 80% of staff and students using the learning platform regularly within a year of implementation, but how do they do it?

How can itslearning help lecturers at a university or university college improve their teaching? Tor Haugnes, a historian and lecturer at the BI Norwegian School of Management, has found that itslearning makes teaching more efficient – and improves student results. In higher education, there are often a large number of participants in each course.

How long does it take to get started with itslearning? According to Torunn Gjelsvik, itslearning project leader at BI Norwegian School of Management, it’s possible to get more than 20,000 students and staff imported into – and actively using – itslearning in less than 10 months. Before starting with itslearning, teachers and students at BI used two different systems: a self-made tool called Apollon and a commercially available learning platform.

itslearning gives you a digital environment where students can explore the opportunities offered by internet without exposing their data to the outside world. But even though the information on itslearning remains within the school, there are still a number of issues you need to consider to ensure your student’s eSafety – and this includes using the privacy and policy features in itslearning. How does it work?

The world is changing and schools need to change with it. Here are ten things that we think will be obsolete by 2020. 1.

A new version of itslearning has been released. In this version we've made it easier to change skins for individual users or groups, improved the attendance, assessment, behaviour systems and the planner and much more. Choose different skins for individual users or groups To make sure the itslearning experience is tailored to the individual user, administrators can now decide what skin different people use.

What new features can you expect from itslearning this year? “As a learning platform, the reason itslearning exists is to support educational practice,” says Morten Fahlvik, itslearning’s Market Research Manager. As a result, this year we’re focusing on developing features to help both teachers and learners visualise how learning takes place – and improving our assessment tools.

Monika Solvig, a teacher at  Individual learning plans help students better understand and take responsibility for their learning. How can you make them work for your students?

Teacher Monika Solvig shows how a simple five-step approach empowers her students to take responsibility for, and reflect on, their learning.

Most educational institutions recognise that it’s learning is an excellent pedagogical tool. Now, with the acquisition of French Learning Management System provider InfoStance, we are developing an LMS that combines pedagogical tools with advanced administration systems.

Burlington, MA – June 9, 2010 – Continuing its mission to provide quality education that prepares students for the workforce and advanced degrees, Bay State College is implementing it’s learning, The Individual Learning Platform™. Through its renewed relationship with EdTek Services, Boston-based Bay State College, gains access to accreditation consulting services and online learning program support as well as the cloud-based it’s learning platform.

Burlington, MA – June 15, 2010 – The Young Broadcasters of America (YBA), an organization founded to help 10-18 year old students improve their communication skills and confidence both on-air and off-air, is expanding its offerings by integrating it’s learning ─ The Individual Learning Platform™, an online learning platform designed to support individualized and collaborative instruction.

Burlington, MA – June 14, 2010 – In order to expand access and collaboration for teacher trainers and the language educators that they serve across the globe, the Center for Applied Linguistic (CAL), a private, nonprofit organization working to improve communication through better understanding of language and culture, is implementing it’s learning The Individual Learning Platform™.

Burlington, MA – May 20, 2010 – Providing better technology for education, Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) and it’s learning, inc. have entered into a global alliance to integrate their Cloud-based learning solutions. Under the terms of the agreement, it’s learning will use Microsoft’s Live@edu service to provide Outlook Live based collaboration and the Microsoft Office Web Apps suite to K-12 and higher education clients with the its learning platform at no charge.

May, 2010, Burlington, MA, USA – After a comprehensive judging process, The ComputED Gazette chose it’s learning as an award recipient for the 16th Annual Best Educational Software Awards (BESSIE Awards). it’s learning won in the Learning Platform category. “The recognition of our first BESSIE Award suggests that our individual learning platform will have a powerful impact on both teaching and learning
in American schools,” said Jon Bower, President of it’s learning, inc.

Burlington, MA – May 3, 2010 – In an effort to help its member schools creatively deal with the Californian fiscal crisis, the APLUS+ Network Association has partnered with it’s learning, inc. Member schools will now have access to it’s learning, The Individual Learning Platform™ to help them develop and share resources in a cost-effective way.

Burlington, MA – April 23, 2010 – The Education Alliance, a global higher education consultancy, recently tested it’s learning (www.itslearning.net) as part of an independent evaluation of learning management systems. According to the report, “it’s learning led the way in faculty and student usability, instructional application, adaptability, and affordability."