Photos by R.C. Wheater Sr.
 New
FHS
still on schedule
Ruth
Pool of Holton (above) smiled
for the camera while working on the
porcelain tile in the girls’ room at the
new Fremont High School building on
Friday morning. Pool, who works for
Welch Marble and Tile, was one of
dozens of people working in the building
when school Superintendent Jim Hieftje
took TimesIndicator Editor Rich Wheater
on a tour.
Crews
were painting a high wall in the
cafeteria area (right) and in several other
areas of the building. Furnishings were
going into one of five of what Hieftje calls
“tricked-out science rooms” (below).
The
facility’s geothermal heating system (below) is in operation, extracting heat from
groundwater to warm the interior of the building.Installation of flooring has begun,
classrooms are expected to be mostly completed by March, and classroom technology is
coming in the spring.Hieftje said that the project is still on schedule to welcome
students for the start of the 2012-2013 school year.
Grant
Third graders use new technology to take-on math
By
R.C.Wheater Sr.
Halfway
through the school year, Grant Elementary School third grade students have used the school’s
new iPad tablet computers to solve more than 200,000 practice math problems.
According
to teacher Tom Hills, that represents a dramatic increase in the amount of math practice
that the school’s 145 third grade students are getting. He said that students would
have to plow through three and a half math work sheets per day in order to see that many
math problems.
When
Fremont Area Community Foundation officials visited the school recently to check on the
progress of the project, they watched as 27 students solved 3,050 math problems (dealing
with decimals) in 45 minutes.
Thanks
to a $46,000 grant from the Foundation, Grant’s third graders started the school year
with a rolling cart full of new iPads, plus other classroom technology that gives teachers
and students the ability to use some new educational technology on a daily basis.
Foundation staff members Gina Van Bruggen, Amy Moore, Vonda Carr and Wes Miller visited
the school and saw how teachers and students are using the technology.
One
of the goals for the project was to improve student test scores in some specific math
skill areas. Educators are hoping that the higher volume of math problem work will help
move those scores upward.
Hills,
the author of the original technology grant and the grade level coordinator for the
project, said that students have also begun working on writing projects using the iPads.
Goals for the technology project also include student projects involving work on
collaboration and teamwork. The iPads move among the five third grade classrooms,
providing daily experience with the iPads for each class
“The
kids are very positive about it,” Hills said, noting that his class needs only five
minutes to transition from teacher instruction to working with the iPads. He noted that
students have even been doing math problems on their own, using computers at home to
access the web-based math practice site outside of school hours, even during the holiday
break.
The
math program gives teachers access to detailed reports on students’ daily individual
progress.
Hills
also reported that he and fellow third grade teachers Cheri Wood, Lisa Corbett, Terry
Bennett and Ted Christesen are also enjoying the ways that the iPads and other classroom
technology are improving the education process. Document cameras, projectors, interactive
white boards and computer hook-ups are opening new possibilities in the classroom, he
said. Students are taking spelling tests on iPads andparticipating in word study lessons
with the interactive white boards. Old overhead projectors have gone into storage.
“Those
things are really being used,” Hills said. “That’s been kind of a surprise,
seeing how useful those things can be.”
Grant
Public Schools Superintendent Scott Bogner said that he is pleased with the early results
of the third grade tech project and is excited about what could happen next.
“This
technology can change the way that we do business,” Bogner said. “We’ve got
to engage kids better, and this is something that can help. I’m looking forward to
seeing how that translates to student achievement.”
Supt.
Bogner said that, as Grant and other school districts move forward with new technology,
professional development will be a vital element. Teachers will need to know how to make
the most of the technology, he said, adding that educators in Grant are already meeting to
discuss how to proceed with and expand on efforts to improve the use of technology
throughout the school district.
Bogner
said that a delegation of third graders attended a recent school board meeting as part of
a progress report to the board. The students paired with board members to show them how
the iPads work and demonstrate how they are used in the classroom.
“It
was awesome to see these third graders working with board members,” Bogner said,
“showing them how this works.”
As
the third grade project continues, Hills and his colleagues plan to continue compiling
data and evaluating how the technology has impacted student achievement. Hills said that
he hopes that the results will be useful not only in Grant but perhaps also in other
school districts.
|
