When grade six Bahamian students are discussing how to get mobile devices into the hands of school age children across The Bahamas, the impact of a school with a strong information and communications technology (ICT) curriculum becomes apparent. An 11-year-old student will be leading a discussion with attendees at the upcoming Nassau Educational Technology Conference (NET.2) at Lyford Cay International School (LCIS) with the topic "Why One Device Per Child is Important and How to Make it Happen." The student will be introducing affordable digital educational tools to the 400 educators in attendance as she shares her own personal experience as a one-to-one student at LCIS. In Spring 2007, thanks to the support of generous donors, LCIS took the bold step to launch a new technology platform. The platform provided LCIS with pervasive levels of technology, professional development, and resources to meet the needs of students and teachers living in a digital society. Thus began a journey in technology, which has seen LCIS become a leader in educational technology in the Caribbean. Today, the school's campus network boasts 99.9 percent uptime and some of the fastest Internet speeds available in The Bahamas. LCIS has made significant investment in ICT and has integrated technology into the curriculum at every level. There is a dedicated ICT instructor in each of the school's educational departments - the Early Learning Center, Elementary School and Secondary School. The instructors work collaboratively with teachers and students to enrich traditional content by infusing ICT wherever appropriate.
At LCIS, the ICT Program is innovative and impactful because of careful strategic planning. The school utilizes software that inspires, automates, teaches, and makes both students and teachers more efficient.
"We are fortunate here at LCIS to have an informed and supportive leadership, and a diligent technology team to keep everything running efficiently while keeping an eye on the ever-changing future landscape of instructional technology," said Director of Technology, Mindy Brinson. "We have built a team that includes a responsive help desk, Internet savvy media specialists [librarians], tech lead teachers, numerous specialized vendors, and a variety of engineers and technicians," she said.
LCIS teachers attend and present ICT topics at professional conferences around the world. On June 20, LCIS will, once again, present the premiere annual technology event in The Bahamas, the NET.2 Conference. The NET.2 Conference brings educators together for a full day of sharing ideas and resources, all at no charge. The conference will also help launch the school's new Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) initiative, as 18 exceptional LCIS students will present their STEM projects to the public.
LCIS provides a full spectrum of the best available software and subscription-based tools to create, analyze, present, share and collaborate. Students maintain online portfolios, collaborate daily with peers and professionals around the world, research careers and colleges with Naviance, a college counseling program, take online courses at prominent universities, check out library books and periodicals, and perform scientific research and data collection using iPads and GoPro cameras. LCIS students now repair broken electronics, build interactive whiteboards, develop IOS apps, design websites, build robots, code programs, write databases, learn Computer Aided Design (CAD), develop green solutions, create digital art, photography, music and video as part of their every day school experience.
At LCIS, students, parents, and teachers are inextricably connected to the rest of the world thanks to ICT investments at the school. Today, technology plays a vital role at LCIS and will continue to evolve as global trends emerge.
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