Students showcase digital learning at first-ever districtwide expo

HISD’s efforts to digitally transform teaching and learning in national spotlight during digital learning day

At Burbank Middle School, students are creating videos about their future and life goals using Adobe Voice. At Herrera Elementary, students are using tablets and digital programs such as iMovie, Animoto, Prezi, and Roxio to produce digital book trailers instead of a standard book report. And at Austin High School, teachers are using the HUB, the district’s new online learning platform, to create online discussions and group activities.

Every day, students and teachers across the district are using digital tools and resources to transform teaching and learning inside their classrooms. Recently teachers and students from nearly 50 HISD campuses gathered in the lobby of the Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center to showcase their efforts at the district’s first ever Digital Learning Expo.

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HISD teachers also showcased how they are using digital tools to transform instruction in their classrooms on national Digital Learning Day by using the hashtags #HISDdigital and #DLDay on social media. Click here to see what was shared by teachers across the district.

In addition, HISD’s digital transformation efforts were featured at Digital Learning Day Live!, an event in Washington D.C. attended by thousands of educators from across the U.S. on March 13. HISD — along with Baltimore County Public Schools, Huntsville School District in Arkansas, and Vista Unified School District in California — was selected to present during the national Digital Learning Day event because of its efforts to embrace and advance digital content and curriculum, and to use technology to improve student learning. Each district was chosen by the Alliance for Excellent Education, a national policy and advocacy organization dedicated to ensuring all students, especially those who are underserved, graduate college- and career-ready.

HISD is transforming 21st century teaching and learning through PowerUp, a comprehensive, digital learning initiative that provides laptops to all high school students, phases out textbooks in favor of digital content and curriculum, provides professional development to help teachers learn how to incorporate digital resources in their classroom, and introduces the HUB, a K-12 online teaching and learning platform accessible to students, teachers, and parents. More than 40,000 HISD students at 32 high schools currently have laptops to use at school and home as part of the one-to-one component.

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