Gold Ridge Elementary School
(rev.12-2006)
Contents
As important as technology is for future success, students must also realize that they, their parents, teachers and members of their community are their most important resources; computers, the Internet and related technology are merely tools to access and present information. The real educational challenge is to teach our students to make responsible decisions and to disseminate all the information they now have access to. What they do with this overabundance of easily accessible information, especially on the Internet, will depend on early education focusing on mind, body and emotional well-being. This will be accomplished, first, through people resources, secondly, a safe learning environment that nurtures and promotes curiosity, self confidence, creativity, pride in work and, third, being given the right tools to become confident lifelong learners. It is our goal that Gold Ridge students become community leaders who have respect, honor, confidence and pride in themselves so they may pass this on to others and become good citizens.
It is every student’s right to be provided with the right tools needed to succeed. Technology is now not only a necessity in life but also an exciting, innovative teaching and learning tool. Students, teachers and parents must be well-versed in the use of all technology tools and must be shown how to use these tools to create, disseminate, inform and present information. Just as libraries were the way to centrally access information in the past, computers and the Internet are the next step; with one major exception. Students must now learn, more than ever, how to sift through the overabundance and ease of information available to them and make critical decisions as to validity and usage. This can only be done through the guidance of the student’s main resources, the teacher and parent. Technology must foster creativity, enhance current curriculum planning and application as well as assist students and teachers in the gathering and presentation of information if it is to be used as a valid learning tool. Technology planning must be evaluated regularly because curriculum, hardware & software tools and the Internet are always rapidly changing.
Currently, there are 32 internet-connected Pentium PCs with CD ROMS and DVD Drives, one HP color laser-jet, one black laser printer, two scanners, TV-VCR (PC connected) for presentations and software demonstrations, one computer microscope and four digital cameras in the library. There is also video editing equipment, video cameras and DVD readers and writers for student and staff use. Students have 45 minutes to an hour in the lab for technology training or research. One day a week is set aside for class sign-ups to work on curriculum-based projects. It is also open at lunch. The student newspaper and yearbook are also produced here by Gold Ridge students.
Classroom-based technology includes: All classroom have one new Dell PC and will have one laser printer by the end of the scholl year. By the end of March all classrooms will be wired for network and Internet capabilities and we will have a server. All computers have Microsoft Office. All students will be proficient in Word, Excel and Powerpoint when they leave Gold Ridge. We have also purchased Read Naturally for reading school-wide reading assessments.
One of our greatest resources for students, teachers and parents is our web site. Students use this site in school and at home for research and learning as it contains over 1500 links to reinforce school curriculum. There are many links for teacher resources and each teacher has their own page to post homework or notices; these are updated weekly. Parents use this site to find out about school events and information, see pictures of school activities and it also lists a wide variety of parenting links. We average 6500 hits per day on our web site so we know it is one of our most valuable tools.
Repairs are done both by District Technicians and our on-site tech assistant.
· Basic computer, reading and math skills through multimedia-based programs that promote active learning will begin and develop in grades K –2. This will enhance current curriculum, make learning exciting through visual and audio stimulation and aid in mouse control and keyboard training. This is done through the many games and drills on our website.
· Computer basics such as Save, Save As, Save to Disk, file commands, how to open and exit programs, the proper way to turn computers off, how to handle CDs, the "don’ts" when using equipment (no keyboard pounding, no eating, drinking or horseplay around computers) will be emphasized.
· First grades will begin writing small, basic writing samples using Microsoft Word. This will promote good spelling habits as they will see and edit their words in a visual and interactive way. Second grades will begin use of Word and Power Point.
· More intricate writing exercises, using Word, involving importing graphics, font choices, use of spell check, cut, copy, paste and other keyboard commands will be taught.
· Third and forth graders will become proficient users of PowerPoint for group project presentations, coinciding with classroom curriculum. These are good buddy projects and can integrate many subjects.
· Students will begin using electronic encyclopedias and other reference programs, such as Encarta, Compton's, Toolworks Atlas, etc., for research and discovery. This will create more visual models that students can relate to in Geography, Social Science and Fine Arts education.
· Internet resources will be used to research curriculum topics. Students are taught Internet safety. They are not allowed to leave the Gold Ridge Web Site unless they are directed by a teacher to do so. This is for screening, safety and saving time searching for a subject. All curriculum links are pre-loaded onto our site.
· Simple databases and graphs using Excel will be used. This will introduce real-world applications of math concepts in a visual way. Developing and tracking their own data show students just how their math skills are needed and introduces the concept of gathering and organizing scientific data.
· Use of Microsoft Publisher and Adobe In-Design to create and design publications and the yearbook, flash cards, and other media art projects also expose students to many different commands such as importing and exporting, edit and insert commands. It will also introduce students into the world of graphic arts, template building, text formatting and graphic manipulation.
· There will be reiteration of basic computer skills acquired in previous years such as correct posture, hand placement, eye strain prevention and taking a break from the screen. There will be the introduction of computer maintenance using scandisk and defrag.
