Sonny Sherrill, Founder and Superintendent North Raleigh Christian Academy
The use of the Internet-based PowerSchool and PowerGrade programs gives the capability of instant attendance tracking and grade reporting.
On August 17, 2002, North Raleigh Christian Academy (NRCA) entered the world of twenty-first-century technology with the dedication of a new state-of-the-art 180,000–square foot facility and 20-acre sports complex. Rather than experiencing “visions of sugar plums” dancing in their heads, the staff members of NRCA had terms such as ISPs (Internet Service Providers), gigabits, and fiber optics dancing in their heads. Technology became an integral part of the school’s facilities, programs, and curriculum. Then the school’s focus became how to harness these resources and bring them into the classroom. The staff experienced trepidation and excitement as they learned about the new tools and their uses. But would the time and effort required to master these tools actually pay off? During the first year, teachers began to blend technology into the classrooms without noting any significant changes. Yet with time, experience, and continued training, the new technology has become more integrated into the school’s traditional classroom practices. The following provides a virtual tour of NRCA.
Infrastructure
The school has installed a 11/2-megabit T-1 (DS-1) Internet connection with the North Carolina Research Education Network that allows multiple ISPs. Because the FreeBSD servers give a Windows appearance but do not require the licenses, they provide the same function but without the software expense. This environment is more stable and not as susceptible to viruses. The campus is connected through the Extreme Networks’ gigabit Ethernet switches that permit voice video and network over a shared infrastructure. All network access points work by means of fiber optics, giving a high bandwidth that is future proof.
PowerSchool and PowerGrade
From home with a user name and password, parents can stay informed daily about their student’s attendance and grades. Class record keeping is simplified and efficient. The instant feedback about a student’s progress facilitates communication with parents and helps ensure their involvement in a timely manner. Progress reports and report cards are no longer necessary, and access to student information from any Internet location assists the teachers in phone and email communication.
Networked Computers
Each class’s networked computers allow teachers through email to interact online with the administration, staff, and other professionals. Every networked computer can serve as a word processor, a test generator, a research tool, and a database for mail merge.
Rauland-Borg Video Management System with Toshiba Monitors
The media center’s Rauland-Borg video management system and mounted 32-inch Toshiba televisions in each classroom provide the means from the media center to show videos or DVDs to one class, multiple classes, or the entire school. Live broadcasts—including morning announcements, chapel programs, fine arts programs, or sporting events—may be viewed throughout the school. Teachers may use their networked computers to present PowerPoint presentations, video clips, and Internet selections over the 32-inch Toshiba monitors. The system allows teachers to implement educational channels, such as the Fox News Channel and the Discovery Channel, into their daily lesson plans. The video management system also has a bulletin board system that permits announcements to be viewed on the Toshiba monitors throughout the facility. During class, the monitors display the time and date; between classes, the monitors display announcements.
Website
The school website is the school’s main communication tool. The school profile, calendars, handbooks, news, updates regarding the school’s fine arts, information about the application process, and schedules of sports activities are posted for review by the school families and staff. This access has been cost effective because of decreased spending for printing, and the fact that the school calendars and handbooks are live documents has improved communication.
Teacher Web Pages
Teachers each have their own web page for posting information regarding homework, class calendar events, quizzes, and tests. Parents can also view class schedules as well as information about field trips, resources, and their student’s learning progress. Monthly class magazines, newsletters, classroom journals, and projects in progress are but a few of the other uses of the web pages.
Phone System
The Cisco Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone system with voice mail allows the school to support multiple campuses cost effectively through the Internet, having one control point for incoming and outgoing calls. Parents may leave voice mails directly with teachers, and this ability saves time for the school office and improves parent-teacher communication. The phones provide teachers with direct access to both the school office and the voice mail of other staff members, with emergency access to 911, and with intraschool communication for crisis management.
Facility Security
The Security Command XR200-485 system with card readers permits the facility manager to monitor doors, windows, and motion detectors. When the system is armed, the doors and windows are wired to sound alarms in cases of intrusion. The Hirsch Electronics high-security access control system uses card readers to allow locking and unlocking schedules for class changes or evening events. A weekly template provides the ability to make manual changes for the upcoming week. During the school day, the elementary doors are locked, requiring card access by the teachers. Middle school and high school doors are unlocked two minutes before the end of the period and locked two minutes after the beginning of the next period. The visitors’ entrance doors, located at the front of the building, remain open during the school day. Because the system is Internet based, doors can be locked and schedules changed off site. The Musco Lighting control system allows zoning for parking areas, walkways, and athletic fields. The zones are controlled across the Web by a schedule set up in a database and communicated across the Web to the light control units. The school has access to the website to add schedules, make changes, and turn lights on or off.
