The Menasha based Private Catholic high school will launch its One to One Laptop Program this Monday. The program will provide students with the handy technology as an additional for the education curriculum.

This means a more personalized environment as students will be able to bring laptops to their homes for the majority of the year. Students like the idea of bringing with them a laptop because they want to do their own thing; according to one freshman.

The private high school plans to incorporate educational technology into the present curriculum and looks forward to utilize e-texts in substitute when books became obsolete. Patrick Batey, SMC principal explains that today’s measurement of literacy is no longer writing and reading only, but as well as being knowledgeable with technology.

Along with the distribution of laptops to the students is the policies and agreements on proper use of the equipment. Distractions can come along during class hours; in order to prevent such disruptions, the school will block some sites such as Youtube and Facebook during school period. But teachers can utilize such sites for online education resources such as multimedia, mp3 and videos.

The distribution of laptops will be on the school opening for seventy-six entering freshmen while juniors and sophomores will be on the second semester. The school implemented such method of distribution based on a study and they anticipate that next year all students will have their own laptops.

In order to cope up with the cost, SMC will lease each laptop an amount of $800 for 4 years; the price of each laptop. Parents will have an option either to buy the laptop after four years at the cost of one dollar, or return the computer to the school. Administrators made this option to provide discount for the families.

The virtual high school which has 650 students enrolled had been a long time scheme; especially students have been very enticed with the virtual education model and most people have been taking education online for career advancements.

While high school students enroll online for remedial classes. The Los Angeles Unified School Division had also increased its student number in at least one of their online classes since 2007.

The LAUSD is the largest public school system in California and 2nd in the United States. The newly operational school will enable non-traditional students such as; home schooled children to be a part of LAUSD. The school will also provide affordable and a wide range of advance classes to prospective students of the school district.

The initiative have been pursued due to the seen benefits of virtual education to learners. According to the report of the education department; online learning brings a –conducive to learning –environment and initiates more student progress compared to the traditional scene.

The virtual classroom will let students to experience a different perspective considering education. Students will have web chat instead of the face to face class setting. The power of technology will be utilized to the maximum unblocking learning hindrances. Student will also have online coursework with the aid of multimedia and needed online education resources.

Teachers can conduct conference to universities worldwide and their teaching faculties for distant sharing of information. Students will also be kept away from distraction such as tight competition.
However, Students will miss out social and physical contact. They will also need to be self-motivated and responsible for finishing their online assignments and parents will need to guide them ensuring they complete their high school course work.

What’s unique with the public high school is it’s targeted exclusively for boys. Enrollees will experience a different face of education composed of only male students. Students are ought to be wearing a white shirt, black vest, a jacket and khaki pants.

The Lancaster Preparatory Academy established by the Lancaster High School gives the male students a distraction-free environment by creating an all male class. The school understands the biology and tendency of males to be attracted to the opposite sex which they believe a factor of distraction. And creating an all male class allows the male students to focus and concentrate on their education.

Roosevelt Nivens, the school principal has many plans for the students prior to the establishment of the academy. He wants Lancaster students to pass the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (a standardized test which assess student’s attainment in reading, writing, math, science and social studies).

He wants every academy student to be full-scholars upon attending post-secondary education. The principal also aspire to fill the academy hall way with academic and athletic trophies.

The students will attend classes together in the academy and at the end of the day; they will attend physical education classes or a school band. Several testimonials have been coming from students.

An example is Genarvis Shears, a freshman which states the academy has help him to grow and be a man. Meanwhile, Shears parents’ are very glad of the development their grown man have now.

Principal Nivens felt praised with the parents’ satisfaction. He stands on the philosophy of removing disruptions in maximum development of a child and proposes to build and expand the academy with the possibility of establishing an all-girls academy.

Usually, the problem roots from mal-diagnosed or even undiagnosed heart problems. And shockingly, high schools are on the borderline. Studies report majority of cardiac arrest deaths on the later teenage years or in the young adults. The big portion could be because majority of athletes comes from these age bracket or worst because of negligence in both parties.

Dr. Joseph Marek saw such problem that’s why he is committed on increasing awareness about cardiac arrest in most young adults. To complete the initiative, Dr, Marek, a cardiologist with Midwest Heart Specialists on the medical staff at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital led his team for a heart awareness mission.

