College Sponsors Skills Tutor Workshop
(Press Release 09-22-08)
Hank Mooney, Office of Public Information

Submitted story and photo

Fifty–five area teachers, administrators and GEAR UP staff members attended a three–hour workshop presented by Mike Szydlowski, SkillsTutor Project Manager, with Houghton Mifflin Learning Technology. The professional development workshop was sponsored by Eastern Oklahoma State College’s GEAR UP for a Brighter Tomorrow grant program.      

GEAR UP Professional Development Coordinator Lorrie Russ planned two successful workshop sessions. The training was to help GEAR UP partner educators learn how to use the SkillsTutor software purchased for partner schools.      

SkillsTutor is a leader in K–Adult learning solutions. It provides scientifically–based content that is easily integrated into your curriculum to help learners master essential skills. SkillsTutor Plus connects formative assessment and data–driven instruction for improved results. Teachers may select assessment items from a bank of more than 12,000 math, reading, and language arts items aligned to Oklahoma's standards.       “SkillsTutor has been implemented in a variety of innovative ways throughout the cohort schools,” said GEAR UP Professional Development Coordinator Lorrie Russ. “SkillsTutor has been the basis for several tutoring classes, supplemented daily lessons, a benchmark to track student progress, and as an introductory tool for students who were not present during the initial presentation of a lesson.”      

Russ added, “Included in the SkillsTutor program that is yearly upgrades to the program. With yearly upgrades, it is necessary to give further training to the schools’ SkillsTutor site administrators.      

Eastern's GEAR UP is excited to provide this important tool to GEAR UP students for instruction, intervention and remediation according to Russ.

Caption info:

	McCurtain teachers Royce Bell and Deward Palmer review helpful strategies used to implement SkillsTutor and maximize results. Bell and Palmer attended a three–hour workshop sponsored by Eastern Oklahoma State College’s GEAR UP for a Brighter Tomorrow grant. The grant program purchased the SkillsTutor program for GEAR UP students at the 23 partner schools.
Canadian teacher Rachel Willis reviews helpful strategies used to implement SkillsTutor and maximize results. Willis attended a three–hour workshop sponsored by Eastern Oklahoma State College’s GEAR UP for a Brighter Tomorrow grant. The grant program purchased the SkillsTutor program for GEAR UP students at the 23 partner schools.	Wilburton teacher Patricia Easley reviews helpful strategies used to implement SkillsTutor and maximize results. Easley attended a three–hour workshop sponsored by Eastern Oklahoma State College’s GEAR UP for a Brighter Tomorrow grant. The grant program purchased the SkillsTutor program for GEAR UP students at the 23 partner schools.
	Crowder teacher Janice Gray reviews helpful strategies used to implement SkillsTutor and maximize results. Gray attended a three–hour workshop sponsored by Eastern Oklahoma State College’s GEAR UP for a Brighter Tomorrow grant. The grant program purchased the SkillsTutor program for GEAR UP students at the 23 partner schools.