Math and Science Laboratories
The science laboratories contain digital microscopes and 32-inch Toshiba monitors to enhance learning experiences. Video and Internet connection through the video management and network systems enrich the visual experience. Math classes have TI-83 calculators using CBL (Calculator Based Laboratory) connections to collect and sort data, and the overhead calculator analyzes graphs and solves complex math computations.
Media Center and Computer Labs
In the media center, students can use the 6 iMAC and 6 IBM Internet-connected computers. The 25-station computer lab in the media center is available to any class giving a 48-hour notice. Two computer stations are available as card catalogs. The media center’s automated cataloging system uses bar codes and scanners, and there are two additional 25-station computer labs, one for elementary classes and one for high school classes.
Fine Arts
The 500-seat fine arts center contains an ETC (Electronic Theatre Controls, Inc.) lighting system that provides a 3-D rendering of the stage. This system permits lighting simulation on the computer before actual production, allowing effective use of the conventional and intelligent lights. The Eiki projection system makes PowerPoint presentations come alive, and the Channel Line Pro can switch line video to archive video for broadcast and allow fading from one camera to another. The Advanced Placement Music Theory class has computers and keyboards interconnected, allowing the students to use MIDI players to compose music and do ear training.
Student Life Center
The student life center serves as a gathering place during student events. Its Internet café permits students to use their user name and password for accessing the Internet and any student class files. The four 32-inch Toshiba monitors are used for student activities as well as praise and worship events.
Athletic Facilities
The high school and middle school gyms have state-of-the-art sound systems. The high school gym has an Eiki video projection system with cameras and three projection screens. The Extron system makes possible the separate or collective use of the multiple screens. Games and events in the gym can be broadcast throughout the school. The aquatic center uses the Duk- Integrated Scoreboard, which has electronic touch pads and a starting gun. The computerized scoring system permits automated lap times and scoring for swim meets. The scoreboards for the athletic fields are solar powered, and each field has its own separate wireless sound system.
Leadership
Without informed leadership, most technology initiatives lack cohesion. Administrators must lead by example in their use of technology, in their provision of incentives, and in their arrangement of convenient training for busy educators. Technological advances create the possibility of new ways of teaching and learning, but taking full advantage of this potential requires the faculty to think about the teaching-learning process in new ways and to master the technology themselves. Administrators do not have to master every type of technology use, but they do need a working vocabulary regarding concepts and issues. In addition, certified teacher technologists are mandatory if technology integration is to succeed. The training that these technologists have provided has been invaluable in NRCA’s transition to twenty-first-century technology.
Summation
Educational technology has emerged in the twenty-first century and revolutionized educational thinking and practice. Educators need to view technology not as a subject of instruction but as a mandated, instructional tool that promotes and extends student learning daily. It is a tool—like a pen or a chalkboard—that helps instructors teach and students learn. Educators simply must learn how to integrate seamlessly the growing list of technology tools into the curriculum. The challenge lies in finding ways to use technology that do not take away from core subjects. The best classroom technology should support the curriculum, not determine it. Because much of the job market requires technological competency, professionals must continue to update their technological skills in order to be successful. Educators, therefore, have the responsibility of equipping students with technological competence.
Educators must also take full advantage of technology in order to enhance traditional classroom presentations and to engage students in active learning. Technology can and will change the nature of learning, but educators must still carefully structure and guide activities and learning environments. Four hundred years ago, Galileo wrote, “Great, I say, because of the excellence of things themselves, because of their newness, unheard of through the ages, and also because of the instrument with the benefit of which they make themselves manifest to our sight” (Galilei 1989). Today, educators must embrace technology as the instrument. But technology is not the goal. It is simply a means to the greater goal of knowledge, and the mission of educators is to make maximum student learning a reality in the twenty-first century.
Reference Galilei, Galileo. 1989. The Starry Messenger. Trans. A. van Helden. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.a
Virtual Tour of Twenty-First-Century Technology 7.3