Technology Task Forces Proposal #3

The 3rd proposal is probably the less stressful of any proposed. It really just supports the continued investment in the tools and classrooms needed to teach in the 21st Century.

21st Century Teaching Infrastructure:
During the summer of 2007, DA began addressing some of the infrastructure needs with the installation of ceiling mounted LCD Projectors, SMARTboards, VOIP phone system and other upgrades to servers, wireless, and network security.

1. Continue outfitting classrooms with the tools of the 21st century: LCD Projectors, sound systems, recording systems and other tools as needed. Funding for curriculum specific needs will be addressed within the Curriculum Enhancement Program (formerly CIP).

2. Increase the network to accommodate present needs and the perceived needs as we bring in student laptops. Power will need to be addressed to insure we have enough places for charging to occur. Bandwidth will need to be increased so no bottlenecks slow down the learning process. In addition, DA should use its purchasing power to work with Internet Service Providers to make sure that all community members have reliable and high speed access to resources.

3. The New Durham Academy Portal must continue to aggregate the information pertinent to the different constituents within Durham Academy. Calendars, files and other resources must be accessed at one location and “pushed” to other areas to eliminate the inefficiency present in the current system.

4. Continued support of classroom digital tools so as teachers reshape their classroom, they can be assured the tools will not disappear due to lack of funding or oversight. While change is persistent with technology, upgrades should take the place of obsolescence due to lack of funding or support.

5. The position of Academic Director of Digital Learning will be added. This person is a curriculum integration specialist and not a technical person who knows how digital instruments work but not how students learn. Each division will also need a Digital Learning Coordinator to facilitate the best practices.

Where will all of this lead Durham Academy? The Technology Task Force believes it will lead us into a student centered and more authentic learning environment. Of course there will be challenges just like there was when the pen was introduced to schools and teachers swore it would be the end of writing as there was no friction.

It is our hope that the tension between teachers who believe in the traditional role of a school will be willing to take a step into the future that we are teaching our students today to prosper within.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *