HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2009-02-19, Page 20PAGE 20. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2009.
Community members in Goderich
and St. Marys have already become
aware of the Avon Maitland District
School Board’s emphasis on
“theming” its newly-constructed or
newly-consolidated schools.
And the communities on Clinton
and Mitchell will soon find out
more. According to a report
delivered to trustees on Tuesday,
Feb. 10 by business superintendent
Janet Baird-Jackson, the idea came
from the Greater Essex school board.
Working on new school construction
in the Windsor area, the board
discovered that attaching a “theme”
to a new school “supports your
desire to have kids get a feeling of
why their school exists and, really,
why their community is there.”
With major changes to student
accommodation in the works in
Goderich and St. Marys, the board
needed to act quickly if it wanted to
include “theming” in those projects.
So, in the interest of time, they
looked close by to find someone to
oversee the initiative: recently-
retired top administrator Geoff
Williams of Stratford.
“He would certainly be
knowledgeable about the school
buildings and the school
communities,” Baird-Jackson said.
Already, under the direction of
Williams, discussions have
highlighted some key characteristics
of the two communities.
In Goderich, Baird-Jackson
reported, there has been strong
support for incorporating images of
wind and water into the renovated
and expanded kindergarten-to-Grade
6 facility that will stand on the
current location of Robertson
Memorial Public School. She held
up what she described as “a stylized
picture of the waterfront” that might
be portrayed in the ceramic tiles
used in the renovations.
She added that the theme is in
keeping with the Goderich school
community’s desire to attract
support and funding for a renewable
energy-related Specialized High
Skills Major program at Goderich
District Collegiate Institute.
In St. Marys, meanwhile, a
committee headed by Williams has
solicited feedback for incorporating
a theme into a brand new
kindergarten-to-Grade 6 school to be
built adjacent to the town’s newly-
expanded Pyramid Recreation
Centre.
“The submissions were,
interestingly, pretty consistent
around various themes,” reported
Baird-Jackson. She said heritage
architecture, recognition for St.
Marys-raised Prime Minister Arthur
Meighen, natural beauty, and the
planet Earth were all mentioned.
Next up for the New School
Themes Committee are projects in
Clinton and Mitchell. In Clinton,
major upgrades are planned for the
high school, while all of Mitchell’s
elementary students will gradually
be consolidated into an expanded
Upper Thames Elementary School.
Board looking at
new school themes
In numerous Avon MaitlandDistrict School Board classrooms,the installation of a highly-anticipated piece of learning
technology is being delayed partly
due – according to education
superintendent Mike Ash – to the
international popularity of the
Canadian-designed product.
“Smart Boards,” manufactured by
Calgary-based Smart Technologies,
have gradually been making their
way into Ontario’s classrooms over
the past 10 years. With varying
degrees of interactivity (depending
on the level of computer hardware
and software installed in conjunction
with the boards), the touch-sensitive,
wall-mounted screens allow teachers
and students to do such things as
work interactively from their desks,
“click-and-drag” at the screen using
their fingers in the same manner they
might use a computer desktop, or
connect with the internet within the
classroom.
According to Ash, Smart Boards
are generally purchased for
classrooms through some level of
co-operation between the school
board and parent-run school
councils or home and school
organizations.
“Often, the principal will work
with the school councils to identify
needs, and then the fundraising
people might match the funding
that’s provided by the board,” theeducation superintendent explained.As a result of several years offundraising and Education Ministrygrants, he added, “we now haveSmart Boards in most of ourelementary schools and some of our
secondary schools.”
At a regular meeting Tuesday,
Feb. 20, however, trustees learned
that an unspecified number of the
recently-purchased Smart Boards
remain in pieces, waiting for
assembly by qualified technicians.
Listowel District Secondary
School (LDSS) student trustee Luke
McIntosh brought the issue forward,
informing senior trustees that he had
been told about the backlog at a
recent regional school council
meeting.
According to McIntosh, students
and parents are wondering when
several Smart Boards at LDSS and
some Listowel-area elementary
schools will be mounted and
operational.
“We are aware of the concern,”
Ash replied. “The issue is that the
interest has outstripped our capacity
in terms of installation.”
He said the Smart Boards were
ordered last summer and, in August,
the board was informed by Smart
Technologies that they would be
delayed due to strong demand for
the technology around the world.
Then, in October, parts began
arriving.
Generally, installation requires
complete overhauls of theclassroom’s electrical andcommunications wiring. And insome cases, Ash added, “we can’teven plan for receiving shipments of(additional) parts because thecompany doesn’t have a good supply
situation so they can’t give us a ship
date.”
Asked by board chair Jenny
Versteeg about a possible timeline
for installation, business
superintendent Janet Baird-Jackson
would not give a firm date. “We’re
going to be keeping people busy for
the next number of months,” was all
she would say.
In the case of new construction,
Ash explained, the board always
tries to incorporate all electrical and
communications infrastructure that
may be required for new
technologies. But he noted that
doesn’t necessarily mean every
newly-constructed classroom
automatically includes a Smart
Board.
That, as in the past, depends on
funding levels.
AMDSB waits for Smart Boards
Just in
One of the more interesting events of last weekend’s Luge-
a-thon, held throughout North Huron, was human curling in
Belgrave on Sunday. The event pitted two teams against
one another sliding their friends and family members
towards a target on plastic saucers. It was all in good fun
and drew dozens of teams to participate in the unique
event. (Shawn Loughlin photo)
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