Florida elementary schools get technology upgrades thanks to sales tax initiative
New technology in classrooms in Panama City, Florida, was recently implemented thanks in part to a statewide half-cent sales tax dedicated exclusively to funding technology and classroom improvements, The Panama City News Herald reported.
One prototype classroom is outfitted, among several state-of-the-art improvements, with an interactive whiteboard, a document camera and an HDMI projector. These advanced classroom tools not only keep students engaged, they allow teachers to integrate a variety of media into lesson plans, introducing new depth to topics that were previously limited by a lack of multimedia resources.
"It will make my job easier as soon as I learn more about what this technology can do," Amy Cunningham, a fifth-grade teacher at Patronis Elementary, told the news source. "This technology is great because it allows students of all learning types the ability to hear, see and interact."
Other teachers at Patronis Elementary noted that the technology is inclusive in a number of ways. For one, it brings together students at different learning levels because they find common ground in the technology. It also makes the classroom a more inviting place - a place more in tune with their homes and neighborhoods, where technology is increasingly prevalent in everyday life.
