Mount Pulaski Grade School to participate in Tech 2006 at state Capitol         

[JAN. 31, 2006]  MOUNT PULASKI -- Mount Pulaski Grade School is among nearly 120 schools statewide that will participate in Tech 2006: Students for the Information Age on Feb.16, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Illinois Capitol building in Springfield.

At the 15th annual event, students will show the public, including elected members of the Illinois Senate and House of Representatives, how technology is being used in the classroom to improve achievement. Computer workstations will be set up in the Capitol rotunda so students can show how technology has helped them with their schoolwork.

Local people taking part in the demonstrations are Jordan Taylor and Jordan Luczaj, both in the fourth grade; Patrick Bree in junior high; and Rob Siebert, a fourth-grade teacher at Mount Pulaski Grade School. While at Tech 2006, the students will stress the importance and use of technology at their school. They will also demonstrate a lesson that uses a laptop and a handheld computer microscope to compare real and counterfeit money.

The purpose of Tech 2006 is to show how Illinois is preparing students to succeed in the information age. Students will demonstrate for lawmakers and the public the creative ways technology is being used to enhance and accelerate student achievement in Illinois schools today. The importance of this event lies in making the public aware of the central role technology has come to play in our schools and generating support for its adequate funding.

Entering the job force without a strong foundation in information-age technology is not an option for today's high school and college graduates. Understanding computers and related tools is a requirement, even for entry-level jobs, and computer literacy is essential for further education and advancement in almost every academic sphere.

At the elementary and high school level, technology expands the walls of the traditional classroom, bringing in people and events from all over the globe. Technology captures and holds the attention of this generation of learners far better than textbooks alone. And computers allow for more individualized instruction, as teachers, using technology, move from the traditional "sage on the stage" role to becoming "guides on the side," providing students the tools they need to become more active in managing their own learning.

Tech 2006 is a not-for-profit initiative, supported by a broad range of education and business organizations. Corporate sponsors are Apple Computers, CDW-G, Cisco Systems, Comcast, Dell, Graphtech, Learning.com, MacWorkshops.com, Riverdeep and Thomson Gale.

Without the understanding and support of the public and the Legislature, adequate public funding for education technology is hard to come by, and without it, Illinois cannot remain competitive in the global economy.

Mount Pulaski Grade School is pleased to support and be a part of Tech 2006: Students for the Information Age.

[News release provided by Rob Siebert]