Students, Teachers Demonstrate Different Uses of Technology in Education

High School student Connor McCabe took the floor and eloquently addressed the audience at the Board of Education meeting in crisp and clear sounding Russian.

Although most in the audience likely did not understand what McCabe actually said, the message was very clear that he is learning as a result of the Virtual High School course he is currently taking through the district’s pilot program.

McCabe and fellow student Kushal Parikh, who is taking a pre-calculus course through Virtual High School, were among a group of students and teachers who were asked by administrators to give presentations on the programs they are involved with during the Thursday night meeting.

Interim assistant principal Catherine Cassidy explained that McCabe and Parikh are among six students currently taking elective courses offered through the virtual high school program, which the district is currently using in pilot mode. Cassidy explained that through these virtual online courses students have the opportunity to study subjects which the high school does not offer due to a limited amount of interest.

McCabe explained that he is very interested in foreign languages and this gives him the opportunity to take Russian. He told the audience that he believes this should be open to the entire student body as it really prepares a student a study.

Using a Smartboard, Parikh demonstrated what the virtual classroom looks like pointing to the different tabs on the screen which show him where to find his assignments and lessons. There is also a discussion tab where one can interact with other students taking the course through the online site.

Parikh chose pre-calculus because he enjoys mathematics and feels he understands it well and is able to advance that interest through this course. He also hopes that if the virtual program continues he can take AP calculus PC in his senior year.

Pre-K iPad learning

Lincoln Scool Pre-K teachers Lori Tomesco, Dorothy Checchi and Anna DePalma also gave a presentation on how they have incorporated the use of the iPad into the classroom.

Checchi connected an iPad to the Smartboard so all could see how the applications such as Letter School work.  Moving her finger across the screen to connect the dots she demonstrated how the children are able to write out the letters through this program.

When the student draws the letter or number correctly the letter will suddenly come to life, virtually, with little butterflies or sparks. Checchi said the students have fun with it and it especially works well for those  students who are having a hard time writing.

Since there are only three iPads the teachers rotate their use in the classroom so each child gets to use one during the lesson.  Children are also able to use the iPads in the learning labs where they can also play interactive games such as musical keyboard and drums.

(Editor's note: Watch the video to see a demonstration of how the iPad applications work.)

Robotics Club

In addition, high school sophomore Simon Shkreli and senior Mike Pitkowski, who head the Robotics Club, gave the audience a presentation of what this brand new club does, even demonstrating how the robots they make operate.

Shkreli began by telling the audience that he and Pitkowski are two totally different people but the one thing they have most in common is their love for robotics. Both have an interest in engineering and this extracurricular activity helps students explore that interest.

Shkreli had the opportunity to compete in a robotics competition at his former school in Brooklyn. When he came to Hasbrouck Heights, he gained the support of his teacher Michael Binazeski who helped get the club together, along with the help of the Board of Education.

Pitkowski and Shkreli said they hope that the club will begin entering competitions next year. Shkreli said the club he previously was in at his old school was in its second year when it began competing and it led them all the way to a national competition. One of the major things that helped get them there was financial support from sponsors.

Pitkowski says the club has plans to begin fundraising and is working on designing a T-shirt to sell.