Board views technology snapshot

Joel Bednar, left, technology director at McCook Public Schools, shows Sharon Wordekemper, junior high life skills teacher and Central Elementary resource reading teacher and teacher of the visually impaired, and Josh Kershaw, senior high pre-calculus and senior math teacher, what's new on Google apps. (Lorri Sughroue/McCook Gazette)

McCOOK, Neb. -- Computers will never replace a good teacher, but good teachers can multiply themselves in the classroom by using technology, said the McCook School District's technology director.

In a presentation Monday night at the regular McCook Board of Education meeting, technology director Joel Bednar gave an update on the implementation last year of iPads to high school students, as well as technology in general at the district.

With 500-plus iPads distributed to high school students this year and returned this spring, Bednar said he was "pleasantly surprised" at the condition they were in, with only two unable to be fixed, 11 with cracked screens and one lost.

A total of 700 iPads are used in the district, he said, including those used by teachers and about 120 at McCook Elementary. Also in the district are 800 desktop computers, 80 interactive white boards, 90 Chrome books this fall and 11 computer labs.

According to a survey done at the end of the school year -- 723 students, third to 12th grade -- the biggest gap between students and teachers was digital citizenship, about safety on the Internet, with 23 percent of teachers "highly knowledgeable" compared to 11 percent of students. Another area was multi-media skills, such as recording and editing video, with 19 percent of teachers knowledgeable compared to 64 percent of students.

Feedback from high school students on the iPads this year was varied, with the majority liking the organization the device offers and the ability to access information immediately from the Internet. Other aspects they liked included access to class notes and PowerPoints; online access to textbooks; turning in assignments at home when completed; and the ease in getting assignments when gone from school.

One 11th grader wrote, "Helping read out loud text because I struggle to read. It helped me to understand what I was reading." A ninth grade student wrote, " I couldn't sit and be ignored. I was forced to participate in discussions."

Students were also forthcoming about what they didn't like about the iPads, such as distraction with games, some teachers weren't consistent in how they used them and that not all textbooks were online.

iPads were returned to the district at the end of the school year, that Bednar and staff have been refreshing and "cleaning up." Those from last year's seniors will be recycled down to this year's incoming freshmen, with freshmen, juniors and sophomores getting the same device they had last year.

Superintendent Grant Norgaard asked if Bednar was considering other platforms instead of iPads and Bednar answered that it could be a possibility, depending on the technology available at the time. iPad Airs has been found to last about three to four years in a school district, he said.

Board member Brian Esch asked if students could keep the iPads over the summer to get extra help in a subject, instead of returning them to the district. Board president Tom Bredvick said that was originally the intent with the iPads and Bednar added that he wanted to see what shape the devices were in this first year of use, before extending the utilization of them.

During the summer Bednar is having "Tech Tuesdays" for teachers, to keep them updated on new apps and technology available. Engagement is not entertainment, he said of students using computers, and although a good teacher will never be replaced, Bednar sees the traditional classroom changing, with more one-on-one teacher and student interaction by the use of technology. This will help teachers pinpoint exactly where a student is in their work and what they need to succeed, he said.