214@100: Transforming a classroom with technology

High School District 214 students can get quiz results in real time, knowing immediately what they need to improve on. They can converse with classmates who don't speak the same language, view teacher-recorded lectures at home, review topics as often as needed, and work with other students in remote, evening study sessions.

They can jot notes along the margins of their digital textbooks, look up concepts and words they don't know, record experiments to view again later, and complete physics, biology and environmental science projects like never before - using apps that enable them to directly apply concepts they previously would only have read about in a textbook.

How? iPads - and more importantly, educators who have completed university-level training and who come up with ways to use them to improve learning.

"One of the biggest mistakes people make is thinking that once a teacher has an iPad, they've redefined a classroom," says Jeff Vlk, innovative technology facilitator at Buffalo Grove High School. "The iPad doesn't redefine the classroom. The teacher does that, using the iPad as a tool. It's the teacher who needs to come up with an idea, develop, modify and redefine the lesson."

District 214 piloted the use of iPads six years ago with 350 students. Driven by educators who presented evidence in support of iPads, more devices have been added annually as desktop computers are retired. The district provides training for educators and ensures every building has staff who provide support.

The end result is increased teacher collaboration, improved student engagement and growth in student success. More students have enrolled in challenging Advanced Placement classes because of the opportunity to use the iPad, and in one freshman math class, the number of students earning a C or better went from 88 percent pre-iPad to 100 percent afterward.

"We always talk about meeting students where they are intellectually and socially, and these devices allow us to do that in unique and inspiring ways," Director of Technology Keith Bockwoldt said. "This has been a districtwide effort to prepare students for their future."