Online Learning Resource Center (OLRC) for CTE

OLRC is a collaboration between the Minnesota State Career and Technical Education office, the eight Minnesota State Centers of Excellence, and the Minnesota Department of Education.

Welcome to the Minnesota State Career and Technical Education Online Learning Resource Center (OLRC), a consolidated source of instructional materials to help secondary and post-secondary educators adapt to the need for ongoing remote or blended instruction. The resources in OLRC have been curated by educators and are free for educators to browse and use.  Curation was performed using a selection criteria rubric, and content in OLRC is monitored and updated regularly to ensure its relevance and usefulness.

Neither Minnesota State nor the Minnesota Department of Education endorses or promotes any of the resources in OLRC.

Resources for Secondary Educators

Communication/Video Conferencing Tools

Adobe Connect
Adobe Connect is a suite of software for remote training, web conferencing, presentation, and desktop sharing.

Canvas Conferencing
Conferences is a place within Canvas where users can conduct synchronous (real-time) virtual meetings with all the students and instructors in a course.

Google Meet
Google Meet is a video-communication service. It is one of two apps that constitute the replacement for Google Hangouts, the other being Google Chat.

How to use Zoom Breakout Rooms
Breakout rooms allow you to split your Zoom meeting in up to 50 separate sessions. The meeting host can choose to split the participants of the meeting into these separate sessions automatically or manually, or they can allow participants to select and enter breakout sessions as they please. The host can switch between sessions at any time.

Media Management 

Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams is the hub for team collaboration in Microsoft 365 that integrates people, content, and tools.

Schoology Conferences
Conferencing in Schoology allows faculty to meet with their class anytime by using standard conferencing tools such as screenshare, webcam, chat, and interactive whiteboards.

WebEx
Webex Meetings lets you host online meetings with HD video, audio and screen sharing. Webex Teams keeps your teams connected through messaging, file sharing, whiteboarding and calling. Webex Events is a solution for hosting interactive webinars or large-scale virtual events.

 

Soft Skills

CareerPrepped
CareerPrepped is a career success system that supports WBL programs with virtual activities centered around student skill development and authentic assessment processes involving CTE educators and industry professionals.

Edge Factor
Edge Factor equips K-12 and postsecondary schools, businesses, workforce development organizations, and families with e-learning tools to showcase industries and careers, teach soft skills, show how STEAM comes alive in the real world, and highlight local training and career opportunities.

SkillsCommons Soft Skills Resources
Free and open online library containing free and open learning materials and program support materials for job-driven workforce development.

Teacher/Student Messaging Systems

Bloomz
Full-featured parent-teacher communication platform--available on Google Play and iTunes.

ClassDojo
Classroom portfolios, announcements for online classroom dates, and parent/student communications translatable into 30+ languages.

EdPuzzle
Create interactive video lessons for students to can integrate into a learning management system (LMS).

Flipgrid
Allows teachers to create "grids" to facilitate video discussions.

GoGuardian
Classroom management and video conferencing.

Nearpod
Engaging media and formative assessments to make every lesson interactive.

Netop
Provides solutions for remote management, desktop sharing and support of various computer systems.

Padlet
Create an online bulletin board that you can use to display information for any topic.

Peardeck
Interactive presentation tool used to actively engage students in individual and social learning.

Remind
Over 70 languages and options to share files and links.

Talking Points
Multilingual texting tool with automatic translation--available on Google Play and iTunes.

Technologies

Searchable Database for Online Learning Tools & Resources
This web-enabled resource provides a searchable database for tools to support those involved in education and the workforce, at all levels, and from all communities as they scale up capabilities for online learning and continue teaching, learning, and working from home.

 

Resources for Post-Secondary Educators

CareerPrepped
CareerPrepped is a career success system that supports WBL programs with virtual activities centered around student skill development and authentic assessment processes involving CTE educators and industry professionals.

Edge Factor
Edge Factor equips K-12 and postsecondary schools, businesses, workforce development organizations, and families with e-learning tools to showcase industries and careers, teach soft skills, show how STEAM comes alive in the real world, and highlight local training and career opportunities.

How to use Zoom Breakout Rooms
Breakout rooms allow you to split your Zoom meeting in up to 50 separate sessions. The meeting host can choose to split the participants of the meeting into these separate sessions automatically or manually, or they can allow participants to select and enter breakout sessions as they please. The host can switch between sessions at any time.

SkillsCommons Soft Skills Resources
Free and open online library containing free and open learning materials and program support materials for job-driven workforce development.

To provide feedback on OLRC or suggest other resources to be added, please send an email to robb.lowe@minnstate.edu.