Integrating Technology in the Ramsey School District

In its quest to integrate technology in the classroom, the Ramsey School District has selected twenty-five Ramsey High School seniors as part of a pilot group to  test the effectiveness of iPads in an upper-level classroom environment, northjersey.com reported. 

Curriculum Director, Richard Wiener, told the Board of Education during its Sept. 24 meeting that iPads are a part of the district's 21st Century Learning Initiative, "a standard philosophy of critical-thinking-based learning which supports the integration of technology in the classroom which all five schools in the district follow," the report said. 

According to the report, Weiner stated that the district appropriated approximately $125,000 in the 2013-14 budget for the purchase of 1,075 iPads to be distributed which includes the elementary schools and the K-12 staff that comprise the Mobile Technology Committee, a committee assigned to research and develop classroom guides in order to create a "globally- and technology-competent student" who can "communicate and collaborate with students around the world."

A study conducted by the disctrict last year has shown that the iPads increased in-class student participation and increased student-teacher communication through the use of emails and video tutorials. The study also showed that iPads helped students to better organize their work. 

"The findings led us to create a collection of 10 outcomes," listed on a document titled, 'A Ramsey Student Will…,' which outlines educational goals the district hopes to fulfill with the aid of mobile technology, Wiener said in the report.

The success of the devices depends upon how effectively the educators utilized them, Weiner said, and encourages attendance at professional development workshops. Five representatives from Mobile Technology Committee will join Wiener at the EdTech iPad Summit in Boston this November.