Technology upgrade to benefit everyone
By Scott Mitchell Johnson
THIS METAL HORNET SCULPTURE, which was created by the metal class in the late 1990s, under the direction of instructor David Morrow, used to sit in front of the Ashland Community High School. The hornet was taken out last fall and refurbished and is now proudly displayed in front of the Ashland District School.
ASHLAND – From a new intercom system to surveillance cameras, the Ashland District School is more technologically advanced than the former elementary and middle/high schools ever were.
“We have a state-of-the-art network,” said Sherry Brown, SAD 32 technology director. “We’re going to be running a private network; it’s not going to be open to the public like it was before. We’ll be running a full gigabyte internal network with a 50 Meg Internet connection. It’s going to be a nice connection.
“We also have an intercom system that will allow for paging and what have you. If we want to call just the kindergarten to grade 2 wing, we can do that,” she said. “It can be used to address the entire school or just one particular classroom. There are call buttons within each classroom, as well, that the teachers can call and have a two-way conversation.”
Surveillance cameras are located both inside and outside the school as a way to help deter vandalism and other inappropriate behavior.
“There are more than 20 cameras combined,” said Brown, “and they’re going to be able to be viewed by administration. Students know that they can be watched and we can go back and retrieve that video, so that serves as a deterrent.”
Interactive white boards can be found in each of the 28 classrooms. An interactive whiteboard is a large interactive display that connects to a computer and a projector. A projector displays the computer’s desktop onto the board’s surface where users control the computer using a pen, finger or other device.
“The interactive white boards help engage the students; the kids can go up and interact with the board,” said Brown. “It helps grab their attention, and it’s something different that draws their interest.
“Having the interactive white boards at their fingertips is going to be great. The boards can also be used to display the Internet whereas before they used to have to share three overhead projectors,” she said. “Since the units are all in place, the teachers will get some of their instruction time back.”
Brown said that teachers, staff and students alike are going to enjoy the technological improvements.
“The technology is to everyone’s benefit … even parents. We’re looking at implementing a course management system for the teachers where they can place homework assignments and any documents that a student would need online, as well as send out the grade books to parents,” said Brown. “Parents will also be able to prepay online for their children’s lunches.
“The technology in the old schools was outdated by at least 10 years,” she said. “The new technology will open up a whole new world to them. It’s so much more current and faster. It’s all very exciting.”