The Midwest Heart Foundation targets high schools and their athletes as well as non athletes for heart ailment diagnostics. In 2006, the foundation launched the Young Hearts for Life Cardiac Screening Program which purposed to detect issues leading to cardiac arrest. The medical mission program was led by qualified medical volunteers traveling to public and private high schools in Chicago area and provides free heart screenings.

Over 5000 volunteers have been trained since the year 2006 which is massively comprised of concerned parents and 47, 000 screenings administered. Regarding the procedures, each student is administered with a non-evasive electrocardiogram (EKG) which generates accurate information regarding heart rate and rhythm. This allows the doctor to have a diagnosis about deadly heart ailments such as Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.

Dr. Marek’s medical team will be visiting more high schools and university campuses to reach out for awareness. On August 26, Benedictine University in Lisle will be the target visit for the program followed by one college and four area high schools comprised of; Glenbard South High School, Glen Ellyn (Oct.1 and 22); West High School, Hillside (Nov. 4 and 5); Charles North High School, St Charles (Nov.18).

Academy students will experience hybrid education composed of outstanding curriculum accessible online supported by the oversight of the highly qualified faculty of SRRHS. Principal Lykins informed that the academy started years ago when he lead the Jupiter Canyon Alternative School.

Red Rock Academy guarantees students with 90 percent and above completion rates due to the faculty’s commitment to resolve learning problems in a personalized and timely manner. Another advantage is the nationwide access for all students and portable online education resources for all the coursework. Also, the district will receive the 80 percent of the funding coming form the enrolled students.

However, the online high school courses will only be used accordingly and will not be taken with purpose of graduating early.

Lykins believes that this will reduced the dropout percentage producing a lot of graduates. It will also provide alternative to standard delivery of instruction, flexibility of schedules especially summer classes and will likely provide special education benchmark. Leaning will also be equipped with technology which will hasten reception for all type of learners.

But Lykins admits that online education is not suitable to everyone because of students varied learning styles. For some, attending on ground education will still be preferable due to many factors like, social need, computer illiteracy, and lack of online education equipments e.g. computer and internet connection. For the rest, it would be very convenient and would save time and effort upon attendance especially for working students.

Administrators have meet together and discussed about certain issues concerning the program. School Board President Bobbie Surber expressed that brick and mortar education is still best and been proven despite the accessibility of education online. But Lykins pointed that the institutions will still be a traditional campus and online courses will be another option for students. Lykins expects that such program will be embraced by more people in the future which will increase online education enrollment.

Wasson High School – a Peaks Pipe region-based school applied for a School of Innovation Status. Such status gives the high schools autonomy regarding school developments and student progress. When approved, students will no longer practice obsolete learning methods but experience innovated school instructions and extra curricular activities. These activities will be centered towards excellence and student achievements.

As part of the innovation, the school will create upper level academies which are compost of law, arts, science and math, law and leadership. Incoming students will be guided through joining teams of co-students and robust teachers. The faculty will also aid them with educational resources with additional help in any subjects hard on their part. Students which have adventurous learning styles will be admitted to seminars about robotics, scuba diving and more.

Educational technology will also be complemented with teaching techniques. Instead of the traditional dissemination of instructions, law academy will be taught in with real to life settings. Students can expect mock hearings and video clips in support for discussions.

Concerning the legal processes, paperwork has been submitted to the Colorado Education Department waiting for approval in mid-August. This has been very challenging for the high school principal since the school was nearly to be closed. Principal Darryl Bonds believes that the only way to raise Wasson’s fallen reputation is through the School of Innovation status–.A status granted by the Education Department same as the autonomy given to most charter schools

Bond and the rest of the new teaching faculties will be starting the first day of class with faulty development programs and orientation across each department. Teachers will also get to familiarize and instill appropriate usage of the academies.

Xavier and Fox Valley Lutheran high schools are few of the host schools attended by the international students. The private schools are expecting 100 of potential studiers primarily from South Korea.

These students are living and catered by host families provided that they pay expenses to the host and fees to the school. And as the numbers grow, valley high schools like Xavier seeks 15 more host families which will provide shelter, safety Encouragement, love and care for the international students. In result, administrators are amazed of the hospitality the host families offer to the foreigners. Lori England, Xavier coordinator says that such students who will arrive mid-August pay $500 to their respective host families in return for the hospitality.

