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Use of computer technology grows at elementary level
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By CHUCK CLEMENT, Staff Reporter
| 02/24/2009 |
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Computers in the classroom might make a person think about laptop use at a university, or students in high school or middle school doing research on the Internet.
But the machines have also made their way into elementary classrooms where students and teachers can stay busy at the keyboards.
The needs for computer skills have permeated the classrooms to the point where the state of South Dakota implemented new K-12 educational technology standards in 2007-08. As part of a pilot program, educators will test the technology skills of eighth-grade students this spring by using a new statewide exam.
In the Madison Central School District, the director of technology has organized a course for teachers who want to integrate additional technology into their classrooms. Rob Honomichl, technology director, said the computer technology and tablet integration course allows educators to bring more to the 21st Century learning table for their elementary students.
"It's about having the teachers more familiar with the equipment, beyond just using computers in the classroom as word processors or research tools for the Internet," Honomichl said. "The classes show how to do different things in the classroom to help the students meet those (statewide) technology standards."
According to Honomichl, about 40 teachers are currently taking the 15-week course -- 25 Madison elementary teachers, six teachers each from the Madison middle and high schools, and three teachers from St. Thomas School. They started in January and will continue taking classes until May.
During the first five weeks of the CTTI course, Honomichl focused the classes on computer tools that allow students to perform collaborative work. By using software called Google Docs, teachers can have their students work as teams to produce documents, presentations and spreadsheets.
The new technology that Google Docs can offer centers on each student's ability to work on one document or another assignment simultaneously using different computers. They can share, open and edit assignments at the same time with automatic memory save and a history of revisions.
The teachers have also learned about using "wikis," or collaborative Web sites. By creating a wiki, many users contribute information to one or more Web pages so everyone can use the data.
"The wikis put out information that's collaborative," Honomichl said. "Everyone can look at the site but only a few people can make submissions."
Susan Hageman, a fifth-grade teacher at Madison Elementary, said her students have used Google Docs to complete homework. As an example, Hageman created a survey for her students in which they answered questions about books they had read. She also had students write reaction papers about the presidential inauguration.
Hageman said that students have few access problems since the Google Docs are available for use free and can operate with different generations of Microsoft software.
"There are so many resources to use, and that's why I come to all of these classes," Hageman said.
According to Honomichl, the University of Sioux Falls offers graduate credit to teachers who successfully complete the CTTI course. The educators can earn one credit for the 15 hours of class time and a second credit for completing their CTTI assignments.
Honomichl said that the Madison schools also want to include parents in the computer technology loop. The staff and faculty have asked the adults to comment through on-line surveys about their experiences at parent-teacher conferences. The schools also offer a "Parent Portal" that parents can access for information such as class assignments and grades. In addition, parents can use the district's Web site to pay for school-related expenses such as meals, activity passes and yearbooks.
"Those applications have been huge assets in improving communication between parents and the schools," Honomichl said.
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