San Ysidro School District standardizes on SMART Board interactive whiteboards
Ocean View Hills School leads the way with high-tech learning environment
CALGARY, Alberta --- June 22, 2006 --- SMART Technologies Inc. announces that San Ysidro School District (SYSD) in San Diego, California, has standardized on SMART Board™ interactive whiteboards following a formal bid process. Southland Technologies Inc. of San Diego has installed and will maintain all SMART products for teachers, staff and administrators.
The district’s newest school, Ocean View Hills Elementary, is the showcase school for the district’s technology initiative, with all 40 classrooms, all labs and the library equipped with technology. The initiative aims to enrich the teaching and learning experience by incorporating meaningful, interactive, fun lessons into the curriculum. In addition to SMART Board interactive whiteboards, teachers have access to SMART Ideas® concept-mapping software and Notebook™ software (the whiteboarding application that comes with SMART Board software). These applications provide teachers with a wide range of whiteboarding tutorials, almost 1,500 standards-correlated lesson activities and more than 6,100 learning objects, including images, backgrounds, dynamic Macromedia® Flash®, video and audio content.
The predominantly Hispanic school district of more than 5,000 students is introducing technology as part of its drive to create collaborative, student-centered learning environments that better prepare students for life and work in the 21st century. The SYSD’s five-year technology plan is giving teachers the technology tools, professional development and digital resources they need to streamline lesson preparation, student assessment and administrative tasks.
“With the standardization of SMART collaboration technologies, the San Ysidro School District is moving towards a new type of teaching environment, which we believe will influence student achievement across the board,” says Frank Paredes, SYSD’s director of information management services. “Together, technology and education result in greater access to learning and teaching resources, and increased academic success for students. Understanding that our students are growing up in a digital age, the district is committed to investing in technology for the long term.”
“Education is a key economic driver that benefits not only those in the classroom, but the community and the nation at large,” says Nancy Knowlton, SMART’s president and CEO. “San Ysidro’s decision to create a high-tech learning environment reflects their understanding that we all have a stake in helping students achieve now and in the future.”
About SMART Board interactive whiteboards
The SMART Board interactive whiteboard is a large, touch-sensitive display. Connected to a computer and projector, the interactive whiteboard is like a giant computer screen that students and teachers simply touch to operate. Using their finger or a pen as a mouse, teachers and students can access and control any computer application, file or multimedia platform, including the Internet, CD-ROMs and DVDs. They can also write over applications in digital ink, then save their work for future study and review. The SMART Board interactive whiteboard engages students with diverse learning styles by providing both immediate access to a wide range of digital materials and a common focus for the entire class – not something easily achieved with other classroom technology products. It is the number one choice among primary and secondary school educators in upwards of 100 countries, capturing the imagination of 11 million students of all backgrounds and abilities, to help them learn together, understand better and achieve more. For more information, visit www.smarttech.com/smartboard.
About San Ysidro School District
San Ysidro School District, just south of San Diego, is a rapidly growing district with over 5,000 students in seven schools. The SYSD mission is to provide an educational environment in which all students succeed, recognizing that this commitment demands fostering and developing the abilities of all students. The district offers a comprehensive course of study and a variety of programs to meet the needs of all students: English learners, special education, migrant education, gifted and talented, and school improvement program participants. SYSD believes that technology, when effectively integrated into the curriculum, improves all aspects of student learning. An important measure of that success is the students’ readiness to enter high school with the academic and technology literacy skills that will further enhance their educational experience.
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For more information, contact
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SMART Technologies Inc.
1207 – 11 Avenue SW, Suite 300
Calgary, AB T3C 0M5
CANADA
Phone +1.403.802.2595
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pr@smarttech.com
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