Lockney Independent School District

Transcription

>> Isolated on the windswept plains of the Panhandle, kids in Floydada once found it hard to imagine life beyond the city limits. >> They had such very short limitations on themselves before they got out of high school and they really didn't see their futures progressing very far. >> Unable to see the possibilities outside their community, students were often unmotivated to learn. >> We were a district in need. >> But the Year 2004 marked a new beginning. Floydada received a grant from the Technology Immersion Pilot or TIP Program to place technology in middle schools. >> It was like taking the cover off of a book. We were no longer bound by that perimeter anymore. The creativity that I felt my classroom could finally kind of find itself. >> Classes not only became more engaging and interesting students were also able to see beyond the horizon. >> Allowing the world to come to them through technology. I've heard, you know, several of the students emphasizing that they can't wait to travel to South America or Australia or these exotic places that they've researched on. >> As technology use increased, academic achievement accelerated. >> Technology helps you learn because you want to do projects and you get more active in your projects and you want to make it the best it can be. >> At the end of the year administrators were so impressed with the results that Floydada became the only district out of 22 in the TIP Program that expanded technology into the high school level and used local money to do it. >> And so that's pretty huge because we are not by any stretch of the imagination a prosperous school district. >> While technology has inspired students to think more broadly about their career options, it also has literally brought a college education within reach thanks to a one-on-one laptop ratio and a dual credit program with South Plains College 70 miles away. >> There are several people I can think of that wouldn't have gone to college without it just because they do have a head start and they've saved so much money doing it this way that going to college is way easier for them. >> For Floydada, technology has transformed the classroom and the options for students. >> It's been a true blessing for Floydada ISD. >> And do me this is what the rest of the state needs to be doing as well. >> To find out more about how Floydada ISD joined the digital learning revolution, go to powerontexas.com. [ Silence ]