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Mapping Success with Technology
Story posted June, 2008
Results:
• Increased student test scores on California State STAR exam every year for the last 5 years
• Only technology class where majority of students are female and minority
• Work by students has been published in professional journals, presented at professional conferences, and honored with numerous national awards
Santa Ynez Valley Union High School District wanted to put technology in the hands of students with a program that would deliver results and benefit the community.
The district created the Environmental and Spatial Technologies, a project-based, service learning class devoted to using technology to solve school and community problems. Students learn to use Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Global Positioning Systems (GPS), animation, video, Computer-Aided Design (CAD), graphics, and Web tools. They meet with various professionals, present to many groups, overcome problems, present and defend their findings, and learn to work in teams. Their projects include working with the California Highway Patrol to map four years of accident data on Highway 154 and with district officials on school site disaster readiness mapping. They have mapped eroding sea cliffs in Isla Vista and retraced the Fremont Trail. Their original work in mapping the Mission Santa Inés aqueduct earned them a California State Historic Preservation award.
The Santa Ynez Valley Union High School Board has been instrumental over the past six years in building the EAST program. It has supported the program's growth from 20 to 290 students. Members have given students opportunities to work in the community, obtain alternate funding through grants, and publicize their work.
Because the board has actively solicited businesses, professionals, and community organizations to meet with EAST and develop joint projects, students have been involved in many different endeavors. The board established a new classroom for the expanding program and purchased updated materials, software, and hardware. Older materials were then recycled by the students for use by other teachers and students in campus labs or classrooms. Most importantly, the board has taken an active role in shaping the class based on the needs of all students and the recommendations of teachers.
The EAST program has grown tremendously over the past six years. Classroom diversity has changed dramatically. It is the only technology class at Santa Ynez High School where the majority of students are female and minorities-both groups have been historically underrepresented in classes like this. It has achieved this diversity by recruiting and offering a strong curriculum and effective teaching. With an attendance rate of 98 percent, the class has raised students' test scores on the California State STAR exam every year over the last five years. Discipline referrals are at an all-time low.
The skills and experiences students gain are countless. They learn teamwork, leadership, self-motivation, and how to speak in public. They also have the opportunity to work with industry-standard software and hardware. EAST works because it inspires students, educators, and members of the local and business communities to expect more from education. It has received numerous national awards, including recognition by Geospatial Solutions, Amgen, the Golden Bell, and the Association of Land Use Professionals.
The project of mapping the water system at the Mission Santa Inés was given the Geospatial Solutions 2005 Top GIS Project award, and has been published by students in professional journals as well as presented by student teams at numerous professional conferences.
Class members worked in 2006 with Santa Barbara County mapping the eroding sea cliffs in Isla Vista, and received numerous national awards for their work. GIS student teams work in environmental areas, mapping local animal populations, water sources, historic trails, and parks. They also plot fire susceptibility areas and transportation efficiency, and map trails for docents in Nature Reserves.
"This is the best example of the use of historical research, geophysics and archaeology to solve a particular problem that I have ever seen," says Robert Hoover, professor emeritus at California Polytechnic State University.
For additional information, please contact:
Ronald Fenega
Teacher, Santa Ynez Valley Union High School
805-688-2449
cfenenga@msn.com
This story came to LFA's attention as a 2008 Magna Award Winner, sponsored by the editors of the American School Board Journal and Sodexo School Services.
Story adapted with permission from the American School Board Journal
For more information on the Annual Magna Awards program and to apply, visit http://www.asbj.com/magna.
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