Cape May County Special Services School District began pioneering computer-assisted instruction in 1985. Determination to push the limits of technology helped us to discover new and innovative ways to serve our students' needs and set CMCSSSD at the forefront in the field Education Technology.
The ET department is proud to provide leadership in the Integration of Technology into Special Education. But, without the steadfast, moral and financial support of our Board of Education our students would not have benefited so fully from the use of technology as they have.
SMARTBOARD interactive white boards are installed in 22 classrooms throughout the District. This technology makes it possible for our teachers to create lessons that include a combination of text, audio, still images, animation, video, and interactivity content that naturally engage our students into the learning process. SmartBoard lessons foster peer collaboration and generate experiential learning activities that prompt a more memorable and enjoyable event for our students. Brain research has proven that when children are actively engaged in learning provided in a safe and happy setting they are more likely to store that learning in long term memory. I would expect that helping students retain knowledge that then is taken into real-life beyond the school's walls is a goal for all teachers. This is especially true of our teachers who are applying SmartBoard technology to meet the many learning challenges of our diverse yet very specific student population.
The Verizon Foundation’s grant programs have supported school districts throughout New Jersey for many years and this school year New Jersey’s Technology Touching Lives in South Jersey Grant was specifically targeted for students with special needs. CMCSSSD was one of just eleven school districts in NJ to receive funds from this grant, entitled iRead. iRead is providing our students with many opportunities to read and write using technology. The grant funds purchased eMac PowerBook computers, video iPods and video projectors to promote self-directed learning projects for high school students whose reading skills are below grade level. The project will use a multi-media approach including, iTunes, Garage Band, iMovie, iPhoto, iDVD and voice recorders to increase each student’s motivation to participate in Project iRead. Our students are already very familiar with handheld devices to download music; and we do anticipate our student will have great success with this project.
CMCSSSD’s ET Department is always happy to share our experiences and expertise with schools locally and around New Jersey. For instance, CMCSSSD provided the leadership role in the formation of a distance learning community of school district that came together to establish The Garden State Distance Learning Consortium. The GSDLC now servers over 100 school districts using video conferencing.
When local educators reached out to CMCSSSD for assistance in providing assistive technology devices and software for their special needs students included in general education classes, CMCSSSD took up the challenge of providing them with help by creating an Assistive Technology Resource Center. The AT Center provides both assistive technology evaluation services and training upon request. With the continued and generous funding support of the CMCSSSD Education Foundation, the AT Center is a viable option for educators to gain essential information to provide learning opportunities for their students with special needs.
