Educational Technology

Learning technology builds problem solving mindsets, resourcefulness, adaptability, and creativity.

Overview

Technology is a tool to solve problems, innovate, and push the limits of what is possible. Technology is ever-changing, so learning technology is about developing a problem solving mindset, resourcefulness, adaptability, and creativity. Students today must be well-rounded users of technology who are comfortable with existing tools and capable of embracing those yet to be developed.

ISTE Standards

Rye Country Day School upholds the International Society of Technology Education Standards, seven interconnected bands of technology goals that circumscribe the student experience. These standards complement teaching initiatives throughout our community. Our commitment is to educate digital citizens who embrace technology today and in the future.

EXPLORE ISTE STANDARDS

Director of academic technology

Daren Khairule

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RCDS is recognized by safe tech and media non-profit Common Sense Media as a Common Sense School for its “commitment to creating a culture of digital citizenship and teaching.”

Academic Technology in the . . .

Lower School

Lower School students learn foundational concepts of computational and design thinking and use technology to enhance their math, language arts, social studies, and science curriculums. Beginning in Pre-K, students learn coding through physical robots and Scratch. Students also learn about safe ways to use technology at school and at home. In Grades 3 and 4, students begin to leverage technology as they develop research skills. Concepts of digital citizenship are introduced so that students become proactive, critical, and responsible users of technology and information.

Middle School

In the Middle School, students develop computational thinking and design thinking skills, including 3D printing, robotics, and coding. In classes, students use computers, mobile devices, SmartBoards, and other tools in their classrooms and in designated technology spaces including the Middle School Computer Lab and the Makerspace. Fifth and sixth grade students have ready access to computers and begin to prepare for the responsibility of eventually having their own computer. Starting in seventh grade, students have their own laptop. In seventh and eighth grades, all students are required to complete one trimester of Computer Science to learn programming or robotics. Students use cloud-based tools including Google Suite to collaborate and enhance their learning, and teachers continually integrate educational technology into the curriculum. Topics related to digital citizenship are covered in the Study Skills and SEEK programs and across disciplines, and guest speakers visit campus to discuss technology and digital responsibility including online safety and social media.

Upper School

Upper School students dive headlong into digital citizenship through advisory, the Life Skills program, and their academic courses. Teachers use current educational technology tools to deliver content in innovative and engaging ways. From coding to engineering and science research, Upper School students leverage technology broadly, and graduate with the skills needed to adopt and use existing and emerging technology. Students examine how computing innovations impact our society, economy, and culture, and they consider the ways in which design and technology intersect through hands-on experience. The Computer Science Department offers deep opportunities for Upper School students to learn to program, including two Advanced Placement (AP) courses and two full year courses that extend beyond the second AP. Working with expert faculty, Upper School students graduate as critical users of technology, responsible digital citizens, and capable computational thinkers.

Program Highlights

Makerspace Apprentice Program

AP with WE

Coding for a Cause (CfC)

Through this upper-level RCDS computer science course, student coders partner with community organizations to design and develop real-life applications that have a positive impact on others. One example of a CfC project is building an online application to allow administrators at Caritas, a food bank in Port Chester, to easily track the number of meals served each day for planning and reporting purposes.

Digital Citizenship

Laptop Program

Technology Committee

The Technology Committee at RCDS, chaired by Director of Academic Technology Daren Khairule, IT Director Andrew Gillies, and Assistant Head of School Meredith deChabert, is responsible for ensuring that students receive the cross-curricular benefits of exploring technology.

After examining the School’s mission along with exemplary models from peer schools, the Committee elected to adopt the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Standards, seven interconnected bands of technology goals that circumscribe the student experience. The ISTE developed the standards as a “framework for students, educators, administrators, coaches, and computer science educators to rethink education and create innovative learning environments.” The framework helps RCDS ensure that the School’s community and its classrooms are best equipped for digital-age learning and citizenship. Importantly, the standards’ focus on community, collaboration, and communication also supports strategic initiatives at Rye Country Day including Character/Leadership/Ethics, Diversity and Inclusion, Global Studies, Public Purpose, and STEAM.

The Technology Committee has also implemented the TIE (Technology Impact and Efficacy) assessment. This assessment, which is aligned with the ISTE standards, uses faculty, student, and administrative feedback to assess the technology integration and backend services at the School. The results will be used to inform the Committee’s future initiatives.

To date, the work of the Technology Committee has resulted in the Middle and Upper School computer science requirements, which are in addition to the already required tech courses in Pre-K through Grade 6. In the Lower School, the Committee has provided guidelines on the integration of technology into classrooms and coursework as well as counsel on pertinent topics such as recommendations for screen time and social media use.

Across the School and with the help of the Technology Committee, initiatives to ensure technology literacy, enhance instruction, and bolster teacher training are continually underway. The Committee has implemented training for faculty and staff, alternate assessment and project-based learning training for teachers, and community-wide digital citizenship programs.

Supporting Rye Country Day’s commitment to responsible digital citizenship, the Committee has introduced a K-12 program that addresses themes of using and sharing intellectual property, digital footprint and reputation, cyberbullying and digital drama, and gender stereotypes and social media.

Facilities

Cohen Center for the Creative Arts

Makerspace

Located in the Cohen Center for the Creative Arts, the RCDS Makerspace is an innovation lab for Middle and Upper School students. The space serves as a hub of creativity and invention on campus, featuring a wide range of engineering and manufacturing equipment such as computer-controlled machining tools, hardware supplies, motors, sensors, microcontrollers and related electronics, 3D printers and scanners, laser cutting machines, traditional power tools, electrical equipment, and other design equipment. Built to inspire new modes of design-oriented thinking, hands-on learning, and inventive creativity, the Makerspace has fast become a favorite place for discovery, exploration, and collaboration for the Rye Country Day community.

Learn more about the makerspace

Innovation Lab

This engineering-focused lab supports Rye Country Day’s curricular offerings in key 21st-century fields, including design, computer science, computational biology, and engineering. In this space, students learn how to solve real-life problems, enjoy designing and making, and explore various fields of engineering through the completion of student-designed projects. Student engineers have used this space to apply the principles of design, mathematics, science, and computer science as they develop, build, analyze, and stress test a variety of projects. From buildings and bridges to rockets, cars, robots, digital maps, and renewable energy technologies, RCDS students are exploring the potential of civil, mechanical, electrical, computer, or chemical engineering in the Innovation Lab.

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