In the past year, local schools have invested more time and resources into their respective education systems, and now, that investment is paying off. At Grandview Heights, Upper Arlington and Wellington schools, technological and curriculum changes have been made to better the scholastic experience. These advancements will help cater to each student individually.
Grandview Heights City Schools
Students at Grandview Heights High School will soon lose the excuse “my dog ate my homework.”
Within the next school year, the schools will issue one mobile computing device to each student in grades 9-12.
The program, dubbed “1:1 Computing,” is designed to keep up with the changing learning environment, both inside and outside the classroom.
“Imagine being at work and having to share whatever device you work with,” says Brad Pettit, district director of technology operations. “We are trying to create a real-world environment inside the classroom. And if you want to see what a mobile device does best, it needs to be with the student at all times.”
Incorporating online and classroom teaching is considered a “blended learning” approach and can be tailored to each student.
“Lessons may look different for each student, and they will be adaptive to his or her needs,” Pettit says. “Some will work in small groups, while some will write a paper individually.”
Most schoolwork and resource material will be available on a server accessible by each device in the new learning management system called “itslearning.”
The school plans to increase its digital bandwidth to support the influx of mobile devices. It will also continue to use content filters to keep students on track and off of social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter.
Funding for the program is from a permanent improvement levy voters approved in 2010.
“The community thinks this is a good move forward,” Pettit says. “This has been the movement in a lot of school districts. We want to give students access to the school beyond the school day.”
The committee in charge of 1:1 is currently evaluating notebook and tablet options.
The Wellington School
A recent change in the Wellington Upper School curriculum and science program structure has yielded a more catered scholastic experience for juniors and seniors.
The school has implemented a plan that has eliminated the past strategy of having students take biology, chemistry and physics in different years and replaced it with one in which students choose a research project to pursue their senior year.
“Students spend the entire year on a project of their choosing,” says Jeff Terwin, head of Wellington Upper School and marine biologist. “They become so immersed in it and are excited to dive deep into their own topics.”
Spending the full year on a single project allows seniors to delve into areas of science that were previously unattainable due to time constraints.
“Some are surprised at how complex the research process is,” Terwin says. “The resources, approach and really ‘doing science’ requires so much planning. The only way to understand it is to be a part of it. Typically, in high school, you don’t get that experience.”
To help students figure out what area they would like to pursue, the curriculum now promotes taking core science classes the first two years of high school.
“Sciences have become interdisciplinary; they don’t stand alone anymore,” Terwin says. “Let’s do some foundation to expose (students) to them early. This sets them up to understand science and pick advanced areas.”
The change allows students to work with in-field professionals, both inside and outside of the school.
“They find personal motivation to move the project along and create connections outside of Wellington,” Terwin says. “They work with a mentor – primarily one from outside the school – throughout the year. Some have connected with The Ohio State University and have participated with lab research.”
Juniors will be encouraged to design their senior year plans over the summer.
The curriculum change comes after a year of planning, setting goals and building the course by school faculty.
Upper Arlington City Schools
Showing one’s work and keeping track of notes is about to get easier for a fifth grade class at Barrington Elementary School.
As a part of a pilot program, “smart pens” will be offered to classrooms at the school midway through the third quarter of the school year.
The stylus writing tool will keep track of what students are writing, allow teachers to follow a student’s work throughout problems and record the data onto smartphones and tablets using Bluetooth technology. The device can also record explanations a student may give during the process.
The pen writes like a typical writing utensil, but also creates a digital archive when used on special infrared paper. The records these pens create, called “pencasts,” can be replayed and seen by students, teachers and parents to help pinpoint problem areas or successes in a student’s work.
“I can capture pencasts with students who are struggling and review their work to help them further,” says Barrington teacher Crista DeVore, who is a proponent of smartpens. “That will make me a more effective teacher.”
Teachers can create their own pencasts, too. They then upload them to a server where students can watch and learn from them at home and better prepare for the next school day.
“This is what we call ‘flipping your classroom,’” DeVore says. “What used to be homework, students do in the classroom, and they can now do classroom work in the home.”
The idea of using smartpens was conceived when DeVore met with Instructional Leader Chris Bolognese, who was using the technology in his upper-level classes. They discussed methods of transforming and improving instruction with respect to mathematical problem-solving.
“Chris brought a pen into the classroom one day and the enthusiasm was incredible to witness,” DeVore says. “We wanted to get started at the elementary level.”
Funding for the pilot program comes from a grant from the Upper Arlington Education Foundation. If successful, the program may expand to other classrooms at Barrington and across the district.
Stephan Reed is an editorial associate. Feedback welcome at laurand@cityscenemediagroup.com.
