ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, August 22, 1996 TAG: 9608230019
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: W-12 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: BACK TO SCHOOL
SOURCE: BETSY BIESENBACH STAFF WRITER
When Craig County's 725 students return to school this fall, they'll find a new computer lab waiting for them. The lab, which will serve both McCleary Elementary School and Craig County High School, will have 20 computers. It's been direly needed, said schools Superintendent M. Dallas Helems Jr.
Some of the classrooms had computers, he said, but there were not enough in one room to teach an entire class at once.
Although the computers will be available to every student, Helems said, ``we will be concentrating on the fifth- and eighth-graders'' who need computer skills to pass the state Standards of Learning Tests. He said he expects to see an improvement in the students' scores because of the computer training.
The lab has been set up in a classroom at the high school. Because the school is already at capacity, one or two teachers will ``float'' between rooms during the day, Helems said.
The computers alone cost $70,000. After furniture is installed and wiring is added, the total cost should be about $100,000. A technology coordinator has been hired to oversee use of the lab and to buy software.
The students will learn not only how to operate the computers, Helems said, they also will use them for classroom projects as part of an ``integrated curriculum.'' They should be especially useful for science and math courses, he said.
The teachers seem excited about the project, he said. Some have been taking classes at Virginia Western Community College this summer, and they will help to train others. In the future, Helems said, he hopes the school will be able to offer computer classes to the rest of the community as well.
Another change this year will be a new reading series for grades K-5. The old one has been used for many years, Helems said, and the teachers will need to make minor adjustments.
The new series uses both the whole-language and phonics methods, Helems said. In recent years, the trend has been toward whole-language. ``We don't agree with that philosophy,'' he said. ``Some students do well with it; others need phonics.''
Enrollment has been up the past few years, Helems said, and he expects about 10 to 15 new students this semester. The middle school students are already housed in mobile classrooms, and a new library and a cafeteria are needed. If the student body keeps growing, the schools will need to expand, he said.
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