Pear Deck Release Notes

November 18, 2024

New
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• Expanded the number of instructional slides per objective from one to two or three slides, allowing for deeper exploration of concepts and more effective teaching.
• Refined the language and presentation of student-facing content to better align with grade-level reading expectations.
• Added an overview of the redesigned Google Slides Add-on (including Autograding + Polling) in the Launchpad and Google Slides Add-On. Please find it in the Launchpad > three-dot menu in My Pear Decks >Support video. For the Google Slides Add-On, click the three-dot menu > How Pear Deck Works.

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November 14, 2024

New
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• Fixed a bug causing Poll and Choice response types to appear blank on exported student responses spreadsheets.

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November 6, 2024

New
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• Redesigned the Pear Deck Add-On for Google Slides with enhanced features and easier access to key resources. Changes include:
  • Renamed the Choice response type to Poll. Existing lessons with Choice response type will automatically convert into Poll. Choice responses now display as Poll (Formerly Multiple Choice) Slide on Reflect & Review.
  • Introduced auto-scoring of student responses on Choice and Number responses for district and school users.
  • Added the Submit button for students to lock in their responses on Text, Number, Poll, and Choice questions.
  • Added support for setting correct answers and point values on Choice and Number questions for district and school users.
  • Expanded teacher view of student responses on Choice and Poll responses to include bar and pie charts in the Teacher Dashboard for district and school users.
  • Separated Certified ELA and Math content shortcuts to the Content Orchard.
  • Built a number-plot view for student responses to Number questions in the Teacher Dashboard for district and school users.
  • Support bar charts and pie charts for student responses to Choice and Poll questions.

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September 11, 2024

New
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• Enhanced search to automatically suggest slide decks based on keywords. Keywords can include a deck name, description, grade, or subject.
• Improved filtering and aligned it with Content Orchard for a cohesive user experience.

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Fixed‍
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• Fixed a bug preventing users from scrolling through the Pear Deck menu on the home page when using a mobile device.

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September 10, 2024

New
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• Added an Instant Pear Decks introduction video, "Create Instant Pear Decks with AI," to the Launchpad > Create Pear Decks with AI ellipsis menu > Support video.
  

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September 5, 2024

Fixed‍
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• Fixed a bug preventing teachers from publishing Flashcard Factory card sets to Gimkit Live.

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July 31, 2024

Fixed‍
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• Fixed a bug causing Pear Deck Add-In within Microsoft PowerPoint to continuously load.

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July 23, 2024

New‍
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• Launched Instant Pear Decks in beta that's available to all users. Instant Pear Decks are customizable, AI-generated lessons that let school and district-level users rapidly create lessons and copy them to their Google Drive. It supports four inputs for generating content: topic, standard, URL, or file upload. Please read our support article for more information.

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July 8, 2024

New‍
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• Published more Pear Deck Certified Lessons for Math and ELA in grades 3-12, totaling more than 700 lessons.

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July 2, 2024

New‍
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• Published approximately 300 Pear Deck Certified Lessons for Math and ELA in grades 3-12. The lessons are available to district and school subscriptions. Highlights include:
  • Certified Pear Deck’s research-based instructional strategies are designed to keep students engaged through interactive and dynamic learning experiences. Certified content also fosters a classroom environment that promotes active participation and deep understanding.
  • Lessons align with Common Core, TEKS, and all 50 state standards including the District of Columbia (DC).
  • Certified content promotes higher-order thinking skills, aligning educational standards and mirroring the Depth of Knowledge requirements of state assessments.
  • Saves one-to-two hours on lesson development per teacher.
  • Certified materials are fully customizable, allowing teachers to tailor lessons to the specific needs and preferences of their students and classrooms.
  • Built to complement  Pear Practice’s practice sets, allowing teachers to move from instruction to practice seamlessly.
• Redesigned the Content Orchard layout to include tabs for featured decks, content by subject and by grade, and all content.
• Revamped the Launchpad layout, giving quick access to your Pear Decks, the District Library, Quick Prompts, and Flashcard Factory.
• Enhanced filtering in the Content Orchard to include standards. The filter is now a button next to the search bar that opens a flyout menu from the right-hand side of the screen.
• Launched live technical support via chat for all Pear Deck users. The chat is available from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST. Chat with an agent by clicking the Chat with an expert button in the lower-right corner of Pear Deck.

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April 9, 2024

New

• Added creation date and slide totals to deck details when a deck is opened from the District Library or Content Orchard.
• General improvements to accessibility.

