Facilitators of Learning
Grant Benefits CISD in 2014/2015
Teaching and education have been revolutionized. Today, teachers are facilitators of learning rather than deliverers of information. Whether installing interactive whiteboards in classrooms to impart a collaborative environment; using heart rate monitors and pedometers in Physical Education classes to deliver real-time information; or providing a state-of-the-art plasma cutter for the Agriculture and Industrial Arts students to get real-world experience, the classroom is evolving. Every classroom is unique. From the subject to the teacher to the physical classroom-one size does not fit all.
For the second year, the Center for Educational ReVision(r) assisted Clarendon CISD in its quest to become an innovative district in 21st century skills. Technology purchases and professional development plans were made with the student, the subject, and the standards in mind. The administration wanted to ensure that the students and their teachers would be provided with materials and training that would increase student learning and performance. The district completed its goal of teachers and students having access to interactive whiteboards by installing 25 Promethean boards. Both students and teachers gained valuable training in how to interact with these boards. In addition, from last year's feedback, CerV and the district recognized that some subjects had physical environments and content needs that were unique when compared to the core subjects. To that end, twenty-five heart rate monitors and fifty pedometers were purchased for the Physical Education classes and a Computerized Numerical Control (CNC) cutting machine (plasma cutter) was purchased for the Agriculture department. The teachers and students in these classes showed more enthusiasm this year with the technology grant because they were able to apply skill-based technology in a pragmatic and meaningful way.
Through the generous donation of an anonymous foundation for the past two years, Clarendon CISD has been able to integrate technology into all facets of the curriculum by employing multiple avenues of instruction to engage different learning styles. The teachers' confidence and willingness to learn the new technologies continued to grow throughout this second year and, in turn, students' learning was positively affected as demonstrated in student engagement and in high-stakes testing scores at the various grade levels. The teachers of Clarendon CISD are progressing swiftly to providing 21st century skills to students while continuing to foster excellence in teaching practices and student performance on exit level and college entrance exams.
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Junior High Benefits from Grant
Promethean Boards Are Here