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Technology Learning Curriculum
Each year at West Palm Beach Jr. Academy we are growing our students to be better thinkers ready for advanced academics in high school, college, and beyond towards employment in the twenty-first century. Our students are using technology to better equip themselves in collaboratively working together, problem-solving, and project-based learning. Here are some of the current exciting ways that we are using the technology curriculum in our learning.
Accessibility– West Palm Beach Jr. Academy remains a 1:1 laptop school for all students in grades 3-8. Students in Pre-Kindergarten-2nd grade have regular access to computing devices to build their confidence and ready the student with technology skills in upper grades. All students retain accounts in Clever, giving a single platform and login to unite learning applications such as DreamBox, Learning A-Z, Lexia, Reading Plus, Typesy, and many other learning applications.
Adaptive Learning– West Palm Beach Jr. Academy supports well designed student-centered teacher-directed lessons and projects with additional adaptive learning applications that use standardized test data to personally strengthen learning is needed and targeted standards. These applications build up student’s skills, confidence, and readiness in mathematics, writing, reading, phonics, and other areas through directed lessons and gamification of learning standards.
Collaborative Learning– West Palm Beach Jr. Academy uses Microsoft 365 with its suite of apps to give all students in grades 3-8 access to collaboratively work in student-centered learning. Students share files, communicate, and work with students across Florida Conference Schools. This transforms the focus of learning from the teacher, opening avenues of research and sharing across the disciplines and in time and space.
Student Safety and Responsibility in an on-line World– All school accounts and computer devices are monitored with protective firewalls to ensure that students are safe from harmful content on the internet. Students, as they mature, are exposed to ever greater levels of protected communication access, so that students learn in a guided and safe manner how to function in an online world with proper training rather than learning this on their own. Students in grades 3-8 gain access to Microsoft 365 with the file-sharing ability only within our school systems. Students in grades 6-8 gain access to an e-mail account that is limited solely to individuals within our school systems, blocking all other access outside of our school system. Our goal is to teach students to be effective citizens and self-governors of their etiquette and use of resources in the on-line world in a safe and guided manner per our technology standards of learning.
Problem-based learning– West Palm Beach Jr. Academy is in the process of expanding our robotics program from an extra-curricular activity in FIRST LEGO LEAGUE and Adventist Robotics to a core part of our school curriculum. Florida Conference Schools use robotics as a tool for problem-based learning across our school system. Students learn basics in robotics and problem-solving skills in our elementary schools. Our elementary schools feed into our high schools that expand the robotics program by working on real problems in the world alongside major universities and businesses. Starting in the Fall of 2020, middle school students will also begin to make coding a part of their technology curriculum.