Pear Deck is a tool that is used district-wide for engaging, interactive content delivery. This training will provide new teachers with a beginning level of knowledge and ability to effectively utilize the tool for curricular instruction with their students. Participants will also leave the training knowing how and where they can continue self-paced training for deeper knowledge and implementation.

The district has invested in a license for three years and will evaluate the relative impact of the tool prior to renewing the license. In addition to providing engaging ways for students to interact with the district-adopted curriculum, it provides a platform for collaborative lesson planning amongst grade-level teams and pivots easily for students attending remotely for various reasons. It can be used in whole-class, synchronous lessons, and small group or independent asynchronous learning environments. Pear Deck allows for equity of voice as individual student responses are anonymous on the shared screen, with only the teacher able to view the name of the contributor. This can remove the anxiety and social pressure some students feel and provides the teacher with real-time progress monitoring of student content mastery during the lesson. Pear Deck is a relatively new product in the educational technology market and therefore we can not anticipate that incoming certificated staff will have prior experience with the tool. This training is essential to ensure that our teaching staff has the skills and training they need to use the district-adopted tools and curriculum effectively to drive student engagement and growth.