AUSTIN, Texas—Austin ISD has announced four recipients of the 2013 Teaching with Google Nexus Project. Award recipients will receive a classroom set of Google Nexus tablets for their innovative and creative ideas using technology to improve educational outcomes of students.
The 2013 Teaching with Google Nexus Project winners are:
Nicole Griffith, geography teacher, Austin High School
Students enrolled in the Academy of Global Studies will use Nexus tablets to integrate the Geographic Information Systems platform into their geography curriculum to research, analyze and better understand demographic data. For example, they will be challenged to create a highway system across Africa while avoiding difficult terrain and areas of conflict.
Elisabeth Healey, art teacher, Blackshear Elementary School
Third through fifth grade students will use Google Nexus Tablets to create stop motion animation music videos providing technological exposure to students who have limited access to tablet technology.
Joon Yee Chuah, computer literacy teacher, Kealing Middle School
Middle school computer programming students in STEM courses will use Nexus tablets as both a development platform and journaling tool to learn graph theory, game theory, stochastics and design through the context of European style board games.
Adam Holman, assistant principal, Crockett High School
Algebra I students will use the Nexus tablets to create virtual math products using tools such as QR codes and Augmented Reality software platforms. The tablets will also be used as part of Google Apps for Education, which will enable immediate feedback among students and teachers.
“We are thrilled to be selected as an award recipient of the Teaching with Google Nexus Project grant. This technology will help our teachers transform math instruction, helping students see the real-world application of mathematical concepts," Craig Shapiro, principal at Crockett High School, said. "We know that effectively incorporating technology into the classroom is of paramount importance to prepare our students to be successful in a globally competitive economic environment."
The 2013 Teaching with Google Nexus Project was made possible by an in-kind donation of 100 Google Nexus tablets for educators to integrate technology into their classroom. More than 60 AISD teachers and non-profit providers who work with AISD students on campuses submitted grant submissions. Through a multistep screening process and review panel of distinguished advisors and educators, the four winning grants were selected.
“The Teaching with Google Nexus Project illustrates how teachers are embracing digital devices as teaching tools in the classroom,” Michelle Wallis, executive director of the district’s Office of Innovation and Development. “Google’s generous contribution of the Nexus tablets will engage and challenge students through individualized instruction and enable teachers to get creative in their teaching strategies. It was great to see how much excitement was generated through the grant process—from art projects, language immersion instruction and advanced computer programming—teachers from all disciplines are finding ways to incorporate technology in the classroom."