The Pennsbury School District in Pennsylvania has embarked on a wide ranging Future Ready initiative, seeking to provide ubiquitous access to technology for its 10,500 students while creating a culture of digital, personalized teaching and learning. The initiative included replacing outdated desktops and shared laptop carts with 1:1 Chromebooks and updating the district's technology infrastructure. […]
With just over 100 K12 students and the closest 1,000-student district nearly 100 miles away, Colorado's Arickaree School District utilizes e-learning technology to create virtual classrooms. In particular, it collaborates in synchronous online learning with the 1,800-student STEM School Highlands Ranch near Denver. Link to main story: Sounds of STEM education "When you are small […]
When Upton High School in Wyoming switched from a traditional to a self-paced education model last year, Weston County School District Superintendent Summer Stephens' 15-year-old daughter reacted the way many students did. "'I don't know how to make choices,' she kept saying" Stephens recalls. "But now a year later, she has organized her classes and […]
What steps can organizations take to strengthen cybersecurity and protect themselves against threats from known and/or unknown actors and devices? There are various scenarios to consider. You might have an unknown user interacting with the system, or a known user with an unknown device—Guest, BYOD and/or BYOT. Then there is a known user on a […]
Quick quiz: After the buildings, salaries and benefits, what is one of the biggest expenses for most school districts? Chances are that it's those ubiquitous yellow buses that pick up kids in the morning and return them home (or close to it) after school. With the typical school bus costing between $45,000 and $90,000 a […]
Sharing special events, celebrating student accomplishments and telling stories of the small moments from a school day are all part of the role of educators. Social media platforms are powerful tools for educators who are committed to connecting with stakeholders in a meaningful, consistent manner. It gives them information in the spaces they are already […]
School district administrators hate it when they stumble across closets full of unused computing devices or visit classrooms where whiteboards are being used as very expensive chalkboards. Technology leaders at Dysart USD in the Phoenix suburbs had real-world experience with this phenomenon and were determined to make changes, says Diana Hawari, chief information officer. "Buying […]
Last fall, a national problem arrived in Superintendent Richard Scaletta's corner of rural northwestern Pennsylvania. Principals in the General McLane School District began reporting unprecedented levels of misbehavior: students in frequent and severe distress, sometimes kicking, biting or throwing things.
Faced with tight budgets and the expanding use of electricity-hungry technology, districts are turning to energy efficiency solutions that don't sacrifice learning power. "Academic achievement is always foremost in everyone's mind, and parents, teachers and administrators all want to be first in that space where you're providing the latest tools—the tablets, laptops and phones that […]
Editor's Note: Nuts and Bolts delves into the development of an innovative program. District leaders of Piscataway Township Schools five years ago decided they needed to more effectively serve its large—and rapidly growing—population of English language learners. A combination of grants and community outreach allowed the New Jersey district to adopt a "cradle to career" […]
