by Gerardo Loera, Principal, Virgil Middle School
Throughout the country, recent trends show that schools are providing students more access to technology; however, at schools like Virgil Middle School, instructional improvements are taking place that move beyond merely providing access to its 1000+ students. During the 2015-16 academic year, Principal Gerardo Loera has been leading the school community in providing both access and instructional improvements that make the best use of available technology in classrooms.
Ensuring Access
Every Virgil Middle School student will be issued a Chromebook computer for school and home use beginning this summer, in time for the new school year. Supported by the District’s recent Education Technology Grant, Virgil Middle School will become the latest addition to the list of 1:1 schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District that provide innovative technology and digital curriculum for student use. The school is already equipped with campus-wide Wi-Fi access providing internet access during the school day. Teachers have worked all year on building their knowledge and skill to integrate the use of technology into their classroom.
Virgil MS is also closing the “Digital Divide” by providing parents with free computers and free broadband internet access for use at home. On March 12, 2016, over 100 family members from Virgil MS walked away with refurbished PC desktop computers courtesy of OurCycle LA. Before picking up the desktops (complete with keyboards), family members completed a computer orientation class including digital citizenship information, details about content filters and home setup instructions.
The lucky family members were part of an application process identifying families based on lack of internet access at home. Additionally, courtesy of Sprint, there will be a free hotspot (broadband internet) available to Virgil Middle School families for four years called Sprint for ConnectEd. The hotspot is a school owned device available to enrolled students to use at home.
Digital Curriculum
Virgil Middle School students will engage with an innovative Digital Content and Curriculum Strategy school wide in a 1:1 environment. The strategy will consist of implementing a learning management system school-wide and transitioning to a full digital curriculum. Traditional textbooks will be mostly phased out in Mathematics, History and Social Science and English Language Arts. In their place, digital curriculum, such as College Preparatory Mathematics Curriculum, will be available to 100% of students.
In the 2016-17 school year, Achieve 3000, a supplemental computer adaptive reading program, will be in its second year of implementation with the goal of increasing each student’s average Lexile reading level by 140+ points per year (twice the expected growth in middle school). Lexile reading score is a numeric representation of a student’s reading ability.
Engaging Parents
All digital core content will be integrated into the Schoology Learning Management System (LMS). Additional open source, supplemental content—such as CK-12–will be integrated into the Schoology platform. Teachers will be required to use the Schoology LMS Gradebook with their students and to communicate with parents using the LMS functionality. Parental involvement will be enhanced with the ability to view student work and grades online and communicate with teachers easily through the LMS.
To support responsible use of the devices, the first week of every month will be dedicated to promoting Digital Citizenship in the school’s Zero Period. We will use Common Sense Media tools, as well as the District’s Now Matters Later resources.
By building 21st century skills, increasing teacher-family communication, and supporting the development of safe and responsible digital citizens, Virgil is reimagining the role of technology in education.