Education isn?t always about what you teach. Sometimes, it?s about how you teach it.
Technology has found its way into the classroom now that it has become essential to the everyday lives of students. For the first time this year, Washington High School students are permitted to use their own electronic devices ? including tablets, laptops and cellphones ? in class.
?This is the way kids are learning,? social studies teacher Ryan Spicer said. ?This is one way to increase rigor and relevance of learning in the classroom.?
Spicer is one of many Washington High School teachers learning to embrace technology as a way to connect kids to education. Apps and online resources are right at the students? fingertips, and those tools allow students to take quizzes, respond immediately to questions posed by the teacher and even access online textbooks.
Science Teacher Matthew Citron said students in his class use their electronic devices to answer questions about the material they are learning. In doing so, he gets instant feedback.
?The anonymity,? Citron said, is helpful. ?It gives us immediate feedback and we can see that only 30 percent of the students understood that concept.?
?Both teachers say this is the first year that students were permitted to bring their cell phones and tablets into the classroom. It was an initiative encouraged by the administration and spurred by national trends.
While there are challenges that come with having phones, tablets and laptops in the classroom, the teachers say they are minimal. Yes, Spicer said, the students will Tweet and text, but ?it?s really no different than writing a note and passing it. The only difference is that they are writing a note in my class and, possibly, passing to someone in a different class.?
Citron said, he can tell when students are distracted by Twitter or Facebook. When that happens he simply draws their attention back to the task at hand.
?This is something teachers have always been dealing with,? Citron said of distracted students. ?It?s something we have been dealing with since we walked through the classroom door for the first time.?
PARENTAL SUPPORT
Washington High School Assistant Principal Renee Parr said teachers and administrators have embraced the idea of students using their phones and electronic devices in school.
?We gave them some leeway this year,? Parr said. ?They are allowed to use their cell phones in class and if they use it to check messages in the hallways between class, that?s OK, too. Just as long as they aren?t having long conversations on the phone in the hallways.?
She acknowledges that having electronic devices in school does raise concerns about issues including cyber-bullying and texting in class. The school, however, is working diligently to curb those incidents.
?Earlier this week, a representative from Stark County Family Court met with each graduating class to discuss the repercussions of cyber-bullying. Instances brought to the attention of the administration are dealt with immediately, Parr said.
When it comes to misusing cell phones and personal devices parents play a key role in helping to curb the practice.
?I tell parents to check the uses of their kids phones,? Parr said. ?If it shows data usage every five minutes during the school day, then they are using the phones in class. See if they are texting or making calls.?
NEXT-GENERATION EDUCATION
Technology shouldn?t just be a part of the classroom; in some cases, it may be the classroom.
City Schools Superintendent Rik Goodright notes that Massillon is always looking for ways to enhance the education it provides and, to do that, the schools must ?meet the students where they are.?
The rise of charter schools and alternative learning centers including Massillon?s own digital academy, are forcing public schools to think outside the textbook. Education, after all, is a business and it?s important for public schools to keep pace.
?For us it may be a matter of trying to replicate some of the services (charter schools) offer. What do they have that we don?t?? Goodright said. ?If you can?t beat ?em, join ?em.?
Goodright points to higher education as an example of how online learning can expand course offerings. Currently, the Massillon Digital Academy serves around 100 students, but it serves primarily as a safety net. The online classes it offers allows for students to get the credits they need to graduate instead of dropping out of school unprepared for what may be ahead.
There is potential there, to develop that, Goodright said.
?We would like to expand (course offerings),? Goodright said, ?extending it beyond the normal curriculum, giving students more opportunities,?
He envisions Massillon providing online classes that allow students to achieve more credits or even dual credits. If the valedictorian, for example, wants to take Advanced Placement Literature during the school day, perhaps, she can take another elective online that would have conflicted with the previous course during the traditional school day.
?We have to be attractive for all learning,? Goodright said. ?We have to morph into what society is expecting of us ? to be at the front edge of education. And that?s tough, especially in traditional communities. But everyone in the business world and higher education are heading there and our schools need to get there, too.?
Online classrooms also have no limits. As schools work to share resources, so too, could they share online courses. One online course could allow students from multiple districts to take advantage of learning opportunities simultaneously.
Massillon has no current plans to move curriculum online, but Goodright notes that discussions like that continue as Massillon looks to improve the services it provides to students.
When school districts learn to embrace technology and find innovative ways to provide educational opportunities, public schools become the leaders in education.
?We haven?t kept up with online learning,? Goodright said of public school systems. ?We have to meet the learner where they are at. If a charter school can do that better than us, then kids will go to the charter schools. If we can show them we are staying up with the 2013, 2014 and 2015 technology and progress, they will stay with us.?
Source: http://www.indeonline.com/newsnow/x171148997/Washington-High-use-personal-electronics-for-teaching
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