Emmy Pusateri can multitask with the best of them. The QuakerValley High School senior is wired -- with her iPod playing, shejuggles assignments and socializing on her school-issued laptop thatshe's had since she was a freshman.
"It has changed how I study, how I research, everything. I feelmuch better prepared to go to college," said Pusateri, 17, ofSewickley. "I couldn't imagine life without a laptop at this point."
When thousands of students return to class this week, they willlearn in classrooms that reflect their electronic world. Schools areemphasizing the integration of technology in the classroom andcurriculum, focusing on teaching students the skills they need in adigital world.
With all but two Allegheny County school districts receivingClassrooms For the Future grants -- Allegheny Valley did not applyand Duquesne was not eligible -- every district is equipped withtechnological teaching tools. But it's not the tools alone that makethe difference, said David D. Carbonara, director of instructionaltechnology at Duquesne University.
"We want to de-emphasize the fact that there are 72,000 laptopsin the classroom," Carbonara said. "Who cares? The critical piece ishow they use them. Some are coming together to make them used forgathering. Those schools use the power of technology to gather dataand collaborate together."
One way to do that is through video conferencing, which allowsstudents to take virtual field trips or converse with studentsaround the district or around the world.
Last year, students at Seville Elementary in the North HillsSchool District teleconferenced with a Pennsylvania author andstoryteller. The district hopes to do more teleconferencing thisyear, said Jeff Taylor, director of curriculum, assessment andtechnology for North Hills.
Along with video conferencing, Mt. Lebanon students reach out toone another and their teachers via blogs, which many schools shun.Teachers monitor the blogs, allowing students to learn how to behaveon the Internet in a safe environment, said Chris Stengel, directorof technology.
Technology has touched every part of a student's day. Grades andhomework assignments are now available on district portal Web sites,memos to parents are sent via e-mail or text message, and studyguides are part of class Web sites in many districts. Students inthe Fox Chapel Area School District start using online supplementsdesigned by their teachers as early as first grade, said NortonGusky, coordinator of educational technology for the district.
"The key is not the technology but how we're trying to use it tomake learning more engaging and interactive," Gusky said. "Now wehave to look at how do we take technology to the next level wherewe're personalizing it and using it to meet the needs of manystudents."
Carbonara said technology is a part of students' daily life, fromtexting on cell phones to instant messaging to iPods. With theintroduction of iTunes University to local schools this year,students will be able to access original content from their teacherson their iPods, said Kevin Conner, instructional technologyspecialist for the Allegheny Intermediate Unit.
While teens are spending more time on the Internet and playingwith their new gadgets, parents need to understand that technologyis just a part of their world, Taylor said. Knowing how to usetechnology for play will help them in school as well as in the workforce, said Danielle Czegan, instructional technology specialist forPine-Richland School District.
"When rock 'n' roll came out, it was like, 'Oh my god, the worldis going to fall apart,' " Czegan said. "And it can be the same now.The kids are so into their technology. It's just taking it andshowing them how to use it in different lights."
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