In the town where we live, the Kenosha Unified School District (KSUD) offers high school students the choice of choosing which school they want to go to. There are three main high schools in the district, but there are a number of charter schools, that they call Schools of Choice, that offer more focused education opportunities in some subjects, or alternative methods of teaching.
A lot of these schools pride themselves on their focus on technology in the classroom and the advanced science and math curriculums they offer. There’s a Technology Academy with a focus on technology systems in manufacturing, aviation or medical, and another school with a track in communications technology.
To get an idea of what these schools have to offer we have attended several open houses where the school administrator and several instructors give presentations about what the school has to offer as we try and make a decision about what will provide our son the most opportunities and benefits.
Without fail, each of these presentations I have attended has been teeth-grittingly awful. Not the substance of what they’re presenting, but their use of what is some of the most basic presentation technology today is embarrassing. Videos where the audio is out of sync and/or distorted. Presenters who can’t find their way around Powerpoint. Multiple presenters trying to switch between presentations on one laptop and not knowing where anything is or which mouse button to click.
I will admit that because this is the business I am in, I am more sensitive to this sort of un-polished presentation that most. But if you’re going to stand on stage and explain to me how you’re going to prepare my child for a future in a technological world, you should be able to set a better example of how to use the technology in a real world situation.
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