
Lumio™
has
recognized
Moneka
Lyons,
training
specialist
in
the
Office
of
Instructional
Technology
Services,
as
one
of
only
27
SMART
Innovators
in
the
U.S.
and
78
worldwide.
Lyons
is
focused
on
providing
teachers
with
educational
strategies
using
technology
products
from
Lumio
(formerly
known
as
SMART
Learning
Suite
Online).
"Moneka
has
run
three
cohorts
and
is
always
thinking
ahead
to
see
how
our
partnership
with
SMART
can
help
support
our
teaching
and
learning
initiatives,"
said
Diane
Harazin,
supervisor
of
instructional
technology
services.
"This
is
a
very
special
honor
that
she
made
happen
through
her
dedication,
passion,
and
ownership
of
this
project."
Once
trained,
PWCS
educators
use
this
collection
of
tools
to
deliver
student
lessons,
activities,
and
assessments,
and
to
build
collaborative
online
workspaces.
With
this
technology,
when
students
are
doing
an
activity,
they
can
interact
with
each
other,
and
the
teacher
can
see
that.
It
moves
kids
from
passive
to
active
learning,
where
they
can
participate
and
demonstrate
their
understanding
in
real
time.
Last
year,
when
the
pandemic
disrupted
in-person
teaching,
PWCS
looked
to
cloud-based
software
such
as
Lumio
for
virtual
learning
options.
The
School
Division
partnered
with
Lumio
to
develop
a
professional
development
cohort
that
has
provided
training
to
112
teachers
to
date.
These
SMART
Ambassadors
from
across
all
PWCS
schools
participated
in
five
months
of
professional
development,
learning
how
to
create
equitable,
personalized,
experiences
for
their
students.
As
a
result,
teachers
were
able
to
implement
the
strategies
from
the
training
into
their
classrooms,
increasing
student
participation
and
learning.
Lyons
joined
PWCS
in
2016
as
a
business
education
teacher
in
the
Career
and
Technology
Education
program
after
a
decade
in
the
corporate
world,
both
in
the
Northern
Virginia
area
and
Chicago.
She
explained
that
interwoven
through
all
she
does
is
mindfulness
and
equity.
In
her
experience,
making
time
for
true
listening
can
be
a
key
challenge
for
educators.
"I
knew
working
in
the
career
field
of
education
full-time,
as
opposed
to
corporate
contracts/procurement
management,
was
what
I'm
supposed
to
do,"
Lyons
shared.
"However,
a
key
challenge
I've
experienced
over
my
18
years
working
in
education
is
that
we
sometimes
don't
practice
active
and
reflective
listening.
If
we
can
listen
and
approach
pedagogy
with
a
lens
of
seeking
first
to
understand
the
whole
student
or
whole
staff
member,
it
can
shift
the
atmosphere
in
our
respective
classrooms
and
offices.
I
love
SMART
Learning!
It
provides
such
personalized,
equitable
learning
for
our
students."