Working and Teaching strategies at Strömstad Gymnasium (1:1 Laptop school)

Helena Klouda, Ilka Andersson

Working and Teaching strategies at Strömstad Gymnasium (1:1 Laptop school)

1 Where we come from2 Introduction – How We Became a 1:1 Laptop School 3 The School's Equipment and Attitude4 Being a Teacher at Strömstad Gymnasium5 TEL in the Classroom and Other Places6 Problems and Questions

… and where we come from

● Strömstad municipality:

ca 12 000 inhabitants● Strömstad: 409 pupils ● Theoretical and voactional

pograms● Special profile: rowing and

nautical education

Introduction – How We Became a 1:1 Laptop School

● Google: Laptop 1:1 & Sweden

● It's marketing!● 3 years ago: only a few

classes with laptops● Now: all the students● Situation forced us to come

up with new working and teaching strategies

3 The School's Equipment ...

● All the students and teachers are equipped with computers, laptops or netbooks (> 500)

● Each classroom: projector, screen, speakers● Several wireless routers (100 Mbit/s up & down)● One interactive whiteboard (test)

... and Attitude

● Computer has to be more than a substitute for pen and paper

→ augment teaching and learning

→ new paths, new tasks, new ways of thinking, new methods for teaching / learning

4 Being a teacher at Strömstad Gymnasium

● Different programs and platforms are part of the daily routines– Register students' attendence/ final grades/ evaluation of

performances (Hypernet) – Teachers communicate via email/ chatt programs (Skype/

facebook)– Teachers and students are connected by a platform

called ”Fronter” – Digital classrooms/ up – and download material / hand in

assigments/ online exams

→ requires the teachers to handle all the programs, the platforms and the computer in general...

Being a teacher at Strömstad Gymnasium

● IT group (general discussion, stragies, problems, ideas)● IT pedagogues (IT interested, give a helping hand, inspire, take

part in conferences) ● IT days (further education within computer programs / TEL)● IT support (serious hardware/ software problems)

TEL in the classroom and other places

● Introduction to computer basics – they do not know as much about computers and the internet as we first thought...)

● To what extend the equipment is used in the classroom depends on the teachers' skills.

– All of them: use Fronter to provide the students with material/ Hypernet etc / basic programs

– Most of them: use laptop and internet in the classroom (youtube/ instructions via screen etc)

– Some of them: redefine tasks... experiment … new ways of thinking, get out of the classroom ...

Problems and Questions● What are 21st century skills? What is knowledge today? What are

we supposed to teach? – facts/ facts in context/ only context/know how and where to

find facts (in context)/ critical analysis, soft skills?● How to handle all the internets' temptations in school?● Should teachers' be available 24/7? (email/ facebook??)● Students expect immediate feedback/ feedback on everything ● Isn't direct/ personal communication faster?● Students don't take notes → can download...does the computer

make them lazy?● Reading and writing/ spelling skills decrease (subjective impression)● Does technology really enhance learning? How do nowadays

students learn best?

Thank you for listening and discussing!

In case you want to get in touch with us

helena.klouda@stromstad.se

ilka.andersson@stromstad.se