Meanwhile, Fox Valley Lutheran’s International Study program expects 50 students from 11 countries for the said year. She also explained that Lutheran churches are good source of host families for the studiers. And these students love the mid-west culture while at the same time exhibiting their own unique traditions to fellow American classmates.

Bill Rathsack of Appleton claimed that their school has handled South Korean high schools from Xavier and Fox Lutheran’s International Study program which they find them very polite and industrious regarding education especially with the high school programs. And mutually, the appreciation they get from Fox schools enticed them to invite fellow students from Korea to travel.

For many students, the social interaction and physical immersion is the best experience when attending a traditional school which is barely experienced by students taking distance education. No gyms for physical education classes, no group interactions, neither prom nights. But not all students have interest in listening for hours in a caged classroom. Some students prefer studying at home. Others get distracted by the tight academic competition inside the classroom. While the rest have own reasons and disabilities so they can’t go to traditional schools. Take for example Taylor Wilmot who graduated recently in a Virtual Learning Academy. Wilcom used to be enrolled in Bishop Guertin High School, a private school, but because of financial disability her family decided to transfer her in Nashua High School which is a public school. However, Wilcom didn’t like the learning environment and cannot relate with her new mates so she decided to stop her high school education. Gladly, the school counselors suggested her to attend an online high school and it fitted her preference.

Wilcom has now graduated with online education but she admitted it wasn’t that easy like most testimonials she finds on the net. Wicom had to resist her self from being distracted to different entertainment online. Wilcom works and study at the same time but she claimed that studying online was very favorable because she gets to study at anytime she wants. Today, Wilcom will be attending classes at Nashua Community College and she admits that she will be having a hard time going into a hard chaired classroom again.

Wilcom might not be the only student which will grasp college education in a traditional campus but definitely the rest of her online high school batch mates will have a challenging time in adjusting their conditioned environment to a new education setting.

Ms. Barica, a fine music teacher have been teaching for more than a decade, specifically 13 years in the institution and this summer she is asked to move to another private or public school due to the falling enrollment of the school. The music teacher had also worked with future American Idol contestants like Nadia Turner, run talent shows and provide after school music programs.

Students have been strongly attached to the teacher because of its unique qualities and effective teaching techniques. One student said that he learned to play the guitar in an easy way through the teacher’s guitar lessons while others claim that they learn cooperation with the teacher. And many strongly disagree with the decision of the school.

Because of this, students made several protest including a face book page urging to let their music teacher stay. Currently, the page has gathered 2100 fans. The seniors are very proud of their music teacher and some students have used their voices as weapon.

Southwest Principal James Haj said that he had taken every possible action to keep such effective teacher but due to a budget cut, he has no choice but to let Ms. Barica go. He also said that they will reduce Fine Arts department which will consequently offset six teachers. But the high school principal promised not to cut any music classes neither any clubs.

Ms. Barica admitted that she really adores the students and would not let go of the school if she has a choice. But unfortunately, the school cannot hold anymore of the expenses however, students will make any possible actions just to keep their beloved music teacher and promised not to walk away without something very powerful.

The workforce program is federally funded; receiving an assistance of $632,000 from federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act paying about $8.50 per hour for 334 high school and college students to work internships ranging from Captain D’s to River Edge Behavioral Health Center.

Workforce Development had been helping high school and college students since 1998 in providing summer employments for student self-sufficiency which is very essential to Bibb’s low employment rate and competitive job hiring’s. The department also enabled adults to land jobs despite of the competitiveness.

These allowed teens in their enjoy working in their respective interest and gaining helpful knowledge upon doing their summer jobs. This also assists the government particularly in the workforce by saving up extra expenses of hiring non-student workers.

Testimonials from recent student workers support the efficiency of the said program. Students dedicatedly mention the quality work experience they gain from the summer job compared to other work like selling clothes or video games.

The said source of the financial assistance could be affected negatively this year by the current fund shifts. But the administrator strongly claimed that such student financial support shouldn’t be left behind considering the benefits of the program and pointing that paychecks earned by the students (which come from the state) will be cycled back to the economy through student spending.

For the last summer, the program employed 600 high school and college students but sadly due to the funding shifts, the prospective summer workers could be cut down to half this year. If not with the Department of Family and Children Services, there won’t be a program for the said year.