TECHNOLOGY
52
Trends In Education
All students at St. Edward’s School have access to laptops or iPads. Here, a
seventh-grader paints with water color while using subjects downloaded with
digital photography.
“We’ve had positive feedback from teachers and the students,”
says Joey Trefelner, IT director at the school, who
manages the high-tech computer network in the IT room.
The school still uses traditional textbooks and writing
materials, Trefelner notes. “The iPad is just another tool.”
At St. Edward’s, students from grades six through 12
use laptops while kids in the lower grades have iPads. The
older students use laptops because of several advantages,
including larger keyboards and storage ability. However,
school administrators are exploring the use of iPads in the
upper grades, because of their continued technological
advances, Kutschinski says.
At St. Edward’s the one-to-one technology program began
with a pilot project in the seventh grade, then moved
to more grades the following year. Third-graders got to
use iPads first and other elementary grades followed.
“It enhances curriculum, and that’s what we want,”
Kutschinski said.
Parents are happy to discover their children are taking
responsibility for their own education, even checking their
grades and reviewing test results on their own time with
their digital devices, Kutschinski said. “They are taking
ownership and they all help each other.”
It also helps students think, solve problems and create,
says Monica Jennings, director of marketing and communications
at the school. Children in the lower grades are
using their iPads to write stories and use a book creator to
add designs, images and audio elements to their books.
“Including technology is not just for tech sake, but really
is to integrate their whole education and make a more collaborative
effect,” Jennings says, adding that there is also >>
/www.thepineschool.org