Technology - Enhanced Classrooms
In the spring of 2012, Superintendent Scott chartered a Technology Study Team to both build common understandings about our current technology iteration and envision the steps necessary to exceed the instructional expectations of the future. This team was tasked with measuring the reality of our resources, both technology and financial, with the responsibility of preparing our next generation for College and Career.
While building a world‐class educational program for our students remains a primary value, the team was also challenged to ensure our staff has the necessary technology to meet the assessment demands of the Common Core State Standards. With the introduction of the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium, experts are developing a stronger assessment profile for our students. In doing so, however, the technologies students will need to perform on the exams exceed our current tools.
As a result of this early thinking, the Technology Team emerged with the following two goals:
- Rebuild a technology infrastructure sufficient to meet the instructional demands of today, and
- Promote a culture of innovation and practice to ensure the preparation of students for tomorrow.
News & Blogs
The 2016-17 school year will be the fourth in which the District has awarded Innovation Grants to staff members.
However, this will be the first in which the focus has shifted away from strictly putting technology into the hands of staff members, and toward investing in professional learning communities (PLCs) who are committed to enhancing their instructional practices through the implementation and improvement of the 5 Dimensions of Teaching and Learning (5Ds) in their classrooms, utilizing appropriate technology, and re-imagining learning spaces with flexible classroom furniture.
Our four grant recipients include one PLC at each grade band: K-3, 4-6, 7-8, and 9-12:
Rosedale 3rd Grade – Erin VanDyke, 3rd grade teacher, Ashley Siebert, 3rd grade teacher—Rosedale Elementary School
Coyotes Incorporating Technology (CIT) – Shawna Munson, 6th grade teacher, Trevor Spangle, SLC/Life Skills teacher, Matt Odman, 6th grade teacher—Quatama Elementary School
EverGREEN Innovators – David Yabu, Sean Fishback, Doug Knox – 8th grade Language Arts teachers, Troy Hall, Shop/Gateway to Technology teacher—Evergreen Middle School
Liberty English 9/10 – Josh Bateman, 9th and 10th grade Language Arts teacher, Christopher Keller, 9th grade Language Arts teacher, Brieanna Douthit, Language Arts department chair, Bret Davis, TAG coordinator, Kathleen Lacock, Instructional Coach—Liberty High School
Congratulations to all of the winning PLCs!
This school year marks the third in which the Hillsboro School District has invested in a technology mini‐grant program to stimulate teacher innovation in the classroom. Forty grants of approximately $5,000 each were awarded, for a total investment of nearly $200,000. Click here for a recap of projects that received funding.
The 2014-15 school year marks the second that Hillsboro School District has invested in a technology mini-grant program to stimulate teacher innovation in the classroom. Thirty-eight grants of approximately $5,000 each were awarded, for a total investment of nearly $200,000. Click here for a recap of projects that received funding.
During the 2013-14 budgeting process, the School Board approved a transfer of funds from discretionary reserves to jump-start the District’s investment in instructional technology. One of the investment areas was a mini-grant program, in which teachers who are ready to use technology in new and innovative ways to increase student engagement and achievement could submit their project ideas for possible funding. An incredible 87 applications were received during the submission period, detailing projects that ranged from using iPads in a kindergarten classroom to accelerate phonemic awareness and reading skills, to using Chromebooks to conduct virtual dissections in a high school science classroom. A team of nine staff and Board members reviewed and scored the grants according to a pre-established rubric; the resulting scores were then compiled and used to rank the grant applications. In the end, 27 projects were awarded funds. Click here for a synopsis of each project.