Kokomo — Freshmen in Steve Dishon and Justin Palmer’s Taylor High School digicom class sit at tables of four, rather than desks, and each student has a laptop computer in front of him or her.
Friday, the students brainstormed what they already know and what they need to know about an upcoming project, due in three weeks. Dishon, an English teacher, and Palmer, a business teacher, roam through the room leading the discussion, adding to the list on the overhead screen with a remote device.
Across the hall, Corey Smith and Jessica Breedlove team teach geocad, a class that combines geometry with introduction to engineering, and again, each student has a laptop, and each works in a group.
The combined classes, the one-to-one student and computer ratio and the projects are all part of a new way of teaching and learning at Taylor Community Schools, at the Titan New Tech High School, which opened in August. It is housed within the existing Taylor High School building and includes all the school’s freshmen.
Friday, Taylor schools had a grand opening celebration for the school, the first of its kind in the Kokomo area.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett praised the two-year effort by Taylor Superintendent John Magers, school board members and Principal Eric Hartman to bring the program to Howard County, which has struggled economically in recent years.
“We are only going to built a robust economy when we think outside the box for education,” Bennett said. “I stand here today with folks who get it.”
In the digicom class, which combines English 9 with computer applications, student Evan Hewitt says he likes the new tech way of learning, which is project-driven. Students work in groups on their projects and must make a public presentation at the end of the project.
“This is what we’re going to be doing when we graduate from high school,” Hewitt said.
Student Ariane Collins likes using her computer and working in groups. Ricky Cuevas also likes the project and said it makes learning more interesting.
As students work on their projects, they realize what they need to learn, and teachers can work in small groups on those particular skills. For example, as they talked about the digicom project, students noted they need to review MLA style to properly format their written work.
In addition to the two combined classes, students can take algebra, Spanish and biology in the new tech format.
Biology teacher Jim Grossman said he has wanted to teach using the new tech style for several years, but never had the technology to do so. He said it has been challenging for him to learn to teach differently, but he likes it.
He notices the students are more engaged in his class.
Jeremy Luna, high school assistant principal, added he’s noticed the freshmen are more engaged in their classes this year than in the past.
Hartman said the new tech school includes the 120 freshmen, and will add one grade each year until all four grades are included. He said the class projects drive instruction, and students “have the luxury of being in charge of their own education.”
• Danielle Rush is the Kokomo Tribune education reporter. She can be reached at 765-454-8585 or danielle.rush@kokomotribune.com.
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