Minutes of the December 6, 2005 meeting at Washington Episcopal School.
In attendance: Betsy Bennett and Peter Kelley of St. Albans, Carol Berneson of GDS, Patty Howie of NCS, and Eric Chalfin, Susan Stern, and Nancy Wright of WES.
The small, but lively, group of attendees talked about various aspects of technology. These were some of the points discussed:
PowerPoint – sometimes can hide the fact that a person doesn’t really know what’s being presented.
Classrooms – In schools where the teachers move from classroom to classroom, there is often not time to set up technology for a class. This especially happens when another class is in the room for the period before the technology is needed. Another problem with classrooms arises with study halls. If a study hall is in a room that doesn’t have the technology a student needs to complete an assignment, it can cause problems.
Teacher Websites – It can be time consuming to keep these up to date. Teachers need good tech people to help.
Laptops – Most schools don’t require that laptops be used a specified amount of time. If only one student is using a laptop because of learning issues, this can be just one more way to separate student from other students. High schools see much more laptop use than middle schools.
“BlackBoard” – Use varies among schools and among teachers within schools. Some like it; others think it’s too expensive. You can track how many students use it. It’s easy to set up and not difficult to manage. Some teachers use it to announce quizzes and tests. It should always be clear that “the system was down” is not an excuse to come to class unprepared. Old standbys of “write it down” or “call a friend” still work. Some report that parents really like it and use it a lot.
Problems with IMing and with Nicenet – Some students used Nicenet to enable them to IM, even though some parents had told their children they couldn’t maintain IM accounts.
Acceptable Use Programs – Need better parent education. Some students have accessed games/facebook/email during math labs. Helpful if labs are set up so teacher can see all screens.
Plagiarizing – Technology can make this easier for students to do, but there are websites to help, such as turnitin.com
Calculator use – Generally most schools use TI 83/84 at 9th or 10th grade. Some middle school teachers use them to demonstrate concepts such as slope or to allow an advanced student to do some independent investigations.
Homework – Should it be repetition or projects? Projects are sometimes better done in class, with some supporting work done at home. These projects can help students who don’t do well on tests. One way to do away with too much repetition is to assign fewer problems, but have others available for students who want/need more practice.
Projects/Labs – Ideas: Sketchpad with partners. Illustrate mathematical properties with poems, cartoons, poster, PowerPoint. Write letters to upcoming students on what they need to do. Some teachers use projects after AP exams.
Summer Course – Several people recommended: Dana Hall/Workshop in Mass./ 3 sessions per day/Reasonable price
Respectfully submitted:
Nancy Wright