School Web Site Makes Real World Connections

To download a pdf copy of the magazine click here: DOWNLOAD

Quentin D’Souza has been teaching for ten years and is currently a Resource Teacher for Academic Information and Communication Technology Department at the Toronto Catholic District School Board. He can be contacted at http://www.quentindsouza.com.

A year ago, I was teaching a grade 7 / 8 class at The Divine Infant in the Toronto Catholic District School Board. I was looking for a collaborative project that would meet curriculum expectations and improve Internet Communication Technology (ICT) skills. After looking into the Schoolnet GrassRoots Program (http://www.schoolnet.ca/grassroots/e/home/index.asp). I decided that the creation of a school web site would be a good introduction into ICT for my students and would provide the school with an Internet presence.
Over the course of three weeks, the students went through the stages of web site development. They started with the overall system design using a flow chart, and narrowed their focus so that groups of students were responsible for different sections of the web site: class, administration, home page, template and navigation. All students were free to submit a logo and they voted on the one they wanted to see on the site. Students took pictures, interviewed staff, and created content for each section of the web site, learning about the history of the school and the stories of the educators who taught there in the process. They also learned the basics of web page design and html. They were able to use html code to connect web pages in the school web site through a central navigation area and include external hyperlinks.

After submitting a report to the Schoolnet GrassRoots program, the school received grant money for the school web site. We were able to purchase the school domain name, TheDivineInfant.com, as well as web server space for one and a half years. I then began using the web site for promoting other online collaborative projects with my students. This helped begin a process of integrating technology into the curriculum and opening doors for students.

But the story doesn’t stop there. Earlier last year, a school promotional manufacturing company —The Hilderand Sporting Goods Team Outfitters—contacted the school secretary through the school web site. They were looking for a school with the name “The Divine Infant Catholic School.” They had boxes of t-shirts, shorts, sweatshirts and sweatpants that they produced for a school in Illinois that had closed down. The school was also named “The Divine Infant Catholic School.” The company was left with hundreds of promotional items, and wanted to donate them to a school instead of destroying the merchandise. The manufacturer had used the Internet to find our school web site
.
The school plans to sell the merchandise to the community as a fundraiser. With hundreds of t-shirts, shorts and sweaters, they are sure to raise thousands of dollars.

When asked what he thought of the school web site, school principal Thad Baker said, “The web site allows us to advertise our school to the community at large and also helps us to connect to other schools outside our Board and in other parts of the world. In my opinion, every school should have their own web site so the students can also have an opportunity to make authentic connections.”