For GAC Students, Technology in the Classroom, 2.0

10^th grader Landon Tabor approached an orderly technology trade-in station yesterday morning, swapping his year-old Apple laptop for a slim, silver Air. His smile told the whole story: He was over the moon. 

Without skipping a beat, he opened up his new machine and started clicking around with confidence.  One of the hallmarks of the students, according to administrators, is that they are comfortable teaching themselves new technology—and they have an intuitive understanding of it that is used to engage them in all subjects.

Greater Atlanta Christian Schools in Norcross was chosen by Apple as the premier independent “blended” school in the country, meaning they are used as an example when teaching other schools how to integrate technology in the classroom in a way that works, a way that goes way beyond simply replacing textbooks.

The latest move to upgrade and integrate was to allow their roughly 1400 Junior and Senior High students to trade in their Mac Book laptops for the lighter, faster and more durable Air model. The tech upgrades are worked into students' tuition. 

Junior High School Principal Dr. Misty Overman, who has lead the charge in integrating technology in the classrooms, said she has been amazed by the students’ response to the swap. The junior high students had to have a custom case or bag ready on their trade-in day, which she said all 400 student had without fail.

The students were given some basic instructions, and then were on their own to back up all of their work, said Dan Voelzke, Technology Services Director. “We’ve really empowered the students to take care of themselves,” said Voelzke.

“If that’s not a life skill, I don’t know what is,” chimed in Overman, about the students’ ability to independently change computers.  

Senior High School Principal Scott Harsh said his students have been “ecstatic” about the upgrade, and not just because the Air looks really cool. The new laptops start up instantly instead of taking time to power up and down, which wastes precious class time. The App Store is also available on the Air, giving students access to some class tools on a larger screen. 

The move is part of GAC’s larger 2-to-1 Learning Environment, which gives each student access to an iPhone or iPod Touch and laptop—and also changes the fundamentals of learning, they say. 

For example, some 7^th and 8^th grade students have been developing their own Apps. The students sent out an email blast to the GAC community asking what would be useful, then got to work programming and designing the Apps. Overman hopes to expand the concept to all Junior High students soon in an integrated class drawing on multiple subjects, not the least of which is math, which would certainly be required for the students to do the back-end programming. 

“We are starting to see how it does help them with life goals,” said Overman. “It helps them come up with careers that are going to be around in the future.”

Greater Atlanta President Dr. David Fincher said that the digital learning environment is not at all about the technology, which is simply a means to an end. It is about changing the way a classroom is conducted to meet the needs of the 21^st century.

“What we see is a massive engagement in the classroom,” said Fincher. “Instead of simply being receptive, they are creating, participating.”