Imagine the perfect classroom. It is a place where all students have the tools to discover how they learn best. Special education students and English Language Learners (ELLs) participate and work alongside general education and gifted students in a 21st Century classroom. The Intel Classmate Tablet Netbook will make this possible for all our classes.
We have 540 students at our school. They are inner-city high school students living in one of the poorest congressional districts in the country. They are all minority: African American, Caribbean Hispanic, Sub-Indian Continent, and African. Most of them hope to be the first person to graduate from high school in their family and hopefully attend, and graduate from, college. Nearly one hundred percent of them live below poverty level. The overwhelming majority of our students come from broken homes, foster care, group homes, or shelters; and they do not have the means to purchase the most basic school supplies, let alone technology that can improve their learning. About twenty percent of them have been classified as special education students and another twenty percent are English Language Learners. Many more are not at grade level or have severe learning challenges. Many do not have computers or internet at home, making it impossible to do research, use adaptive technology, or apply to even the local community college.
Using tablet computers, our students will be able to take advantage of alternative learning technology currently being used in colleges such as Ohio State University, to take notes in class by typing or writing them by hand and converting their handwriting to text. They will be able to record a lesson using the microphone in the computer so they will be able to replay the material at night as they review. Students will be able to use AMIS, a shareware program that enlarges text, changes the background and text color, and reads the text aloud so that students with visual processing issues can keep up with the class.
Using free online dictionaries with word pronunciation capabilities like Merriam Webster, ELLs can translate any word to their native language or simply define a word in English and have it said aloud. This access to technology can transform learning challenges and obstacles into exciting opportunities for our students to explore the world and learn how to transform their lives and help their community.
I serve the student body as a teacher and a college counselor. I have partnered with the school social worker who works with the most severe special education, ELL, and mandated counseling students. With a class set of tablet netbooks that are specifically designed for middle and high school students, our students can be engaged at their particular learning level and benefit from targeted differentiated instruction. All students, regardless of their ability level, will be able to actively research, follow along, and fully participate in group and class discussions. Students needing special accommodations will not feel different from their peers as they learn how to use technology to enhance their education and level the playing field. All of our students will have the opportunity to graduate from high school and attend college.
Students will be more interested in school as they learn to use multimedia technology such as webcams and microphones embedded in Classmate tablets. Using programs including Skype, our students will be able to discuss and debate topics with our sister high school in Ohio, with whom we recently created a Partnership for Learning. You donation will not only help our students fighting to overcome the effects of poverty, you will also help break down the geographic, cultural, and technological boundaries that separate students from each other. We hope to connect with more schools across the country and throughout the world.
Your donation will enable our students to discover how to use technology and media to help them overcome obstacles, compensate for their learning challenges, and succeed in school. You will help them become more engaged in their classes. You will give them the tools they require to excel in school and earn higher grades, which will give them a greater chance of getting into and graduating from college. You will give our students the opportunity to compete in the 21st Century by giving them the tools that all students deserve and need to succeed in school and in life.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Ms. Rodgers and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.