CPALMS is a state wide infrastructure project to build information systems and tools to support the implementation of the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards (NGSSS). The project is led by the Florida Center for Research in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (FCR-STEM) at Florida State University (FSU). CPALMS is collaboration between k-12 teachers, researchers, the Florida Department of Education, universities, district curriculum specialists, and many others.

In order to effectively support the NGSSS, CPALMS is redesigning several key information systems and creating a framework for others to follow and integrate. The three main information systems are:

• Standards Information System
• Course Information System
• Standards-Based Resource Information System

The Standards Information System is the core of all components providing direct access and connection to the standards. By integrating these systems, CPALMS will:

• make the standards more practical by connecting them to courses. Since teachers teach courses and student register in courses, it is important that the course descriptions are aligned with the standards.
• make standards more achievable by providing high quality resources that are specifically aligned or created for the NGSSS.
• provide standards-based tools to create high quality courses, instructional resources, planning and professional development.
• serve as "one source" for all standards-based information by utilizing the latest technologies such as Web 2.0, web services and Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). This infrastructure will enable creating new standards-based tools and applications without the need to replicate the information systems within CPALMS.

CPALMS is driven by collaboration between education stakeholders. We invite you to explore this website and welcome all your suggestions.

 

CPALMS is composed of three main information systems. Below is a brief description about each and a link to explore each individual system.

CPALMS is an infrastructure built to support performance and collaboration through access to information and tools. It is being built to be an integrated web-based environment that is available to and easily accessible by each stakeholder and is structured to provide immediate, individualized on-line access to the full range of information, tools, and guidance to enhance job performance and efficiency. The key factors in designing each component of CPALMS are:

• Standards-based
  When appropriate, all the tools and systems are standards-driven to facilitate standards-based instruction. Data and tools are designed to provide support in implementing the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards.

• Stakeholder Involvement
  CPALMS is developed collaboratively with Florida’s educators and other stakeholders. The CPALMS team involves representatives from each of the stakeholder groups in the design of each of the systems and tools. As an example, CPALMS has an advisory panel of 180+ teachers representing all districts and providing design input and feedback on teacher related tools and systems.

• Ease-of-Use and Convenient User Experience
  An end-user driven design is necessary for the success of each of the elements. The CPALMS team has access to a state-of-the-art Human Factors Laboratory to select the appropriate navigational structures and designs. In addition, the CPALMS team solicits user feedback on a regular basis and monitors system activities to enhance the user experience. The specification for each element includes a user-experience phase that simulates options for user interfaces.
• Generate Process Efficiencies for the User and the Department of Education
  The CPALMS team consults with users and administrators from the Department of Education to understand the business process for each of the activities and design a more effective and efficient process. For example, the course request process will be transformed from a paper-based process to an electronic process that enforces timely processing, adds enhanced accuracy, and provides tracking functionalities. Numerous identified efficiencies will save effort and cost at the department level, district level and all the way to the individual user.

• Data Fusion Opportunities
  The use of techniques that combine data from multiple sources and gather that information in order to achieve inferences, which will be more efficient and potentially more accurate than if they were achieved by means of a single source. An example on utilizing data fusion techniques: in the past years the following systems were maintained independently and communicated to the public as documents: Standards, Course Code Directory and Course Descriptions. CPALMS provides a Standards Database, a modern Course Code Directory, and integrates both of them to provide Course Descriptions. CPALMS provides the information of three systems, using only two of them. These are simple techniques providing more efficiencies and additional needed information.

We realize that the best of web technologies are yet to come. Our main technical guideline is to employ the latest adaptive technologies that can facilitate easy transitions in the future. We utilize industry-standard programming structure and develop the applications using the Microsoft ASP.NET framework. In order to achieve the essence of CPALMS to create a flexible infrastructure that can dynamically change and expand, the following technical factors will be adopted as guiding objectives when designing new components:

• Service Oriented Architecture (SOA)
  The SOA model will be adopted in the development of all systems within CPALMS. In computing, SOA provides a set of governing concepts used during phases of systems development and integration. Such architecture will package functionality as interoperable services. CPALMS will provide services to the different systems within and to third-party (e.g., District course registration or publisher) systems even if their respective client systems are substantially different.

• Use of Web 2.0 Technologies
  "Web 2.0" is commonly associated with web development and web design that facilitates interactive information sharing, interoperability, user-centered design and collaboration on the World Wide Web. When appropriate, CPALMS will be developed using Web 2.0 technologies.

• One-Source Initiative
  As explained in the Service Oriented Architecture, the plan for CPALMS is to provide access to most of the core information systems using Web Services and Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), thus providing third-party systems the ability to  connect to CPALMS and access the latest information without having to duplicate programming and information maintenance costs. Systems can be set to automatically synchronize with the official source of information reducing manual import and duplication costs. This initiative will facilitate creating additional efficiencies and maintaining consistent up-to-date information. For example, a district can program their system to automatically download the entire course code directory, avoiding the manual processes they currently perform four times per year. Some of the district information technology administrators take 2-4 weeks of man-hours for each import. CPALMS will provide the information in different formats allowing districts to save many weeks of labor every year. The CPALMS team developed an example of using the One-Source Initiative and was able to create a cross-platform desktop application called QuickConnect, which duplicates the standards database on the local desktop of the user. An effort that would have taken months of programming took approximately 20 hours, because the information was shared from the CPALMS database.