· There will be productive use of Internet resources to enhance curriculum studies. Use of the Internet for research is stressed.
· There will be continued use of Word, Excel and PowerPoint for polished, professional, innovative and Creative presentation of subject matter.
The Student Newspaper and Yearbook are produced by the fourth and fifth graders.
· Fifth Grade classes will maintain the school’s web site on a rotating basis.
· Fifth graders will be introduced to software crossovers to real world business. Programs such as Excel will provide students with applicable math and financial training, giving them insight of how math skills will be important to their future. Excel will also be used for more intricate databases and graft applications as well as use as a science tracking tool.
· Students will be proficient in the Word by the time they graduate.
· Fifth Graders will be used as technology teachers to younger classmates. This will reinforce their role as School Leaders, foster the "Learn By Teaching" concept and enhance their self esteem; all essential elements when they move on to middle school. To be technology teachers students must learn more computer-related technical information by:
- Learning to recognize and correct hardware problems such as lock-ups and common error messages.
- being familiar with common software programs used by the school
- know most of the basic computer commands
- Know how to save and import work from the server
The Gold Ridge Web Site will continue to grow and provide students with many web resources. Whatever curriculum students are involved with there will be links on the site so students will not have to surf. (Currently, there are over 1500 links for research). Students will be encouraged to use this site at home to continue research. It will continue to provide all information about the school and community for parents so they are always informed.
· Consistency in the use of software will continue, especially in word processing and publishing programs, giving students a consistent writing tool so they can concentrate on content instead of getting used to a new program every year. Home support can also be fostered if parents know they only have to purchase one or two programs for their child’s home use to continue their learning. Students can transport their work via disk between home and school (Gold Ridge provides every student with a disk). Teachers benefit because program files can easily be transferred between classrooms / office. Microsoft Office is used for this task.
· All students will have access to the Internet. They will become familiar with Internet safety issues, search procedures, book marking and research steps. They will also become proficient at moving files from one classroom to another and will be able to work on projects with other classes without leaving their classroom. As well as learning cooperative skills this will also teach the networking concept, which is so common in the business world.
· Planned teacher workshops and individual training sessions will be available upon request focusing on:
Use of software as it relates to their specific curriculum
How to perform routine preventative maintenance on computers
How to clean, maintain and organize files through "Windows Explorer"
Basics on Word, Excel, Power Point and Publisher for record keeping, spelling lists, weekly newsletters, etc.
How to use the internet for research, how to bookmark curriculum-specific sites to cut down on student surfing and how to use key words in searching the Internet
Awareness of Internet hazards when working with students such as inappropriate sites and unnecessary surfing.
How to transfer files from class to class.
Training in the use of Microsoft Office, focusing on Power Point which will be used for presentations and a teaching tool.
· Laser Printers have been purchased for each classroom replacing the the costly ink jets. This will also save printer repair costs as they are more reliable and because every classroom has the same printer it will be easier to order ink and parts.
· Focus on care and proper use of equipment, including Bi-yearly air cleaning to limit repair or replacement costs. Dust covers should be used especially on weekends and vacation periods.
· All school computers are connected to the District Office and virus programs and updates as well as chardware problem-solving issues can be done by the District Office.
· It is the policy of the District that all new equipment will be purchsed throught the District Office giving us good pricing and uniform equipment.
Because technology at Gold Ridge is classroom vs. lab based, teachers will be responsible for the care and proper use of equipment, integration of technology into the curriculum and will be the primary overseer of all projects. They must, therefore, become proficient in basic computer operation and maintenance and also be knowledgeable in software and Internet resources available to them appropriate to their curriculum. To their credit, through much time and hard work, most teachers at Gold Ridge have become proficient in most of these technology skills. There are still some things they can be provided with to help them with these responsibilities. There will be individual training for each teacher as they request. Any questions or problems they have regarding software and hardware will be responded to within a 24-hour period. We also have a large base of parent volunteers who will aid teachers in technology projects.
Our need right now is for more computers to replace our older ones. Most computers in the lab are more than 4 years old and still run on the WIndows 98 O.S. Once these are replaced it is our goal to replace our computers every 5 years
Funding sources outside the normal state-appropriated funds could include:
PTA
Grants
Donations
Fund Raisers (such as our ongoing ice cream sales)
Business Partners
This technology plan is always reviewed and revised yearly, reflecting the ever-changing technology picture and curriculum changes. It will also reflect on what has been accomplished and learned this year. The one recurring theme in all our plans will be that we will not use technology for technology’s sake. It must be used in partnership with books, pen and paper and the student’s greatest resources; parents, teachers and community. Technology is an enhancement of the learning process but, it is also, from now on, a fact of life in the future of our students. The sooner "techno-fear" is replaced by familiarity and comfort on the part of students, teachers and parents we will be able to focus on "what we can do" rather than "how do we do this?"