For Students: Tech Today Like
Yesterday’s Pen and Paper By Daniel Saint James Eighth grader Zeina Z.’s face lit up as she began explaining the cooking show she made for her French Class. “I had to record myself doing a cooking show all in French! Then I had to edit the scenes, add music, and put in different effects. It was pretty awesome.”
ACS Matters 2015 - 2016
Another eighth grader, Dana O., described how a web-based tool turns the normally tedious task of reviewing the year’s course into a fun, interactive game. “We use Kahoot and it’s fun,” Dana said. “It is a game we play to review for Social Studies, and we can use any device to connect to the online game and buzz in our answers. I feel like I learn so much more because of it.”
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Other students find that tech tools such as Google Drive help them stay better connected with their teachers. “Google Drive and Gmail are such a convenient and fast way to do work and communicate with my teachers,” said ninth grader Alex L.
For Kacia H., an eighth grader, Google Drive keeps her organized. “You have clearly labeled folders where you put everything,” she said. “You don’t have to email, print or make copies to share. You can just connect everything through Drive for group projects and classwork. Plus the teachers can be connected too and evaluate our work via Google Drive.” Technology is a constant in the lives of ACS students. The internet has always existed for every single student at ACS. Their world has always been connected. Using technology is part of almost every aspect of their daily routine. From checking cell phones first thing in the morning, to working on shared projects throughout the day at school, checking emails and Moodle for assignments; to chatting with friends, playing video games and watching their favorite shows, students are almost always engaged with some form of technology. For many, the idea of not being connected is unfathomable. “I actually get nervous if don’t have my phone with me. I can’t imagine life without it,” Dana O. said.