'Students Come First' task force has first
meeting
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June 18, 2011 |
BOISE – Jeb Bush, Governor of Florida from
1999-2007, and Bob Wise, Governor of West
Virginia from 2001-2005, helped kick off the
first meeting of Idaho’s Students Come First
Technology Task Force.
“The Students Come First Technology Task Force
has hit the ground running. Over the past two
days, this broad-based group has worked hard,
learning from state experts in educational
technology and national leaders in education
reform,” Superintendent of Public Instruction
Tom Luna said. “I am excited for our work going
forward as we create the 21st Century Classroom
for every Idaho student.”
The Students Come First Technology Task Force is
a 39-member task force working to successfully
implement the technology components of Idaho’s
education reform laws. Specifically, the task
force is studying and developing plans for the
one-to-one ratio of mobile computing devices in
high schools. Once the State Board of Education
determines the number of online courses for a
graduation requirement, the task force also will
develop implementation plans for this
requirement, in addition to the necessary
professional development for teachers.
Governor Bush and Governor Wise, who traveled to
Idaho at their own expense, applauded the State
of Idaho for its reform efforts. They jointly
lead the bipartisan "Digital Learning Now!" This
initiative advances policies to integrate
current and future technological innovations
into education to provide all students with a
customized, quality education experience.
“Imagine if every student in the state of Idaho
gained the knowledge to pursue their dreams.
Idaho would lead the nation and the world in
education as well as business, innovation and
entrepreneurship,” said Jeb Bush. “The Students
Come First plan is an excellent example of
taking real, tangible steps toward improving
education. Idaho has the opportunity to pursue
the most innovative methods to give every
student the opportunity to achieve their
God-given learning potential.”
“It is time we stop asking students to power
down when they go to school and instead to power
up and use their interest in technology and
social networking as a new way to learn,” said
Bob Wise, president of the Alliance for
Excellent Education and former governor of West
Virginia. “Digital learning can provide all
students, rural or urban, with access to a
number of high-quality subjects that may not be
available in their individual schools, including
foreign languages and advanced math and science
courses. Effective teachers are an invaluable
component of digital learning. Imagine
delivering high-quality content over the
internet to large numbers of students where
classroom teachers could then personalize that
content to meet individual students’ learning
needs. Now that’s what I call a force
multiplier.”
During the two-day meeting, the task force also
heard presentations from Jeff Coe and Jeremy
Davidson of Schoolnet, Dr. Lisa Dawley and Chris
Haskell of Boise State University, and Dan
Thomander from Cassia Alternative High School.
Each presentation focused on how Idaho teachers
can use technology in the classroom to engage
students and enhance the learning experience for
every child.
All presentations along with PowerPoints and
meeting minutes will be posted on the Students
Come First website at
http://www.studentscomefirst.org/technologytaskforce.htm.
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