Technology in the Clark County School District

ABC Community School

June 30, 2015
Liliana Rodriguez

Since 1801, when the first piece of technology was introduced to the classroom
we have had our doubts. James Pillans, a high school geography teacher sought this idea
as a way for his students to identify with what he was teaching. Like technology today,
we want our students to absorb everything they can possible ingest while they are capable
of learning it. The reason we ask that technology not be removed from schools and more
importantly from the students scholar lives, is that without proper materials one cannot
learn in order to advance.
In todays generation, like in previous ones, the only way to be successful is to be
knowledgeable in the traits with higher paying jobs. The way it is viewed in our society,
who ever is better at managing a computer has the best stakes at landing the dream job.
That is what we can only hope for, for out students. We would like to give them the tools
necessary to thrive in this never ending, technology infused lifetime. In order to allow
students to become productive members of society, we need to grasp their attention with
materials, and slowly reel them in to subjects that they did not like, or did not want to
learn. We need to capture their attention and entertain the idea that technology can be
used for any subject, any course, any job.
Subjects that they are required to meet a certain standard in, such as; Math,
Science, English and Reading. We can use calculators, laser protractor and compasses,
laptops and computers can help with graphs and hand help devices such as Ipads or
tablets can allows students to practice with apps or websites intended for math activities.
English and Reading can be done a lot easier and faster. A student will not have to find a
pencil and paper an a sturdy place to sit anymore if we allow for devices to be worked
with. It is a lot easier for a paper or essay to have better quality if the student can quickly
search for information on the Internet and make several references at once rather than
going through book after book in search of nothing. Technology in the English
department saves a lot of hassle. When it comes to reading, I have noticed that the
Kindles or Nooks are great, they offer great lighting, bookmarks, and definitions for
readers who are in need of these. These devices offer a lot more, you can make text
bigger depending on you eyes (if you do not have your glasses with you). Also they make
great for on the go, you would have a bit of trouble carrying ten books, but these devices
can carry thousands of books, whether you download them or stream them thought a
network. As far as Science go, I believe that it is the subject were technology can be
explored to its highest stage. You can go from a single magnifying glass, to a planet
telescope. You can use hardware to view wave lengths, see sounds (on a screen) and even
using collected data to have a computer find out the outcome.
Technology is all around us, always. It is a matter of having the knowledge to be
able to operate it to our advantage. We want our students to be able to know how to
engage with any type of device and have fun with it.
Furthermore, I would like to encourage the Clark County School District, to keep our
currently technology intact. It only benefits our students and in the long run the district
itself. Seeing more students graduate and less students failing to complete grade
requirements show a lot of promise from our district. We must put our right foot forward
and show the students that they are one and only priority. Bringing and keeping
technology in the classrooms for their sole benefit. With classes on technology awareness
and through proper guidance we will keep our students safe and away from sites or
content not appropriate for them. So once again, I plead that we keep technology.

Pages,H.(Ed.).(2014,September14).UsingTechnologyintheClassroom:Benefitsand
Examples.RetrievedJune28,2015,fromhttp://betterinviolet.hubpages.com/hub/How
TechnologyintheClassroomMakesSchoolFun
The standards for technology in the district, state, and national level fluctuate from time
to time. In the end, it is how an instructor or teacher uses these standards to improve her
students way of engaging in the curriculum.
In the district standards are viewed from the third grade until the student is a senior in
high school. They are evaluated by, Exceeds Standards, Meets Standards, Approaches
Standards and Below Standards. The district standards are a lot more detailed, they
include using appropriate tools, problem solving and decision making, understanding the
systems relationship with other systems, and implications on society. All these have more
and more in depth descriptions as the student advances through grade levels. For state
standards, students should demonstrate critical thinking, develop innovative products and
construct knowledge using technologies. These include; communication and
collaboration, research and information fluency, critical thinking, problem solving, and
decision making, digital citizenship, as well as technology operations and concepts. As
for the national standards they are a like to both district and state but change a bit. They
have creativity and innovation, communication and collaboration, research and
information fluency, critical thinking, problem solving, and decision making, digital
citizenship, and technology operations and concepts.
The major comparisons I came across were the critical thinking, problem solving,
and decision-making standards. These vary in detail, however in all three district, state,
and national levels they all want for students to use technology in order to collect and
analyze data to identify solutions and/or make informed decisions. This one seems to be
in all three, which is the best to describe the standard. Another one that stood out a lot is
creativity and innovation. This standard is used for students to be able to create and
implicate technology into their studies or creations. It involves the students the ability to
produce new ideas, construct knowledge and demonstrate critical thinking skills using
technology. The communication and collaboration standard also stood out to me because
of the vast majority of social networking software available. Through these standards,
students are able to communicate with one another or even the instructor/teacher who is
teaching their class or subject. In the district, this is necessary for students who are
currently enrolled in online classes (most are high schoolers) and cannot attend a campus.
For students within the state, is it used as a source (standard) to help other students who
might have difficulty learning these concepts. It is ideal that the instructor/teacher be the
one helping the students, but research shows students-to-students help can also increase
the learning experience for several students.
What I plan to use for my lesson plan is the Communication and Collaboration
Standard: Students use digital media and environment to communicate and work
collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute to
the learning of others. I will allow students to work in a group of odd numbers, the
students will collaborate to create a representation of a world map, locating each
continent and labeling the continents. Each student will need to research a chosen
continent and through face-time (on Apple devices; Ipads, Iphones) or video chat interact
with their group to locate information on regarding continent.

