Preparing Students for the Digital Age and Beyond
Colorado Academy’s Technology Program is one of the most innovative and comprehensive in the state. We provide up-to-date equipment, training, and friendly tech support to enable students, staff, and even parents, to succeed in the digital age. Campus-wide technology supports Windows, Apple, and iOS platforms.
Technology in the Classroom
CA’s 1:1 iPad Learning Program enhances our existing curriculum and supports a variety of learning styles, providing portability and an equitable platform for all students. The school piloted the program with intensive faculty training and 1:1 iPads in 5th, 6th and 9th grades. The 2017-18 school year is the fifth year of CA's program. The 1:1 program – one device per student – begins in the fifth grade, and encompasses all grades in Middle and Upper schools. Mobile tablet labs are provided for classrooms from Pre-K through 4th grade. All classrooms are equipped with electronic whiteboards.
CA provides desktop computer labs and innovation labs, and makes developmentally appropriate robotics sets available throughout the school. In addition, the Lower School Library and the Raether Library have at least 20 computers for student use. In each division, we emphasize the importance of digital citizenship, online safety, and maintaining the ability to “unplug.”
Learning to be Content Contributors
Our Digital Media labs are designed to train students to be creators of content so that they may confidently join the world’s ever-evolving on-line conversation. Our photography department features a state-of-the-art 20-iMac digital photo lab to complement its traditional photo lab facilities, and our 20-iMac digital video lab serves budding cinematographers. We also offer a specialty lab of computers in the Lower School for video production, and a digital music composition lab and full sound studio in the Schotters Music Center.
Technology Staff
Each division’s technology coordinator supports CA students, faculty, and staff by provding just-in-time instruction, one-on-one and group training, and individualized advice and help with their technology projects. In addition, the Raether Librarian offers small-group sessions of iPad support and training.
Teaching with Technology
Classroom teachers use a variety of tools – from laptops, iPads, and document cameras to interactive whiteboards and projectors – to assist them with presentations, pedagogy, and productivity, to access the Internet, to exchange papers with students via the Cloud, and to post homework and class resources on their course web pages. All classrooms in the Lower School have Activboards. and all Middle and Upper School teachers use SMART Boards. CA has been designated as a SMART Showcase school.
Pre-K-12 Computer Science
The scope and sequence of Colorado Academy’s technology curriculum is designed to support learning across our entire curriculum, and to develop our students’ ability to acquire, analyze, and generate new information and ideas in the modern world. To this end, CA offers a variety of courses aimed at teaching computer literacy and competency from Pre-K through Grade 12. Our robotics program offers learning opportunities in all three divisions, as well as programming, beginning with Scratch Lab workshops in the Lower School and programming with Greenfoot and Python. CA juniors and seniors may work with advanced algorithms and data structures.