Gramon School teacher John Machin uses computer technology as an invaluable tool in his high school classroom. The Gramon School (7-12) and the Glenview Academy (K-6) are private, state-approved, non-sectarian day schools for students who have educational disabilities that cannot be properly addressed in public schools. John, with the help of two full time assistants, runs a classroom that incorporates technology to differentiate instruction and help with classroom management. Computers are used on a daily basis in the Gramon School. Every student has a computer; every class has a Web site; and the students have internal email. "Technology helps prepare our students for the future, life after graduation." In John's class, the students are responsible for emailing a daily journal entry to him or one of the assistants. Every day, John answers the journal entries and replies to the students. The class Web site helps the students stay on task and develop a daily routine. Every morning, the students check the Web site for their day-by-day schedule and at the same time check their email. John emails his students with a daily morning message. "Our students start the day with a message from me or one of the assistants in the classroom. That way we ensure, no matter what happened at home or on the way to school, something positive has been said to them." Last summer, IDE consultants Tanya Bosco provided teachers with five days of summer training, which included the use of Dreamweaver to design their classroom Web pages. John has developed his intranet site to help his students: Use email to interact with the teacher and staff Complete assignments Print off their homework Display Photos Access Physical Education concepts (Built onsite by the PE teacher) Link to outside sources for research Use E-books Preview upcoming events at school and in the community Engage in WebQuests Access online tutorials for various subjects Access virtual tours of cities and countries Engage in online computer games as reinforcement activities from learned skills Use the Internet to find clipart and images to add to their presentations and reports Use Corel Presentation to create slide shows Use Corel Word Perfect Find how-to sheets from the IDEportal This year, John will be developing his own WebQuest for his students to use throughout the year. John and his Theory and Philosophy on Teaching: John has a BA in Education and a MA in Special Education. He has been teaching for seven years, including the last four at the Gramon School. John believes that if the students have a safe and comfortable environment, the learning will be easier and will follow suit. Many of the students at the Gramon School are from inner-city areas and are bussed to the school, located in Fairfield, NJ. John maintains a classroom in which students feel secure, allowing them to focus on learning. "Every student can learn. It is our job as teachers to find out HOW they learn and provide that opportunity for them." John is aware that most of his students have a short attention span. He learns in the beginning of each school year how long his students can participate in a benchmark lesson or group conversation and then makes sure he gets the information across in that period of time. Classroom Management Concept: "Consistency is the key!" Remaining consistent throughout the school year is imperative to keeping order and maintaining trust with the students. If the students see you make exceptions for one student and not the other, then the trust is lost. Students must see that their unacceptable action one day is still unacceptable the next day. "Making learning fun and relevant also helps with classroom management. Making learning relevant to their lives helps keep their interest and allows learning to thrive." Problem-based WebQuests will address this goal, and IDE's consultants will be working with John through the year to design original WebQuests that correspond to the curriculum.

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