Schools adapt to changing technology with an eye toward the future

As technology continues to evolve, school districts are adapting to the changes by adding staff, increasing the use of technology in classrooms and keeping an eye out for ways to stay up-to-date in the future.

At the Jackson School District, an instructional technology specialist recently was hired to help teachers and administrators use technology in the classroom, said Matt Lacy, associate superintendent of personnel and instruction.

An additional technology staff position also was created about three years ago at the Cape Girardeau School District before the rollout of its 1:1 initiative, which provides each student in grades seven through 12 with a personal device.

James Russell serves as the district's instructional technology specialist, and five other staff members work in the district's technology department, focusing on everything technology related, including Wi-Fi, phones, computers and other devices.

About 1,600 student laptops are at Cape Girardeau's high school and junior high school as part of the initiative, Russell said.

At the Jackson district, Lacy said buildings have desktop computers as well as mobile labs that can be taken from room to room, and four staff members are dedicated to technology support.

Benefits

Brenden Coleman works through an exercise in a sevent-grade social studies class Thursday at Central Junior High School. (Glenn Landberg)

Christa Turner, interim director of academic services at Cape Girardeau schools, said a committee studied the 1:1 initiative concept before it was launched.

"They felt that because of where technology is going -- as far as careers and preparing our students to be college and career ready -- that we needed to find a way to keep our technology current and in the hands of students," Turner said.

The individual devices, she said, also allow teachers to make better use of their time.

"We are truly trying to make use of every minute of the day, and technology helps us with that," she said. "You can be working with a small group of students, and you can have another group of students practicing skills or learning a lesson through the use of technology."

Lacy said one of the Jackson district's goals this year is to check students' understanding of subjects more frequently, "and technology is a great tool for that."

Teachers can use an app on a device to do a quick, visual quiz, and the results are available immediately, he said. Then they know right away whether instruction needs to be altered.

"I don't have to go home and grade a stack of papers in two or three days and get to changing instruction," he said. "Right away, I can alter my instruction and meet the needs of those students. To me, that's a really good benefit of technology for our instructors."

Challenges

One of the biggest challenges with technology is how quickly it evolves, Lacy said.

"If you want to buy some additional devices, the options you have are almost overwhelming," he said, adding the devices then have to be updated and maintained.

Turner said another challenge is making sure all staff are prepared to use the devices.

"As with anything, some individuals are going to take it and run with it, and some are going to be more hesitant to jump right in," she said. "Even if they're willing to use it, it just may be more difficult for them to grasp how to use it."

Some high-school students also hesitate to use technology, Russell said, and prefer using textbooks, which still are available to take home.

"We want to make sure we're being cognizant of the fact that some students have Internet access at home, and some do not," Turner added.

Future

While schools are trying to prepare for the future of technology, it's difficult to guess what could happen next.

"The technology we are teaching our students to use is probably going to be out of date in 10 years," Turner said. "So, in addition to teaching students about that technology, we have to teach them critical-thinking skills and problem-solving skills so that they are able to adapt as we move forward."

Lacy said while he didn't want to speculate whether Jackson schools would adopt the 1:1 initiative, the district is focusing on infrastructure to ensure buildings will have the option to update technology when needed.

"When we've had to add buildings, you definitely try to be forward-thinking and keep in mind the technology you'll need to incorporate down the road," he said. "There's a desire from our staff and our students to use more technology, and we're just trying to work hard at putting it in their hands."

klamb@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3639

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