 Name of lesson: Identifying Continents and Their Culture

Grade Level Appropriateness: 6th Grade
Technology Content Standard Addressed: Communication and Collaboration:
Students use digital media and environments to communicate and work
collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and contribute
to the learning of others. D. Contribute to project teams to produce original works or
solve problems.
Other Content Standard Addressed: (Social Studies) Communication and
Collaboration: Students use digital media and environments to communicate and
work collaboratively, including at a distance, to support individual learning and
contribute to the learning of others. C. Develop cultural information and ideas
effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats.
Objective: Students will be able to identify culture ideas and information in each
of the seven continents using digital media, group communication and problem
solving.
Materials needed to facilitate the lesson:

Desktop or Laptop

Adobe Reader

Projector

Device for Video Conferencing

Video Conferencing Software

Word Processing Software

Power Point Software

Internet (Search Engines)

Suggested group size: 5-7 students per group, odd numbers needed
Procedures: (Step by step narrative for implementation of the lesson.)

Step 1: Pull up a world map on a the Smartboard and ask the students to
identify the seven continents. Listen to small discussion about the seven
continents.

Step 2: Play Cultural Aspects and Facts About the Seven Continents Youtube
video to the class. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9wLWvy7snU

Step 3: Explain the group project: see above (name of lesson and objective).

Step 4: Allow students to gather in groups, no less than 5, no more than 7. If

groups are deficient take a student from each of the #7 groups and place in
others.

Step 5: Assign one group to the computer in the room, assign one other group
to the Smartboard and the rest of the groups may either use their Ipads, or
use the Geography books in the classroom. (Students using the classrooms
computers are encouraged to use the Web Launchpad labeled CONTINENTS
which will allow students to visit several websites with information on the
designated continent.)

Step 6: Have each member in each group to choose a continent. (There will be
continents not chosen for certain groups, this is fine). Have one student hand
in a piece of paper with each members name and their chosen continent.

Step 7: Instruct that each student is to submit a typed, a page, double

spaced essay on the continent of their choice and the cultural aspect of that
single continent. They must all be turned in together for full credit for the
group. Name, date and continent name is need on each students page.

Step 8: Using a Power Point presentation creator, each group will make a slide
show presentation having a title page with a title, every members name, and
the date. Each slide show will be done by one member ( 5 people=5 slides+
title page). It will have the continents name and a graphic as a header and a
list of information as the body. This will be presented at the end of the two
weeks.

Step 9: Using desktops, laptop, Ipads, or any other devices students are to
interact with one another when not in school. Instruct that they have two
weeks to submit this assignment. Face-time, Hangouts, Skype, or any other
media for socialization is accepted.

Step 10: Students will introduce their continents cultural finds to the class at
the end of the two weeks.

 Assessment: Point method of 1-10, 10=100%. Knowledge and Comprehension

based on prior learning and new knowledge: 4 points max. Originates, integrates and
combines ideas into a product or plan: 2 points max. Group communication: 2 points
max. Utilizes instructed material to acquired new knowledge to present research
material through power point and speech: 2 points max.