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DyKnow in Action @ Auburn City Schools Professional development key to 1:1 adoptionIn 2002, federal lawmakers passed the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), challenging public school systems to increase student performance on standardized tests, decrease drop-out rates and spread equality in education among all children, despite economic situation. As a school system focused on innovation, it was no surprise that Auburn City Schools in Auburn, AL turned to technology to re-engage its students and address the mandates of NCLB. In 2005, Auburn City Schools created its 21st Century Learning Initiative to investigate how technology could positively impact the classroom. The committee’s proposal, which was wholeheartedly backed by administration, was a one-to-one computing program. In the program, ninth grade students were given tablet PCs, bundled with software to make the tablets an integral part of the learning process.“ Ninth grade is where, nationally, we see the majority of students dropping out of school,” said Debbie Rice, Director of Technology for Auburn City Schools. “We believe by giving students access to technology and training our teachers to use it effectively, we can re-engage our students, increase their performance and positively impact the value they place on a high school diploma.” Auburn City School’s 1:1 program was instated during the 2006-07 school year and included the combined solution of the Gateway Tablet PC and DyKnow Vision and Monitor software. During its first year, Rice witnessed how the program promoted individualized learning environments, motivated students across disciplines to be more organized and study more efficiently and helped teachers manage their classrooms in the technology age. Specifically, teachers and students lauded DyKnow Vision’s ability to transmit teacher content to individual computers for students’ personal annotation. Both the teacher’s notes and the students’ annotations and practice work were then saved into a consolidated DyKnow notebook. These notebooks were stored on a server with a unique student login and password. Students referenced and replayed the material during school and while studying from home. This kept them more organized and helped them study more effectively. Teachers also liked DyKnow Vision’s ability to poll students, as well as the ability for students to share their perception of understanding throughout the lesson. Teachers found that garnering feedback helped them tailor content to individual needs and eliminated the need to single out students who were not following the material. Auburn City Schools also utilized DyKnow Vision’s partner software, DyKnow Monitor, which helped ease many teachers’ concerns about classroom management. DyKnow Monitor allowed teachers to see thumbnail views of all students’ computers during class and to send messages to students who were surfing the internet or sending e-mail. When appropriate, teachers also blocked applications, to keep students focused on class material. “DyKnow made the hardware ‘work’ in the classroom,” said Rice. “It allowed teachers and students to integrate the computer into the learning process, making it even more interactive and engaging.” While the hardware and software were integral, Rice and her team realized that teacher buy-in was also key to the success of the program. Rice believed that a focus on professional development was vital to getting teachers on-board and comfortable with using technology. In an analysis, teachers indicated that their greatest training need was learning how to best integrate technology into their classrooms. In response, Rice created a teacher-centered professional development program to address those concerns. As a part of Auburn City School’s technology program, ninth grade teachers had a full year to use the tablet PC’s before the computers were in the hands of every freshman student. During the year leading up to the student computer roll-out, teachers participated in hour-long technology session (60 minutes of their 96 minute planning period) every Tuesday where they learned everything from posting a document to a web page, to the ins and outs of using DyKnow in the classroom. “Tech Tuesdays” focused on how using technology could augment teachers’ unique teaching styles and subject matter. At the end of every session, teachers filled out a survey. The next week’s session was based on that feedback. During the 2006-07 school year, tenth grade teachers participated in the year-long professional development, so they would be ready when the former ninth graders entered high school with table PCs in hand. Anecdotally, Rice said she has seen the benefits of combining tablet PCs, DyKnow and strong professional development. When Rice asked for feedback, teachers throughout the system agreed. One teacher remarked, “During the computer roll out, I was overwhelmed, and to be honest, quite angry about the computers in the classroom. Passing out 76 computers to my 76 students made me nervous. However, the computers have been a blessing once I learned to monitor more effectively and efficiently [with DyKnow]. Our students are proud to have such a unique learning tool. That is how they are viewed – as a tool. They are an extension of my other teaching methods. They allow teachers to be better educators and students to be better students.” A student echoed these sentiments, “Ever since we were given this new technological tool [DyKnow and tablet PCs] for our education, it has been very easy for us to learn. For instance, we don't have to spend so much time on taking notes anymore, and therefore, we are allowed to spend more time on discussing the topic and talking more about what we are learning currently. I hope that other schools will soon adopt this idea, so that other students in other regions can also benefit a lot from the technology that has been developed.” Going forward, the school will continue to assess the impact of the program. Before the 1:1 Rice concluded, “We believe that technology, specifically a 1:1 program, can address the essence of the No Child Left Behind Act. We aim for our program to re-invigorate students for achievement and also to level the education playing field for all students, despite economic or demographic factors.” |
Auburn Schools In Action
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