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March 13, 2024

Fixed

• Fixed a bug causing an error when exporting flashcards to Gimkit with file names of more than 30 characters. The export now enforces a 30-character limit.
• Fixed the pricing page in the Upgrade to Premium banner linked in the Google Slides sidebar. This affected free accounts.
• Fixed the following bugs with the Drawing slides and other features:
  • From the Dashboard, teachers weren't able to see student progress while the student typed unless the student clicked outside of the text box.
    Student pencil marks weren't showing in the Teacher Dashboard unless the student lifted the pencil from the canvas.
  • Text boxes showed as horizontal for teachers despite students rotating them. This affected the Dashboard, Projector View, and Reflect & Review.
  • In the Power-Up extension, the navigation bar showed the incorrect slide number when teachers started the session from an unordered slide (e.g., slide 10).

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February 26, 2024

New

• Publish and filter content in the District Library and tag it with CCSS Math, CCSS ELA, NGSS, and all math, ELA, and science state standards for grades 3-12 across all 50 states + DC.
• Filter published content with the list of simplified subjects below to capture the related subjects in the filter results. For example, select Math to find any lessons published with Algebra, Basic Operations, Calculus, Statistics, Trigonometry, and Math.
     • English Language Arts
        • Math
        • Science
     • Social Studies
     • Computer Science & Technology
     • Other Electives
     • Pear Deck Training
     • Professional Development
• Publish Content Orchard subjects on the Share page ("Publish and share your lessons!") > Subjects Covered. Please note that the subjects in italics are available for filtering content and display all content tagged with their respective sub-bullet subjects.
     • Computer Science & Technology (New)
    • English Language Arts
        • EFL - ESL - ELD
        • English Language Arts (New)
        • Reading
        • Vocabulary
        • Writing
     • Math
        • Algebra
        • Basic Operations
        • Calculus
        • Statistics
        • Trigonometry
        • Math
     • Other Electives
        • Drama and Dance
        • Health & Physical Education (New)
        • Foreign Language
        • Music
        • Other
        • Visual Art
     • Pear Deck Training (New)
     • Professional Development (New)
     • Science
        • Biology
        • Chemistry
        • Earth Sciences
        • Physics
        • Science
     • Social Studies
        • Civics
        • Economics
        • Geography
        • Government
        • History
        • Social Studies

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Changed

• Moved the State and Domain filters into the main toolbar for Content Orchard, District Library, and the Share page.
• Changed the Share page copy from Common Core Standards Covered to Standards Covered.
• Added NGSS and all math, ELA, and science state standards for grades 3-12 across all 50 states + DC.
• Updated field names:
  • State > Standard Set
  • Domain > Domain/Reporting Category
  • Standard > Standard ID

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February 20, 2024

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Fixed

• General improvements and security fixes.

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Changed

• Updated the profanity list with improper words.

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February 15, 2024

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Fixed

• General improvements and security fixes.

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February 8, 2024

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Fixed

• General improvements and security fixes.

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February 5, 2024

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Fixed

• Fixed a bug preventing invoice links from opening under Account > Billing > Billing History > View Invoice.
• General improvements and security fixes.

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February 1, 2024

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New

• Added the Publish to District Library button in the Google Slides add-on extension.

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Fixed

• Improved the visibility of the text in the Google Slides add-on extension.

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Changed

• Changed the District Library copy to “Discover your District Library!” right above the Publish to District Library button in the Google Slides add-on extension. The copy is available to all users. Please note that users with Free or Premium accounts will see the copy but not the Publish to District Library button.
• Updated the link to the Microsoft slide decks in the yellow Public Library banner.
• Changed the Customer Support email address in the Google Slides add-on to support[at]deck.peardeck.com.

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January 21, 2024

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New

• Released Pear Deck Learning.

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Fixed

• Fixed a bug causing the conveyor belt to show the cards in the Flashcard Factory out of order.
• Fixed the stretched and warped Peary image in the Launchpad banner on the Safari browser.
• Fixed a bug causing users to receive Google single sign-on (SSO) prompts when they try to switch to a Microsoft account via the app tray in Pear Deck Learning. This also caused Microsoft-authenticated users to receive the Google SSO screen after clicking Open App from the Pear Deck Learning accounts page.

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January 16, 2024

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Fixed

• General improvements and security fixes.

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January 11, 2024

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Fixed

• General improvements and security fixes.

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January 8, 2024

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Fixed

• General improvements and security fixes.

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December 7, 2023

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Fixed

• Fixed a bug causing slides to move on their own when teachers navigate between slides on the Projector View during Instructor-Led Mode.
• Fixed a bug preventing students from clicking links and annotations during Instructor-Paced mode in the Power-Up extension.

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Changed

• Updated the profanity list with improper words.