Using Technology to Create Education 2.0

November 5, 2009 8:00-11:00am

Description:   Zionsville Middle School began a 1:1 student laptop pilot program in the fall of 2008 through the leadership of classroom teachers Monica Plantan, Sean Marie Sweeney, and Lindsay Valencourt.  Visitors will be invited to observe and interact with teachers and students in the 1:1 environment and learn about the program’s development and expansion.  Zionsville Middle School is currently in its second year of its 1:1 program, and at present all 6th and 7th grade students use netbooks or laptops at home and at school. The current plan is to expand the program to all students in grades 5-8 in 2010-2011, and then again to all students in grades 5-12 in the fall of 2011.  ZMS began formal planning for a 1:1 program in January of 2008 with the establishment of a Technology Task Force, a group consisting of parents, teachers, technology staff, and administrators.

Zionsville Middle School Overview:

Zionsville Middle School moved into its current facility in the fall of 2001. A variety of grade configurations preceded the structure currently in place: a middle school which supports students in grades 5-8. ZMS’s enrollment reached its zenith at approximately 1,500 students in ’03-’04, at which time Zionsville West Middle School began to phase in. ZMS is currently home to 950 students.

ZMS students are high achievers and typically are among the highest scoring student bodies in the State on Indiana’s ISTEP + exam. A vast majority (90% +) of ZCS attend a four-year college or university upon graduation from Zionsville Community High School. ZMS is a perennial Four-Star School and was named a National Blue Ribbon School in 2005.

The middle school curriculum includes a High Ability program in grades 5-8 in all core academic areas (language arts, science, math, social studies) and foreign language (Spanish, French, German, Mandarin) in grades 7 and 8. All students in grades 5-8 take a fine arts class (orchestra, choir, band, art) each day, and additionally take a combination of 9-week exploratory classes including health, phys. ed., general art, general music, computer skills, and industrial technology. Each grade level staff is set up in a teaming format, though the structure changes. Grade 5 utilizes 2 teacher teams, grade 6 utilizes 3 teacher teams, and grades 7 and 8 utilize 4 teacher teams. Special education students are fully included.