Vision: Create an equitable and sustainable model for technology-enabled classrooms that prepare students to thrive in a connected, digital world in alignment with the Jeffco Generations strategic plan
As students start back to school for the 2019-2020 school year, two grades will do so with a brand new instructional device — a touchscreen Chromebook or iPad. These devices are part of a four-year plan to create technology-enabled classrooms in fifth through twelfth grades that prepare students to thrive in a digitally connected world in alignment with the Jeffco Generations Strategic Plan.
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Hutchinson is committed to preparing students to be college and career ready; communication, creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking skills are essential to thrive in the 21st century. This is why we launched a 2:1 Chromebook initiative for each student to share "their own" touchscreen device with a classmate in the other grade level class, which started in the 2018-2019 school year.
All students in 5th grade will be given a Chromebook from the school to use for educational purposes. Families will pay an annual $50 fee which covers the cost of the device (but not repairs - you need to purchase an additional, low-cost warranty for this), staff support, tech support, digital learning tools, teacher professional learning, internet filtering, bandwidth, and community resources. If a student leaves Jeffco, they are to return the device to the school. If transferring to another Jeffco school, they simply take their Chromebook with them to their new Jeffco school.
Having ongoing access to technology will allow our students to consistently practice and apply those 21st century skills, and prepare them for a variety of secondary and post-secondary options.
One of the biggest concerns for parents and teachers is ensuring the safety of students online and making sure students are actively engaged in class. All District managed Chromebooks have software that allows teachers to monitor all student screens, turn all screens off in order to minimize distractions, and project student work to the front of the room. See video for a demonstration.