Westhampton Beach School District technology questionnaire
These are the replies from some districts to the Newsday questionnaire regarding the use of new technologies in their classrooms.
Some of the answers are elaborate, and have not been edited or reduced. Some districts did not answer the questions directly.
Westhampton Beach School District has been a one-to-one technology district for the past six years, and last year changed our one-to-one instructional platform to the Apple Macbook.. The district technology leadership team, in conjunction with the Board of Education and Superintendent, have fostered a vision of educational excellence and mastery through the use of educational technology. All instructional staff (K-12), and all students in grades 4-12 receive a Macbook laptop computer to enhance the educational experience.
Students in grades K-3 have desktop and laptop computers that are used within their classrooms. The district has developed a wireless infrastructure that allows mobile access to technology and information for both instructional staff and students on a real-time basis. All classrooms are equipped with digital projection capability and interactive whiteboards. The district has designed a comprehensive professional development program that provides the necessary support and guidance, enabling the instructional staff to become “21st Century Teachers”.
The combined infrastructure, support, laptops and collaborative software applications have created the pathway for a complete pedagogical shift to allow the instructional staff to focus on a collaborative, constructivist educational model, while students are more engaged and enthusiastic about learning. The Mac OS platform and Apple hardware have allowed the district to further enhance its vision for educational technology, while making the use of technology and collaborative tools much more seamless in the instructional setting, and minimizing the initiative’s management and maintenance requirements.
The district’s leadership and vision have kept us at the forefront of educational technology. As such, we do not have any major innovations planned within the next year. We are always investigating and assessing new technologies to determine their educational benefit and potential integration into our instructional model. The iPad has a great deal of potential, and we will be considering it as a possible technology tool to assist with the lower grades (K-3), ESL and special needs students.
