Schools
Parkland Technology Recognized for Excellence
Pennsylvania School Boards Association gives Parkland School District its "Schools of Excellence in Technology" award.
The Parkland School District’s Technology department received special recognition from the Pennsylvania School Boards Association on Tuesday night. Laura Shemick of the PSBA presented the “Schools of Excellence in Technology” award to the department during the school board meeting.
“We are certainly honored to be recognized by PSBA,” Tracy Smith, assistant to the superintendent for operations, said Tuesday before the school board meeting.
“The award requires support by our local school board for the integration of technology,” Smith said, “and we are very fortunate to have a school board who is very supportive of technology.”
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According to the PSBA website, each year PSBA acknowledges school districts in the state that “exemplify excellence in educational technology”. Award recipients will be featured in PSBA publications throughout 2012 and will be acknowledged at a PSBA leadership conference in October.
In the district’s application for the award, school officials said, “Threaded throughout almost all the goals are innovative uses of technology to further learning and strengthen the communication processes within the school district.”
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In the eight elementary schools, students have access to at least five computers in every classroom, a netbook cart and iPod touch devices that have more than 150 apps aligned to the curriculum.
Students in the two middle schools and Parkland High School also are involved in a variety of programs that use technology. For example, students participate in an innovative pre-engineering program called Project Lead the Way that exposes them to science, technology, engineering and mathematics concepts.
Students who complete the program at the high school qualify for up to nine credits from Penn State University. Since the program’s inception, there has been a significant increase in the number of female students pursuing computer science and engineering degrees.
The application for the PSBA award also noted that professional development in technology is “continuous and constant” in the Parkland School District.