Throughout the last school year, teachers, students, and parents have been transitioning to Schoology from a primarily Google Classroom environment. Frederick County joins several Maryland school systems, including Baltimore County Public Schools, who have switched to Schoology .

The transition has been slow for teachers and students, especially. The reason is since most people are accustomed to using different resources such as HAC and Google Classroom. It’s more difficult to understand how Schoology works with a grading system and lists of assignments in one learning management system because the platform is much more complex.

“I like Schoology. I used it last year, but I think that some teachers don’t like change,” said Mr. Mark Lastova.  That would be true of students, too.

One of the many reasons FCPS decided to change to Schoology and didn’t remain on Google Classroom, is because Schoology has more accessibility (grading, assignments, etc.) in one place; whereas, Google Classroom had limited access. 

“I can’t decide between the two because I use them both for different things. I use Schoology for grading and Google Classroom for assignments,” said Mr. Dan Lake, English and math teacher.

This school year, high school teacher are required to use Schoology for grading.  They do not need to use all of the tools on the platform.

Schoology has the same tools for teachers to use such as Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, and more. Another goal of Schoology is to ensure student privacy and to enable a more safe learning environment. 

Teachers could begin adopting Schoology in 2018-2019.  Early adopters could get levels of training from beginning to advanced.

The FCPS rollout is to have Schoology as an optional tool in the first year; during the second year, teachers must start entering their grades into Schoology’ grade-book; and in the third year, teachers might have to commit to Schoology and have a full implementation.  

“I like Schoology more because the program is more robust. There are more options for teachers. I think a majority of teachers prefer classroom, because they are used to it,” said Mrs. Leanne Elsemore.  She is the liaison for the staff.  If they have questions, she can mentor other teachers. 

Students are not convinced yet.  In a Lancer Media poll,  88% of students would rather use Google Classroom then Schoology, and 12% of students like the transition to Schoology this school year.