Feb. 08, 2002  
School Computerizes its Classes  
By Cindy Weeldreyer
Sentinel Correspondent

The American back-to-school ritual always involves changes for students as summer ends and they return to the classroom.  This was especially true for the 27 middle and high school students at South Lane Christian School this fall as their traditional paper workbooks or "paces" were replaced by a new computer-based curriculum.

"Switched-On Schoolhouse" is a product of Alpha Omega Publications, an Arizona company that is best known for its award-winning animated "Kingdom Under the Sea" video and DVD series.

The Bible-based Switched-On Schoolhouse curriculum benefits from the company's animation expertise and customizable lessons that can be enhanced with controlled Internet research options.

"This was a big project for our small school, so it had to be done in phases," said school Principal Randy Loyd. "This first phase was to install the computer network and purchase the curriculum for students in grades 8-12."

Mr. Loyd said the first phase was completely funded through private donations.  His experience in installing computer networks kept the overall expenses of the new online system much lower.

The cost of the conversion was about $28,000 and was the most substantial fundraising effort in the school's 26-year history.  He said grants are now being sought for phases two and three.  The second phase will provide the computerized curriculum to grades 3-7 and get high-speed telecommunications access to the school, located east of Cottage Grove on Mosby Creek Road, so students can use the Web links that are incorporated into the text of the curriculum.  The school currently has 58 students enrolled in grades 1-12.

The school is now divided into two large classrooms in which was once the church's original sanctuary.  Each student is assigned hand-crafted individual wooden desk, or "office," to study and work in for that school year.  These individual desks line the walls of the two rooms commonly referred to as the Upper Center and the Lower Center.

The third phase is to incorporate additional classroom space and split the students into three learning groups:  Grades 1-4, Grades 5-8 and Grades 9-12.

The Switched-On Schoolhouse core curriculum includes basic subjects for all high school students in Oregon, such as language arts, math, history, geography, health, Spanish and sciences.  Two courses unique to the Christian-based curriculum are separate courses in Bible and the U.S. Constitution.  There are also elective courses that can be tailored to individual student interests such as astronomy, finding and financing a college education and early career exploration.

Since he serves as the school principal, the computer network administrator and the high school teacher, Mr. Loyd is delighted at how the system has reduced the time he spends grading students' work to no longer than 90 minutes, which he does right after school each day.

Mr. Loyd said the new curriculum includes an automatic review of missed questions and won't allow the student to advance until his or her learning is successful.  He also said the computerized system still retains a high level of student/teacher interaction, which is a common criticism of this type of curriculum.

"Those who haven't seen the program in action are concerned about the lack of social interaction between teachers and students," Mr. Loyd says.  "All of the parents attended an open house to test the new system prior to the start of school last month.  They used the program as if they were students, sitting in their child's desk, and are excited with the change and the quality of the new curriculum.

Resource books, such as encyclopedias and dictionaries are still available, but most students are finding it easier to use these resources online.  The electronic format keeps the information very current compared to textbooks that are only updated annually.

Student response to the new e-learning format has been very positive, Mr. Loyd said.  Jeff Patterson, a senior, is ahead in his work and as a requirement for college is taking Spanish I this fall.  The course is multi-modal, meaning the student has headphones to hear the correct pronunciation and a microphone to practice the word through voice recognition until it is said correctly.  The student's keyboard can also become bilingual to assist in reading and writing in a foreign language.

"(The computerized system) is a lot better," he said.  "You have to learn to pace yourself, which prepares us for work and for life."

Eighth-grader Matthew Johnson is beginning his first year in the Upper Center.  He is also pleased with the new format.

"It's good, but it's weird to skip a couple of decades (in technology) from our paper paces to computers," he said.

Back to Press Room