Tuesday, February 5, 2013
The BYOD or, Bring Your Own Device, pilot began this past fall, and some 14 schools are participating in the innovative classroom program.
This school year at least 14 schools -- including Berkmar Middle -- are participating in a pilot program designed to enhance learning through the use of electronic devices. The "BYOD" pilot -- which stands for Bring Your Own Device -- is part of eCLASS, Gwinnett County's digital content, learning, assessment, and support system initiative. As part of the pilot, select schools will allow some students and teachers to use their personal devices to access the Internet in hopes of creating better learning. In Lilburn, Berkmar Middle School is part of the pilot program because of its focus on writing; literature; and use of Write to Learn, a web-based literacy tool used by teachers to increase reading comprehension. -- Do you think the "BYOD" …
Friday, September 16, 2011
Digital content system eCLASS will be introduced as teaching tool in 2012 pilot program to five high schools.
The digital age has certainly changed the way we live, and soon it will be altering the way teachers teach and students learn. GCPS officials gave the go-ahead Thursday night with plans to introduce eCLASS, a digital system designed to help teachers offer new ways to present lessons and enhance students' ability to learn. Beginning next fall five area high schools, Archer, Berkmar, Duluth, North Gwinnett and Shiloh will participate in a pilot program. GCPS board members approved a four-year $20.8 million contract with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, the company that will provide the educational software. GCPS superintendent Alvin Wilbanks said the school board had been reviewing and studying the idea of offering the new teaching and learning …
Thursday, September 15, 2011
School board expected to vote on $9 million deal Thursday that begins process of phasing out textbooks.
The Gwinnett County school system is ramping up its eCLASS digital teaching/classroom system, and a related multimillion-dollar purchase is on the school board agenda for Thursday's meeting in Suwanee. A recommended deal involves a $9.5 million contract with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt publishers for a software application called Pinpoint, according to the agenda. This would provide the district with an "integrated enterprise solution to enhance student engagement and the learning process," the agenda said. This would be for a one-year contract with four annual renewals. eCLASS is an acronym for Content, Learning and Assessment Support System. It will begin a pilot program in the fall of 2012 in five Gwinnett clusters, according to the GCPS …
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
eCLASS to begin pilot program in the fall in the state's largest system.
Next on the technology hit list: school textbooks. Just ask the Gwinnett County school system. It's "pretty much the goal" for textbooks to become a thing of the past, according to GCPS Chief Information Officer Scott Futrell, who briefed school board members on the eCLASS initiative at a recent work session. Not only does the system want to keep student instruction from falling behind, but the technology initiative would be cost-effective, board members were told. The current textbook model "is not working," school system Chief Financial Officer Rick Cost said. He noted that the system has not funded texbook adoption in the past three years for budget reasons; it normally would run $25-30 million annually. "Technology is not inexpensive…
Cristina Butler
11:02 am on Tuesday, July 26, 2011
It's good to know that the days of old information and 40lb backpacks are disappearing. I wonder if my 2 yr old will need a laptop when she gets into kindergarten :) more ›