Students learn more about various devices, programs; teachers get help district can’t afford to provide. One student’s take: “Plus I love telling teachers what to do”
Jamesville-DeWitt High School students Kaylee Yaeger (left), a junior, and Victoria Nandal, a senior, learn to use software to create a question and answer program on a Smart Board. Students at J-D can take an elective class, Teaching, Leadership and Communications, to learn about various technologies. The students then teach the teachers how to use them.
Students are reversing roles at Jamesville-DeWitt High School, where they have become the teachers and are helping faculty learn tricky computer applications.
Students can take an elective course to become proficient in computer applications such as Blackboard — an online program that allows teachers to create a web page for their class to share materials, messages, homework and more — or Smart Board, interactive whiteboards used in classes.
The students then are paired one-on-one with a J-D teacher who needs help learning to use the technology better.
“It’s absolutely great,” said English teacher Terri Skeele, who’s been receiving help on using her Blackboard from high school senior Greg Werbowsky. “I would spend hours trying to figure out the little quirky things..., and then they revamped the site this summer, which made it harder. So having help like this is a huge timesaver for me.”
Skeele said it makes sense to use students as a resource for staff.
“Kids are more tech savvy than us and they have more time to play with the applications,” she said. “And I’m sure the kids like turning the tables and teaching us.”
Ward Alsarafandi (left), a senior and Micle Chohan, a junior, work in a class at Jamesville-DeWitt High School where they learn about various technologies that the district and others use. J-D math teacher David Nylen, who teaches the half-credit class, said students become experts quickly, and then partner with a teacher who’s requested help. Students also learn leadership and communication skills by helping teachers. The students also develop a technology lesson and teach it for the class.
There are 19 students in grades 10 to 12 enrolled, and Nylen encourages them to work independently and learn the various applications.
“I know Blackboard because I play around with it all the time,” Werbowsky said. “When the site got rid of its drop box, teachers couldn’t find a way to send an assignment to the student. I can show them how to create a folder to do that.”
Blackboard is easy once you know it, “but it can be annoying because there a lot of different ways to do things,” he said. “I like using my skills to help teachers.”
No one is assigned in the district to help teachers learn new technology, so having the kids as a resource is invaluable, Nylen said. Some students come to the class already proficient in Blackboard or other applications. Other have no prior experience other than a lifetime of using computers, he said
Students can pick up how to use a new application in hours, because it’s often an extension of what they already know through their everyday use of technology.
Students also learn AirLiner, a wireless Smart Board, and still others work on uploading videos, using document cameras, and fixing hardware.
The class is concentrating on Blackboard and common applications, but teachers can request help on a specific need.
Sophomore Lisa Zheng didn’t know use to use Smart Board or Prezi, a Powerpoint-like presentation, before she took the class.
“I picked up Smart Board in two days and I could teach someone to use Prezi in 20 minutes,” she said. “Teachers are a different generation, but we were born using technology, so we catch if faster. And this is helping me prepare for college. Plus I love telling teachers what to do.”
Senior Kaitlyn Murphy is working on the school’s server. “I love learning new things,” she said, “and it’s a good experience to help teachers.”
Skeele, the English teacher, said she heard teachers from another school talking about their frustrations with Blackboard. “I’m so lucky to have students to help me,” she said.
Elizabeth Doran can be reached at edoran@syracuse.com or 470-3012