The Claire and Emanuel G. Rosenblatt Technology K-12 program at Donna Klein Jewish Academy has not only touched the lives of faculty and students alike, but has completely changed the way in which students are learning.
Technology has already become a signature program, one that will continue to benefit both faculty and students, giving them the tools and skills they need to succeed in their future academic careers and in life.
Donna Klein Jewish Academy has been recognized by Smart Technologies, Inc. as a technology leader in education, in being named the first
“Smart Showcase School” in Florida.
Our DKJA website won the 2008 PEJE (Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education) award for "Overall Excellence in Websites".
Vision statement of how
The Claire and Emanuel G. Rosenblatt K-12 Technology Program
will benefit the Donna Klein Jewish Academy student by the year 2010:
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Prepare and empower every student to embrace technology in their daily lives
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Prepare students to be fluent "Digital Natives" in a world driven by technology
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Prepare students for "Just-in-Time" versus "Just-in-Case" learning
The starting point for the successful implementation of the technology program began with two key-components:
- the generosity of our “Technology Guardian Angel”, Linda R. Kaminow
- a comprehensive 3-5 year instructional technology plan which incorporated an intensive structured plan for faculty training.
Three years ago, Phase I of this technology plan began with the implementation of 100+ brand new networked computers, a 24-berth laptop cart in the Middle school, as well as SMARTboards installed in six classrooms across the Lower, Middle and High schools. A core group of teachers were invited to attend a formal training session on the use of the SMARTboard. These teachers eagerly began using the technology, and within a very short time-period, “SMART-fever” had hit Donna Klein Jewish Academy! Faculty and students school-wide were requesting that their classrooms be equipped with this technology.
Phase II saw the installation of SMARTboards and LCD projectors in every classroom and a second laptop cart was added to the middle school. A core-team of faculty (aka “Smarties”) attended a Train-the-Trainer workshop, and they were then assigned to small groups of faculty for peer-mentoring in using the equipment. This method of training has been highly successful, as teachers enjoy the intimacy and camaraderie of working with their peers in small-sized teams divided either by subject areas or grade-levels. The use of these interactive whiteboards, laptops, digital cameras, scanners, etc, together with the Internet as an unlimited resource of knowledge and facts, has opened the door to boundless possibilities of how this technology program can stretch the minds of the students.
Phase III focused on the introduction of a core-group of faculty, “Technology Facilitators”. These educational leaders, who have already paved the way by establishing that teaching-with-technology is what engages and motivates our 21st century students, worked closely with their peer faculty members, assisting them in seamlessly integrating technology into their daily instruction. Donna Klein Jewish Academy prides its curriculum in truely integrating technology into both General and Judaic studies curricula school wide, made possible by students having access to two computer labs, computers in every classroom, schoolwide wireless access for laptop use, the wealth of eductaional resources available on the Internet, and a host of other technological accessories.
In addition to the integration of technology in the classroom, the school's administrative offices have become fully automated as well. Our electronic admissions and re-enrollment process has been well received, and the private Intranet portion of our website provides the DKJA family with crucial and informative up-to-date information on the students' school activities, including confidential Parent Portals for each family. Our automated SchoolMessenger Alert System allows our families to be notified at a moment's notice of any school emergencies, as well as any other important school communications.
As a paperless school, technology has become an integral part of everyone's lives at our school, and I am proud and honored to lead this dynamic department. The Donna Klein Jewish Academy family extends their sincere appreciation to Linda R. Kaminow, whose dedication to our school has enabled her dear parents' memories to live on in the daily lives of future generations of the Jewish Community.
Sincerely,
Janice Odesnik
