Digital Transformation

In addition to new COVID-related policies, Monroe County Community School Corp. in Indiana approved buying new Versatrans software for bus drivers to route, report, monitor attendance and communicate with parents.

The use of audiobooks has grown among kids, but the question persists: Does listening to an audiobook qualify as “reading?”

The nearly 205-year-old school in West Hartford, Conn. is offering online bilingual courses in English, mathematics, science and social studies to deaf children worldwide, ages 12 to 16, supplementary to other schooling.

Launched in June, the Public Education Department’s program has helped 110 school districts, tribal-affiliated and charter schools apply for more than $65 million in federal aid. A new application window starts Sept. 28.

Two global education technology companies have announced plans to combine their resources, boost innovation, better serve customers and develop new digital learning products to compete in the growing ed-tech market.

New classroom software uses artificial intelligence for speech recognition and running teacher-supervised chatbots to help students practice words and pronunciations before they embarrass themselves in real conversation.

Bob Metz recalls the former data-processing department with two employees growing into an IT office with eight full-time and two part-time employees, student workers and a campus full of new hardware and infrastructure.

From take-home tablets and virtual learning to educational apps, portable WiFi, security cameras, GPS for vehicles and STEM lab software, technology is transforming schools both academically and operationally.

The university’s Aggie Launch Pad initiative secured 2,200 iPads for incoming freshmen and will provide an optional digital literacy course to help them learn to use the devices and assorted apps.

While some students feel ill-served or short-changed by virtual learning, the state’s 15 public universities expect those options to expand in the coming years as other students demand flexibility.

A new report from the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation says AR/VR programs could bring new lessons to students across grade levels, given the requisite investments to spur adoption and research.

Technology coordinator Tom Wilkinson won 30 Chromebooks and a mobile cart for Lumberton Township School District in New Jersey by proposing to build an outdoor pavilion that could be a learning and event space.

The state of Illinois has asked school districts to submit plans for teaching students remotely in the event of hazardous weather or other emergencies, potentially reducing disruption and make-up days.

The Massachusetts school district drew from the Emergency Connectivity Fund and other sources to buy 1,200 Chromebooks, 900 laptops, 1,500 broadband hotspots, interactive touchscreens and electronic whiteboards.

A sixth-grade teacher at Whitthorne Middle School in Tennessee created a Facebook group, “Got Quarantined?,” as a local resource for food, supplies, volunteers and emotional support during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Using a $20,000 grant from the Alabama Arts Education Initiative, Austin High School bought powerful new computers on which students can learn to code and make computer graphics, background music and sound effects.

Student GPAs saw statistically significant declines where schools had switched to hybrid or all-online learning models, especially among economically disadvantaged, English-language learning and migrant students.

Schools in need of Internet access and related equipment for virtual learning have another opportunity to receive money through the Emergency Connectivity Fund, the FCC announced this week.