IGS Lengede - A portrait of the digital lighthouse school

The path to the digital lighthouse school

IGS had already been using Fronter since the school was founded in 2010, primarily as a file management system. Then came the next evolutionary step with itslearning to provide digital tools using the learning management system (LMS) to drive the evolution of teaching.

itslearning and how it all began

The search for a digital learning management system began the year before. Extensive research followed, various solutions were put through their paces and examined for their suitability. At the end of this lengthy process, the school decided on itslearning for didactic and data protection reasons as well as for its user-friendliness.

"In the end, the result was clear. Following the primacy of didactics and taking into account the areas of usability and data protection, the Norwegian system itslearning was chosen"

KerstinJaspers, Didactic Director at IGS Lengede.

Digital equipment as standard

The decision had been made, now the digital infrastructure had to be built up further. The next logical step was to install tablets. These were already part of the standard equipment at the school in 2018 - in line with the KMK strategy "Education in the Digital World" (2016). This vision was put into practice thanks to the exemplary commitment of everyone involved (including parents). Since then, all students have had access to such a digital device.

Colleagues and students of the IGS Lengede with tablets

Digital and didactic progress continues - and is rewarded

A lot has happened at the IGS in the meantime. The fresh digital wind has even picked up speed. This was crowned last year with the German School Award for the best digital concept - in the form of the digital toolbox L3Kids (Lengeder teaching, learning, collaboration, information and document management system) - three years after the switch to itslearning. Reason enough for another visit and a portrait of the current situation at IGS by NDR.

The NDR visits the IGS Lengede 2022 (Photo source: NDR).

Digital teaching and its advantages

Contrary to the opinion still often prevalent in Germany that digital media have no positive effect on school performance, according to the NDR, the IGS Lengede is convinced of the indispensability of digital instruction. Kerstin Jasper, the didactic director of the IGS, agrees.
Since the skillful use of the digital world is increasingly becoming a core competency of our society, it must be possible for everyone to acquire this competence in the interest of social participation. Digital work, especially in school, is therefore inevitable and requires a digital tool bag, in which a learning management system must be an essential component, Jasper continued.

The students and teachers at IGS no longer need to be convinced of the positive effects of digital teaching. Since the introduction of itslearning, the younger students are happy about the physical relief of fewer school materials in their satchels, since the majority of the teaching materials can be viewed on the tablet or PC. However, the many differentiation and feedback options that enable teachers to individualize learning processes and support learning are likely to be even more decisive for learning success.

Inclusion is promoted

The use of itslearning can also have a positive effect on the psychological well-being of the students. In the spirit of inclusion, "discrete differentiation" is made possible, says Kerstin Jasper. This means, for example, that tasks of varying difficulty in text work can be distributed individually for the students. The teacher decides which students have to work on the easier tasks and which have to work on the more difficult ones, and the students cannot see this. This prevents stigmatization by classmates at the IGS.

Learning paths: No one is left behind

However, this type of task differentiation is not the only way itslearning offers teachers to make their lessons inclusive and effective. Another option is the creation of learning paths, which math teacher Bauerschaper also likes to use. In this way, students can learn at their own pace and teachers can always see where they are or are not progressing. In this way, the teacher can provide targeted help to those students who need it. In the following lessons, this can then be followed up in a targeted manner - e.g. via itslearning messenger. Here you can find an overview of learning paths and their use.

A learning path is a sequence of learning steps that lead the learner to the goal.

Interweaving with everyday life provides additional motivation

In addition to these opportunities, which help teachers plan lessons optimally and lead all students to success, digital learning with a good learning management system also brings another important factor for students: motivation. Because students already spend a lot of time outside of school on their cell phones, tablets, and computers, biology teacher Brodhun finds that digital instruction connects school with everyday life and boosts motivation more than working with pen and paper.

How it goes on

We are currently in an exchange with IGS Lengede to develop even better ways and methods of how teachers can best support students via the LMS.

Here is an example of how teachers can get a quick overview of curriculum and learning objectives and use this as the basis for individual learning development reports.

The competency distribution report provides teachers with an optimal overview. They can link these competencies to entire lesson series and plans or simply to concrete tasks.

The level of knowledge of digital skills can also be accurately checked in itslearning at a glance.

We thank you for the many years of very good cooperation and look forward to the coming time with the IGS Lengede!