Technology ed teacher recognized

By Andrea J. Cook, Journal Staff Writer | Tuesday, February 21, 2006

Previous Page

Share

• del.icio.us
• Digg
• NewsVine
• Fark

Print

Email

RAPID CITY -- Running his hand along the sanded board, Josh Hall felt a few, minute ripples.

"You're almost there," Hall told an eager-to-please sixth-grader at North Middle School. "Just a little more right here."

With a nod, the boy returned to a glass-enclosed shop filled with an impressive array of power tools, where two others worked intensely on their own sanding projects.

After more sanding, the sixth-grader's pine board will become part of a small shelf, Hall said.

And, no, Hall says, he isn't concerned about turning sixth- graders loose in the shop while he helps other students working quietly at various computer stations.

"These kids are unbelievably focused when given a responsibility like that," Hall said.

Before they are turned loose in the shop, Hall gives all of his students a safety course and quizzes them about safety practices.

Hall, the technology education teacher at North for the past five years, was recently honored by South Dakota's International Technology Education Association as the state junior high/middle school Technology Teacher of the Year.

Hall will receive the Teacher Excellence Award at the International Technology Education Association's annual conference in Baltimore, Md., on Friday, March 24.

A Mitchell native, Hall planned a career in engineering until, during his sophomore year at Black Hills State University in Spearfish, he realized how much he enjoyed working with young people.

"I didn't see myself sitting in a cubicle in front of a computer designing things as an engineer, because I wanted to be out and communicating and to have fun with kids," Hall said.

Having fun and learning are two things that must go hand-in-hand for education to be productive, according to Hall.

An exploration class such as technology education, with its emphasis on "hands-on-learning," is the perfect place to give academics "real world" meaning, Hall said.

A student working on a robotics unit on the Mars Rover uses science, math and writing skills learned in core classes to complete the unit, Hall said.

Each lesson is well-planned to support curriculums in other classes, he said.

Industrial arts programs have evolved into technology education programs that introduce students to a variety of skills using computers and activities.

At North, sixth- and seventh-grade students are required to take nine weeks of technology education. For eighth-graders, technology education is an optional 18-week course.

During their time in technology education, students rotate through a series of modules, working either at computers or with equipment.

Technology teachers in the Rapid City School District let students explore different kinds of work that could lead to jobs, Hall said. They also work on writing grants to keep the latest in equipment available for their students.

"There's well over $100,000 worth of equipment here," Hall said during a brief tour of his classrooms.

In addition to the shop with its saws, drills and sanders, there's a sheet-metal bending machine worthy of a real shop, a computerized robotic arm and a computerized milling machine.

Modules vary in their difficulty as students advance through the years of the program.

Hall said his first North students are now seniors in high school, so he can't say whether he has started some into a career, but, "there is definitely an opportunity to prepare them for future jobs."

Hall earned his bachelor's degree in technology education at BHSU. His wife, Heather, is a special-education teacher at Horace Mann Elementary School. Their son, Carter, recently turned 2.

Josh and Heather Hall completed their master's degrees in education in 2004. Josh is currently working on his education specialist degree. Someday, he wants to teach at the college level.

Continuing his education is another way to help kids, Hall said.

"Ultimately, I feel that's what education is about - how we can make things better for our kids. How we can give them more opportunities to succeed. That's the central focus of any of this ... to find new ways to teach curriculum and make it more fun and enjoyable for kids so they can get more out of it."

Contact Andrea Cook at 394-8423 or andrea.cook@rapidcityjournal.com