Birmingham nonprofit Ed Farm has launched a new product.
Called Ed Farm Learn, the product is a digital tool that supports professional development growth for educators in an effort to heighten the learning experiences they provide to students. The product was designed to enhance Ed Farm’s teacher fellows program by giving educators the ability to showcase high-quality lessons designed with their peers, display career accomplishments, build a network and enhance interactions between the team at Ed Farm and participating fellows.
“Ed Farm has a strong track record of propelling innovation through unique programs for educators and students. Learn builds on our mission to equip educators and communities with innovative tools and strategies that impact learning, and it allows us to scale the number of educators and schools we serve,” said Waymond Jackson, president of Ed Farm. “We are excited to introduce this unique ed-tech product to the world, and we look forward to its impact in the classroom.”
Jackson said the platform was inspired by hours of interviews and feedback sessions with educators about ways to improve teaching. The platform was designed by the Ed Farm team in close collaboration with K12 educators and developed in partnership with local minority-owned firm JWEB Development.
One of the core features of the platform is the user profile, where verified educators can display their professional background, top skills, favorite technologies and connect to and message their peers. The profile also allows educators to showcase their own innovative, technology-enabled lesson plans and learner work.
According to Ed Farm’s research, the tool addresses the problem of educators' limited ability to borrow innovative lessons from other educators. Additionally, educators expressed a desire to network with their peers, and they said existing social platforms like Facebook and Twitter make it difficult for personal connections and conversations.
“After teaching for 32 years, Ed Farm has been that extra energizer to get to the next level. Ed Farm, for me, has been the booster that has taken my classroom instruction to a new height," said Portrice Warren, a teacher at William J. Christian K-8 School in Birmingham. “Now, Ed Farm Learn gives me a sneak peek into other teachers' classrooms to see [other teachers'] creative modes and to be able to implement/integrate those ideas into my own classroom. It has forced me to be more creative in my classroom design and to think critically as I plan each lesson.”
