Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation will host Technovation 2016, a digital learning initiative for educators across the Midwest, at Penn High School on Wednesday, July 20, and Thursday, July 21.
Indiana State Superintendent of Public Instruction Glenda Ritz will provide a welcome address to participants on Wednesday, and George Couros, author and leading educator in the field of innovative leadership, teaching and learning, will give the keynote address on Thursday morning.
At last year’s inaugural conference, more than 300 Indiana educators participated in the event, which offers a wide spectrum of innovative techniques to blend technology with teaching in order to increase student engagement and student achievement.
“In this digital environment, our students move from mere consumers of education to actual participants and producers of educational content,” Penn High School Principal Steve Hope said regarding the purpose of Technovation 2016. “The use of technology is simply another tool – a very powerful tool – to continue the work of inquiry, problem-solving, and critical thinking.”
Penn-Harris-Madison Superintendent Dr. Jerry Thacker noted P-H-M’s commitment to 1:1 student-to-technological device ratio at Penn High School and its three middle schools has played a key role in teaching and learning engagement in and outside the classroom.
“With a Chromebook at their side, our teachers and students will have the world at their fingertips,” Thacker said.
P-H-M teachers at the elementary, middle and high school levels, along with P-H-M administrators and staff, will deliver the presentations. Penn students will be on-hand to showcase and answer questions on the Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Science Lab tools used at the high school: augmented reality sandbox, UAV science drones, tornado generator and an earthquake machine (click here to see a “road map” of the Technovation classes).
Attendees will also see vendor demonstrations, such as zSpace, a 3D virtual learning tool. zSpace is an interactive hardware and software platform that brings resources to life through 3D technology helping students visualize and create.
“We see this as an opportunity for showcasing the talented teachers and students of the district as well as a launchpad of lifelong learning for the school year at Penn-Harris-Madison,” Technovation 2016 coordinator Duke Lines said.
Featured speakers at Technovation 2016 include Lisa Duerkson, Jeanie Mitchell, Rachel Fry, Amy Heavin, Terri Whitehead, Kelly Clifford, Sheila Toth, Beth Raker, Jarred Corwin, and Jill Kaufman.
More than 60 sessions will be offered in administration, technology personnel and teacher tracks.
Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet with a wide-range of vendors including, but not limited to: Luma Audio & Visual, Automated Data Systems, Ruckus Wireless, Audio Enhancement, Brocade, CIBER Inc., Edmentum, Educational Furniture, Fortinet, Hewlett Packard, Indiana Connected Educators, Instructure and St. Joe Valley Metronet.
