eSchoolNews - TechSavvy Superintendent Award 2010
Gary Smuts, ABC Unified School District
California
Gary Smuts has served as superintendent of California’s ABC Unified School District since 2005. During that time, he has implemented a technology-based high school graduation requirement that has received national recognition. This “TechGradRequirement” builds on the International Society for Technology in Education’s National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) to create lessons and projects focused on effective technology integration.
The policy states that all students must demonstrate technology proficiency in grades 7-12 as a prerequisite to graduating from high school. The Technology Graduation Requirement went into effect in the fall of 2009, and it will be required for graduating from the district beginning with the high school class of 2013.
To meet this goal, the district has set annual benchmarks for the percentage of classes in each secondary school that (1) integrate technology into instruction, (2) give students the opportunity to learn key 21st-century skills, and (3) prepare students for work and citizenship in the digital era. Smuts also created a YouTube video message to his 1,100 teachers, asking for their support in aligning their instruction with NETS by designing projects that have students use technology to solve problems related to every core curriculum area.
To support the initiative, ABC Unified partnered with the Los Angeles County Office of Education to deliver professional development to its teachers. To date, all 10 secondary schools in the district have integrated technology within at least half of their classes.
The Los Angeles County Department of Education gave this initiative its 2009 Digital Voice Award for Innovation. Smuts also was chosen as the 2009 Association of California School Administrators’ State Superintendent of the Year.
http://www.abcusd.k12.ca.us
California
Gary Smuts has served as superintendent of California’s ABC Unified School District since 2005. During that time, he has implemented a technology-based high school graduation requirement that has received national recognition. This “TechGradRequirement” builds on the International Society for Technology in Education’s National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) to create lessons and projects focused on effective technology integration.
The policy states that all students must demonstrate technology proficiency in grades 7-12 as a prerequisite to graduating from high school. The Technology Graduation Requirement went into effect in the fall of 2009, and it will be required for graduating from the district beginning with the high school class of 2013.
To meet this goal, the district has set annual benchmarks for the percentage of classes in each secondary school that (1) integrate technology into instruction, (2) give students the opportunity to learn key 21st-century skills, and (3) prepare students for work and citizenship in the digital era. Smuts also created a YouTube video message to his 1,100 teachers, asking for their support in aligning their instruction with NETS by designing projects that have students use technology to solve problems related to every core curriculum area.
To support the initiative, ABC Unified partnered with the Los Angeles County Office of Education to deliver professional development to its teachers. To date, all 10 secondary schools in the district have integrated technology within at least half of their classes.
The Los Angeles County Department of Education gave this initiative its 2009 Digital Voice Award for Innovation. Smuts also was chosen as the 2009 Association of California School Administrators’ State Superintendent of the Year.
http://www.abcusd.k12.ca.us