North Elementary students head to Springfield for Tech 2015

North Elementary is among approximately 66 schools statewide that will participate in the annual Tech 2015: Students for the Information Age event May 7 at the Illinois State Capitol Building in Springfield.

Taking part in the demonstration will be North fourth-graders Katya Flaugher, Kayla Peralta, and Brady Rogers as well as their teacher Michael Moylan.

Students will show the public and elected members of the Illinois State Senate and the House of Representatives how technology is being used in the classroom to improve student achievement.

Students will present on the importance of utilizing apps, such as Book Creator, Explain Everything, and Edmodo, in the classroom. Apps like these allow teachers to embed curriculum to achieve greater engagement from students. As they become active producers of content rather than passive consumers within the learning process, students are able to reach Common Core benchmarks by applying their knowledge of new concepts.

According to Brady Rogers, one of the benefits of the Book Creator app is that it allows him to add photos when writing a story. He also says it's good for when he learns something in class and wants to write about it. "You can grab an iPad and start writing!" he claims.

Katya Flaugher says technology puts learning in the student's hands. Her favorite app is Edmodo, which, she says, is like Facebook for the classroom. "Edmodo lets you talk to different classmates outside of school and share your expression of yourself," she says. Katya says Edmodo also comes in handy when she has questions on a homework assignment as it allows her to interact with her classmates.

Kayla Peralta says she uses Edmodo, too, and logs in almost every day. "You can even invite your parents to Edmodo," she says, "so they can see how you are doing in class." Kayla also says she likes that you can set up book clubs on Edmodo and type messages to the group about new books.

The purpose of Tech 2015 is to raise awareness of the critical role technology plays in preparing students to succeed in today's world and to show the need for increased funding for classroom technology. Students will demonstrate for lawmakers and the public the creative ways technology is being used to enhance and accelerate student achievement in Illinois schools today.

Tech 2015 is a nonprofit initiative presented by Illinois Computing Educators, and is supported by a broad range of education and business organizations. Corporate Platinum Plus partners are CDW-G and Comcast Business.