Student’s in Janelle Coady’s English 9 class are utilizing a variety of web and Google tools to present to classmates.  This past year Norris went with a 1-1 take home in grades 9-12 with Google Chromebooks, and students now have these resources available to them 24x7. “In using technology tools for the past 10 years, the Chromebooks have been the best one by far,” said Coady. “I can’t believe how seamless the rollout was for our students.”

Students in Mrs. Coady’s English 9 recently completed book reports using Google Presentation and are now using an app called Google Cast for Education to easily display their Chromebook screen for the entire class to see. “I like the fact I don't have to pull up each presentation,” states Mrs. Coady. “The students are responsible for their presentation and getting it on the screen to present rather than me being responsible for more than 100 of them and pulling each one up.”

Other technology tools are utilized by teachers on a daily basis, depending upon the needs of the students and the content area. Mrs. Coady is one of 13 Norris teachers who are Google Certified Educators.  This past summer, Google released a new teacher education and certification program. Mrs. Coady, along with 12 other staff members, completed the coursework and passed exams to obtain their certifications.  As Noel Erskine, Director of Technology for Norris School District, states, “It’s great having staff members who are always improving their skills in technology. This allows teachers to incorporate technology within their classes to maximize student learning.”