PALM BEACH COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY WKSHOP
MINUTES- Convene: 2:40 p.m.
- Public Comments: None
- Telesecundaria
- Adjourn: 3:45 p.m.
Minutes: The Palm Beach County School District has developed a partnership with the government of Mexico to assist Mexican students and their families living in Palm Beach County succeed and extend and cultivate their educational development. Through the use of distance education, Telesecundaria has provided the students with an effective, efficient and consistent educational model.
The government of Mexico has agreed to beam satellite transmission of Mexican developed curriculum to Palm Beach County. We will track the number of students enrolled and engaged in these educational courses. The Mexican government also provided 600+ curriculum courses developed by them on DVD to promote equity in education for all Hispanic students in Palm Beach County, Florida.
Rich Contartesi, Director of Educational Technology, provided Board Members with a brief history of Telesecundaria and presented a video highlighting the benefits it will provide to our District.
Anna Meehan, Executive Director of Multicultural Education, reviewed the purpose and benefits of Telesecundaria and summarized the implementation plan.
The following speakers emphasized the high quality of this program and what it will provide to Palm Beach County ESOL students: Dr. Jamie Tacher y Samarel, Mexico Secretary of Public Education; Patricia Cabrera, Parent Leadership Coordinator, Houston Independent School District; Kate Kenker, Bureau Chief, Bureau of Instruction and Innovation; and Dr. Margarita Pinkos, Senior Policy Advisor, Office of English Language Acquisition.
Alexandra Deveroux, Director of Alternative Education, provided Board Members with a synopsis of the services that Alternative Education provide for ESOL students.
Mr. Contartesi reviewed the technology components and what to look forward to in the future.
Board Members discussed the following topics: FCAT Explorer; implementing similar program for Haitian children; and multi-lingualism.