Academics 2.0 By Jill Doise ‘94
The landscape of technology is constantly evolving. Every day, we are bombarded with new updates, new tools, new devices. At STM, we are working to make sure that our students are comfortable with new and constantly evolving technology, so that they can, most importantly, find new ways of thinking for themselves. Many of our departments use programs that provide our students with opportunities to practice skills, receive feedback, and work at their own pace. In English, students practice writing in Criterion, and the program generates specific feedback based on the work they produce. Math students are assigned problems in MathXL, a program utilized in many university courses. Teachers can assign specific work to students based on their needs, and students have access to built-in examples worked through step-by-step. This year, two new programs became popular campus-wide. Office Mix, a plug-in for Microsoft PowerPoint, allows teachers to record lessons and to embed links to websites as well as questions to aid in student understanding. Students can also create their own “mixes” as a way of demonstrating and sharing what they have learned. Additionally, through OneNote Classroom Notebook, teachers have been able to access at any time their students’ individual work to see where they may need guidance and further support. St. Thomas More students, however, are not simply learning to use technology that will aid them in their day-to-day lives during high school. Our students are working hands-on with programs they will utilize in their future careers. The Fine Arts Department integrates technology that professional artists use; more significantly, students will utilize many of these same programs if pursuing careers in fields such as architecture, engineering, and marketing. In Mr. Johnstone’s Advanced Theater class, all students learn how to use the 3D design program SketchUp, and by the end of the year, they are each designing an individually conceived project and physically bringing it to life. In Mrs. Thibodeaux’s and Mrs. Riehl’s art courses, students regularly use Adobe Photoshop as a way to problem solve as well as a way of layering media together to create unique projects. At STM, the 1:1 laptop program plays a significant role in our students’ current and future academic success. Our graduates are familiar with Moodle, a popular LMS used by colleges and universities. Our kids don’t just use Google to, well, to “google”; they collaborate with their peers and instructors. They customize their Internet browsing with add-ons which help them translate, define, and save a world of information. Indeed, our kids are not simply learning how to use technology—they are learning how using technology can help them become more independent and critical thinkers.
8 | FOREVER MORE | SUMMER 2016
STM C O UG A R S . N E T