• Application Programming Interfaces (API) and Web Services
  An API is an interface in programming that defines the ways by which an external application program may request services and information from CPALMS. CPALMS will also use Web Services to disseminate information to other systems. A Web Service is defined as a software system designed to support interoperable machine-to-machine interaction over the Internet or network. Together, APIs and Web Services will provide means for third-party systems to access information from the source.

• Built for Integration and Expansion
  Last but not least, the system needs to be designed for adaption, modifications, integration with others and future expansion. This is an important guideline for CPALMS to create a set of tools that provide an infrastructure to serve future needs and integrate other opportunities.

Core Team

Colette Berbesque Science Specialist, FSU	Susan Cornwell Math Specialist, FSU	Sue Doker Math Teacher, Leon
Elizabeth Funk Math Teacher, Leon	Mabry Gaboardi Science Specialist, FSU	Hae Young Kim Instructional Design Graduate Student, FSU
Rabieh Razzouk Project Director, FSU	Danielle Sherdan Project Manager and Science Specialist, FSU	Danley Skelly Math Teacher, Leon
Linda Walker Math Specialist, FSU

 

PROMiSE District Resource Teachers

The PROMiSE DRTs are trained reviewers and ambassadors of CPALMS within their local districts.

Duval County	Heartland Educational Consortium (HEC)	Hillsborough
Marge Hayden Andrea Valdovinos Tavy Wells	Jennifer Reser Lisa Shin	Lisa Culberson Vicki Ewing Sandra Spicer
Miami-Dade	The North East Florida Educational Consortium (NEFEC)	Panhandle Area Educational Consortium (PAEC)
Victor (Rock) Budzyn Ethel Selwood Raquel Stotolongo Christine Todd-Gibson	Charlotte Cannizzaro Debbie Donlan Paula Hollingsworth	Tony Anderson Brenda Crouch Melanie Howard-Miller
Seminole
Rachel Hallet Christine Sharpe

 

 

Advisory Panel

Please click on the following link and fill our registration to become part of our advisory panel: CPALMS Advisory Board Contact Information Survey

Shernett Alexander Jacqua Ballas Guy Barmoha Mary Beasley Steven Blumsack Susan Borland Rebecca Braaten Lori Braga Barb Brightman Pam Caffery James Chinn Sue Clark Amanda Crawford Ginger Davis Guyette Duhart Yvonne Fonnett Jennifer Fornes Gail Gauthier Jonathan Gerlach Jean Giarrusso John Gregory Karlheinz Haas Margaret Hayden Debbie Henderson

Laura Hill Jen Homard Lisa Jap-Tjong Mary Johnson Sharon Kelley Nancy Kinard Diane King Ronald Koblitz Diane Landschoot Lauren Little Stephanie Luke Rose Mack Gina Maitland Karen Malesky Nancy Marsh Cecilia Martin Sharell McInerney Melanie Miller John Miller III Bonnie Mizell Marty Norris Teresa Northrup Lynn O'Connor

Linda Oravetz Nancy Parker Stefanie Pennington Kaethe Perez Myron Pincomb Julie Poth Wachera Ragland Sergio Sanchez Miriam Sandbrand Jennifer Sasser Sharon Shrader Sandra Spicer Wendy Spielman Debby Thompson Nancy Thompson Shana Tirado Linda Vendur Kimberly Walden Tennille Wallace Michele Wiles Marsha Winegarner Curt Witthoff Melissa Young

 

We welcome all suggestions and comments about CPALMS. We like to hear from you about any ideas or suggestions you have for us to incorporate to make CPALMS better for Florida's educators.

For suggestions and comments, please email us at: cpalms@lsi.fsu.edu

 

Educator Comments

"Wow! I love it. A really useful website. You can find an activity for everything you have to teach. I just found a really neat activity for teaching rate and ratio for 6th graders. I plan to use it soon. It's fun and gets the point across. I will definitely make use of this site." Susan Casbarro, 6th Grade Math Teacher-Falcon Cove Middle School Broward County

"As part of our math inservice we did a hunt through CPALMS. It led us to a lot of resources that were really exciting linking math with literature and science concepts. The inservice was last week and both this week and last I have used some of the virtual practice pieces with my class to reinforce math words for shapes, numbers, and numerals. The students love it. I was really excited by the lessons linked to the standards and will be using them in the future to a greater extent as I go forward with math planning." Cindy Fisher, kindergarten teacher Lee County

"I think that CPALMS is a great idea to share many resources that teachers can use in the classroom." Teacher

"EXCELLENT site! Finally, something that we can use. Thank you for the hard work!" Nicholas J Oehm Jr, biology teacher Miami-Dade County