Technology
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Technology is integrated into every course at CSSD primarily to develop fundamental skills and as a research tool for students to locate and evaluate information. Courseware, word-processing, and Internet search and retrieval are the current major emphases, along with frequent use of video and audio resources. We are integrating a wider range of computer skills and technology in our California State Standards-based curriculum, with emphasis on using them as a creative tool to prepare assignments, as an analytical tool to record and analyze data, and as a communication tool to connect to the world. Both teachers and students use technology in the classroom. A typical day starts with our teachers meeting with students and their parents, electronically tracking student work product1 and courses, then customizing the course syllabus on the computer to prescribe specific assignments to meet students' individual skills and needs. In the classrooms, students in the Biology course will utilize the Human Body CD to study the systems of the body. Students in a smoking cessation group will access the school website to link to various anti-smoking information sources. Students preparing for an Open House at their site will create a PowerPoint presentation of important topics. Students enrolled in Driver Training will experience a driving simulation to test their skills behind the wheel. Students at several CSSD classroom sites will meet their foreign language requirement through a course offered by a local community college or university via distance learning technology. In all classrooms, students who lack basic computational skills will be able to do computer-based drill and practice to prepare for their algebra course. Also, as part of the CSSD technology vision, CSSD support personnel, such as the counselor or school nurse, may be seated at a classroom table with their laptop networked to the CSSD student database, meeting with students, parents, and the site teacher to review student performance and health records, set goals, and/or develop intervention strategies. Teachers are issued wireless networked laptop computers and trained to use them for electronic attendance, record keeping, and as an intervention tool for monitoring student performance. Teachers also use their laptops to develop curriculum, as well as give workshop and seminar presentations. The wireless access points in each site allows the use of networked laptops for teachers, students, and CSSD support professionals in every instructional space. 1Attendance in independent study programs is measured by student work, called "work product." |
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