The growth of social media and technology has changed the way educators teach, how students learn, and the way teachers and students communicate. At Shelbyville we are discovering how to use technology to shape our classrooms and enhance the learning opportunities for all students.
High school and middle school English teachers are continuing to introduce their students to Nook eReaders by Barnes and Noble. Teachers’ intent is to enhance the variety of books available and develop the love of reading through the use of technology. The addition of the Nooks has been an on-going project since last school year, and has reaped great results.
Currently, the high school has 75 Nooks, and the middle school has 15. Each Nook contains a variety of classic literature, as well as extremely recent books. The Nooks offer technological advantages not available to students through paper-and-binding books. The Nook has a built in dictionary to help students understand upper-level vocabulary and ultimately increase reading level.
We also have computer programs thanks to state funding, Texas SUCCESS provides free and unlimited access to Istation Reading and Think Through Math for Texas public school students in grades 3 through 8 — both in school and at home.
Edmentum is the provider of online learning programs designed to drive student achievement for academic and career successes. Edmentum offers a wide variety of learning programs that we have made available. Currently our district is utilizing Study Island, Plato Courseware, ESL Reading Smart, Reading Eggs and Reading Express for teaching and learning opportunities.
Shelbyville continues efforts to integrate technology in the classroom and also make it available to students outside the school day. This year with the adoption of new math and science textbooks our students have access to digital textbook resources at school and at home. The digital textbooks provide students with the options to use the online version versus carrying a textbook home.
Shelbyville continues to explore the most effective ways to integrate technology into the learning environment and keep our students engaged, without letting technology become a distraction. Our teachers have been instrumental in making technology available to their students and are continually looking for the most effective teaching methods to help students reach their potential.
