Teachers of
The Gramon School/Glenview Academy
Fairfield, NJ
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Teachers
Nina Ferrara
June Young
Kim Brucale
Deborah Schwoebel
Eden Robitello
Teacher Assistants
Donald Thomas
Melissa Dain
Robin Thomas
Antione Jones
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| Picture this - students file into their first period class equipped with their own laptop computer. Rather than waiting for the teacher to begin instruction for the day, students find a comfortable spot to work, open their laptop, and log on to the network. First they check their school email, where they receive the daily morning update as well as individual messages from the teacher. Next, they log onto their class Web site and click on the Activity page to check out the activities due this week. After that they click on the Schedule page to see what benchmarks and mini-lessons the teacher has planned. Finally, they check their individual daily schedule to see if any additions or modifications need to be made to the day's plan, and then they get right to work! Every single person in the room knows what's expected of them, what to do, and when to do it. There is no down time, instruction is differentiated, and students take responsibility for their learning!
For five days this summer, teachers and their assistants from the Gramon School/Glenview Academy experienced a virtual classroom during their IDE training. Each day, they logged onto the computer and checked the daily inspirational quote provided by their consultant, IDE's Beth Speizer. Next, they reviewed their activity sheet, planned their daily schedule, and proceeded to get to work using the materials Beth had provided. They attended benchmarks and, as needed, mini-lessons. They also worked both individually and in groups to complete a variety of activities designed to help them infuse transformational uses of technology as well as problem-based learning into the curriculum. During it all, Beth modeled the virtual classrooms the Gramon/Glenview teachers hope to create in their own building as they move towards becoming a Model Technology Special Education School!
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The workshop this summer opened a lot of doors for me as far as how I will be able to get "my kids" to use the computer more for academics. I have two goals for my students that I learned at the workshop. My first goal is to have my students use the Inspiration software program for note taking, and p rewriting. This program is an excellent way for the students to narrow down what is important and to put it into a visual form that will be easier for them to understand. As a prewriting tool they will be able to focus on what they want to write, and organize it in a visual way that will be easier for them to understand. The second goal is to have each of my students learn how to write a hyperlinking narrative and create a slide show. My stretch goal, the one that will take a lot of work and determination, will be to use the slide presentation program for the students to keep a daily reflective journal of the school year.
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 The teachers set up a teacher resource kiosk based on different vignettes from this wonderful resource, Edutpoia: Success Stories for the Digital Age. They found great websites to use in their classes as well as terrific strategies to help their students. Click here to see a segment of the teachers' PowerPoint presentation showing powerful information from the book.
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 My goals for the 2002-03 school year are first, to ensure that my teachers are comfortable with our new software and that they will incorporate it into their plans. Next, I would like to see each student create an electronic portfolio. I will also assign "Technology Mentors" and set up meetings for everyone to share and exchange ideas, information, and skills. Additionally, I will support my teachers in the use of skills gained this summer and encourage the incorporation of these skills into their teaching. Finally, I will continue to use the information I gained in an effort to become more proficient in these areas. My favorite software applications and tools from the workshop are PowerPoint, Photojam, WebQuests, and Inspiration.
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 June Young enjoyed putting together problem-based tasks, offering her students the authentic context for learning they are always searching for. To see the hyperlinking narrative June created during the workshop, click here.
My goal for this upcoming school year is to introduce the computer to my students as an educational tool. I want them to realize that a computer can be used for so much more than just video games and finding cheat codes for their home video game systems. I thought the week long training that I attended at school was great. I really think my students will be able to benefit from the Problem-Based Learning approach. I know my students are reluctant to do anything if they don't know what the point is so with PBL, they have the authentic reason given to them right up front. I also found the use of WebQuests very helpful as well, and have already made good use of them in planning for the upcoming year. |
My goals this year are to continue to use the technology avail  able at the school to enhance the topics and lessons that have been planned. I enjoyed the WebQuest activities that I found during training. Many of the Quests appeared to be a great introduction or conclusion to a topic of study. WebQuests also makes it easier for students who have missed school to catch up from home. |
My favorite topics from summer training were rubric assessment, creating reflective digital portfolios, the open-ended games  we learned to do with our students and teaching using problem-based learning. My goals for the 2002-2003 school year are to educationally integrate the computer into my lessons as much as possible. I plan to have students create reflective digital portfolios as part of their unit presentations for all subject areas. I also will be using rubric assessment on the majority of assignments, especially the large units I will be teaching. I really enjoyed learning PowerPoint and will have my students create their own presentations using digital slides, scanning pictures, and/or using a digital camera to take pictures. I also enjoyed learning about hyperlinking narratives and creating my own in the workshop. I plan on having students create a personal hyperlinking narrative and I'll also have the class create a hyperlinking narrative for one or more of our units.
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