NEWS RELEASE

Savannah-Chatham County Public School System

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 11, 2012

Teacher Conference Inspires the use of Technology in the Classroom

Coastal Middle School was proud to host its second Savannah Regional Educational Technology Conference on March 30, 2012. More than 300 teachers and administrators arrived from public and private schools located in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Florida. A dozen vendors were there to greet them and explain products and services valuable to instruction. This took place in between informative sessions designed to best incorporate innovative hardware and internet resources into the classroom. Kerry Coursey, principal at Coastal Middle, says that having the conference brings affordable professional development to teachers and encourages the use of technology where it might not have been used otherwise. I feel really strongly about technology being used and used properly to engage students, and there are so many technology resources available for assessment, Principal Coursey says. The Student Response Pad system which allows students to respond to an instructors questions via a personal remote control has been around for a while, but informative sessions help teachers better use the feedback it offers. Doctor Bob Hearberlin, National Distinguished Middle Level Principal of the Year from Georgia and keynote speaker at the conference, says the educational system has room for improvement and that technology is a big part of that. We can no longer hide. Weve got to come up with funding for it, he says. Weve got to get away from seat time, all kids learn differently. Conferences like this one and funding, Dr. Hearberlin says, are necessary to upgrade an educational system originally designed around a summer vacation for harvesting crops and the quick-production lessons of the industrial revolution. We need to change the way we do business, he says, if were going to be able to survive in todays world. Melissa Webb and Tomeka Barron were two teachers from West Chatham Elementary helping their fellow educators do just that. Their workshop called iCan iMovie lit a spark for teachers wanting to use Apple products in the classroom. Melissa Web is
Office of Public Information and Community Engagement 208 Bull Street - Rm 105, Savannah, GA 31401 PH (912) 395-5538 www.sccpss.com

NEWS RELEASE
Savannah-Chatham County Public School System

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Teacher of the Year for the school district and wants to take away some of the intimidation her co-educators might feel with regard to using the various programs and platforms. I tried to make it clear that I was worried about starting to use it myself, she says. Once she started, however, she was hooked. Teachers in Webb and Barrons session saw that iMovie is the tool of choice when getting kids engaged. Movie trailers can introduce future lessons, sum up reading projects, and even playfully illustrate a day with a substitute teacher as demonstrated. Alicia Harvey, drama teacher at Coastal Middle, says that iMovie can help students on the shy side be creative too. A lot of the kids dont like to get in front of the class and present their characters or act out their characters, and so you could do it where you dont see them. You only see their little character doing his little animation, she says. That would be beneficial to a lot of them. Brian Patesaude teaches seventh-grade math at Coastal Middle, and he went to a presentation on EdModo, a safe social networking space for students on the internet. If a lot of kids are having the same type of problem maybe they could discuss it and work it out amongst themselves. Or, as a moderator, I can get in there and kind of guide them along, Patesuade says. Video games and online experiences offer instant gratification, he adds. Thats what were competing against. They want instant gratification, because they go home and play a video game and get points right away or go to the next level. Were competing against that as far as their attention spans. Calie Mcdougall is the Educational Outreach Manager for Ed Tech who provides the grants for the Technology Conferences. Last year there were 18 around the country. This year is about the same, she says. Administrators and teachers can apply for the grant online at any time, upon acceptance Ed Tech provides support, tools, and planning assistance for getting a new conference going. She has kind words for Principal Kerry Courseys job as Conference Chair. Working with Kerry was phenomenal. Shes got everything together; it was a really smooth process.

Office of Public Information and Community Engagement 208 Bull Street - Rm 105, Savannah, GA 31401 PH (912) 395-5538 www.sccpss.com