Tech Showcase

Paper may soon be a thing of the past for many students... As technology takes a forefront in th...  More »

Paper may soon be a thing of the past for many students... As technology takes a forefront in their andamp;lt;a href=andamp;quot;http://www.kxnet.com/t/educationandamp;quot; class=andamp;quot;kxInlineLinkandamp;quot;andamp;gt;educationandamp;lt;/aandamp;gt;. Our Amber Schatz shows us how some schools are leading the way... (Yolanda Luick/Fairmount Science Teacher) andamp;quot;They take it home to do their work, use them in every single class they have.andamp;quot; Since this fall... Fairmount students, grades ten through twelve... have each been learning on a laptop computer... And using interactive dyno software... which teachers say is a more advanced, fast-paced way to teach students of this generation. ( Luick) andamp;quot;I'm able to cover way more material, the internet is at everyone's fingertips, so if there's something that comes up in conversation we go to internet.andamp;quot; They're just one group from nearly a dozen schools around the state... showcasing how they use technology in the classroom. Something educators say is a necessity to prepare students for the future. ( Luick) andamp;quot;This is the way kids learn, the chatting which is part of software, the collaboration, I think that's what industries want from people and we need to start training them to have that kind of interaction among their peers.andamp;quot; (Kali Luick/Senior) andamp;quot;Teacher has total control over what we do, can block out websites so we stay on task.andamp;quot; Kali Luick plans to major in math when she gets to college... and says the communication software and laptops... are great way to prepare. (Kali Luick) andamp;quot;We have a compass tool right on computer where we can, measure angles, it's very handy. andamp;quot;We take them as we go, it's nice because you can take notes on them, always have notes with you, decreases paper you carry around, lockers aren't as cluttered, and it helps out.andamp;quot; (Kayla Andersen/6th Grade Science Teacher) andamp;quot;Technology is always going to be there so we need to keep up with this...andamp;quot; From high school students... to elementary... Burlington Des Lacs sixth graders are showcasing their educational blogging... (Josh Haugrose/6th Grade) andamp;quot;We read science world magazine and our teacher posts questions on it and then we comment on it.andamp;quot; (Kayla Andersen andamp;quot;It's educational but they also find it fun, so that's always a good thing and they're excited to do it.andamp;quot; Whether students are blogging about space... Or solving a physics problem online... Teachers say it's often a challenge for them to stay ahead of the students... (Kayla Andersen) andamp;quot;Sometimes they're teaching me things, I don't know, but it's nice because I need to know them in order to keep up with the kids.andamp;quot; (Yolanda Luick) andamp;quot;They're always helping me out, as far as physics subject matter, I'm ahead of them...andamp;quot; Amber Schatz, KX News. Fairmount teachers say this is the first year they've had the laptops... They estimate the computers along with the dyno software... cost the school 30-thousand dollars.  « Less