Distance Learning Information

Distance Learning Home Creating Connections K-12 Students Adult Learners Educators Our Library

Our Library / BACK

Examples of Schools Using Technology

by Carla Lane, Ed.D

Perhaps the best way to talk about the vast array of possibilities that technology offers for improving teaching and learning is to look at what specific schools and communities are doing. Here are just a few examples of how teachers and educators have put technology to work.

Roger Coffee, the principal at Webster Elementary School, in Saint Augustine, Florida, is using technology to improve communication and get students more involved in their own learning. An in-house TV production room enables students to "produce" the morning news and announcements for him. A school-wide electronic mail system allows him to keep in touch with the school's teachers, who can in turn keep in touch with each other. This means that requests and questions can be answered in minutes, rather than days. Coffee also uses a computer program to produce a weekly parents' newsletter that looks professional. A voicemail system enables parents and teachers to leave messages for each other. The voicemail system also provides parents with easy access to the frequently-asked questions, such as what are evening's homework assignments.
TEAMS is a set of math and science courses for grades 2-6 offered via satellite by the Los Angeles County Office of Education. Students attend an interactive telecast lesson once a week hosted by a master teacher. Through the lesson, students learn about conducting science experiments and about scientific methods. Each lesson requires them to gather and organize data from a variety of sources, conduct experiments in their own classroom, or perform mathematics exercises. But students aren't the only ones benefiting from TEAMS. Teachers learn new techniques in science and receive support materials to help them construct their own lesson plans. Originally funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education's Star Schools program, TEAMS now reaches 50,000 students nationwide.
The Dallas Independent School District has been considering how to make technology work for the diverse, urban student population it serves. It has taken impressive steps toward improving services to special education students in the district. A Special Advisory Committee on Technology, composed of teachers from different grade levels, was established. This group evaluated technology and conducted teacher training days around the district. The district has integrated videodiscs, computers, and other state-of-the-art technology into the management, administration, and teaching of special education classes, and has shown dramatic results in using technology to assist in educating special needs youth.
Students at the Dalton School in New York City and the Juarez- Lincoln School in Chula Vista, California learn about archaeology by engaging in a simulated "dig" of an actual site in ancient Greece. Students work together to uncover objects and use computer based tools to measure and classify the objects they uncover. They use databases and other reference materials to analyze the artifacts, and then pool their research to come up with an overall interpretation of the site. This joint work is made easier by a shared database that all the students can access. In the course of learning facts about history, the students acquire historical interpretation skills as well.
Each week some 2,000 students and teachers in the Chicago area participate in the "Ask a Scientist" program. Students ask questions about biology, chemistry, physics, engineering, math, computer science, and the environment, and the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory offers a free online bulletin board where questions are submitted to scientists. Students can get help with homework and research. Teachers exchange instructional materials and share ideas for field trips, workshops, and other school activities.

It is important to remember that the effective use of technology must expand beyond individual schools. Although pilot projects are certainly worthwhile, only by planning for all schools to use technology in these ways can we reach our goal of helping all students achieve higher standards.

It is also important to recognize that quality improvement can be made in any environment. Urban, suburban, and rural districts, with varied financial situations, have all had success with technology in their classrooms.

revised 6/8/94

TOP BACK