Roosevelt to increase tech savvy this year
By alison granito
Staff Writer

ROOSEVELT — Students at the public school will be "wired" — even when they are at home.

According to Superintendent Dale Weinbach, the school is "really moving technologically.

"There will be a lot of communication going on at home through the computer. All the teachers are going to put homework up on their Web page," Weinbach said.

According to the superintendent, there will be one obvious benefit.

"This will cut down on excuses," she said.

In order to make the this year’s transition from summer to school a bit easier, Weinbach said the school even put lists of the necessary supplies for students online.

While in school, students have access to a computer lab, which was updated last year, as well as several computers in each classroom.

Other changes in store for the Roosevelt school community this year include a switch to a portfolio-based writing program.

"This will provide us another way of assessing students rather than a standardized test," Weinbach said.

"It will enable us to individualize according to each student’s needs," the superintendent said.

"We feel it is a more authentic way to assess learning," she added.

In addition to continuing the school’s Second Step character education program, school officials also intend to overhaul the school’s discipline plan.

"We really don’t have a discipline prob­lem per se, but we want to make sure the rules are uniform and reinforce the same components that we teach in character edu­cation," Weinbach said.

School will also be slightly less crowded this year, Weinbach said. Enrollment dropped from 100 students to 96.

Two new staff members, a music teacher who will split time between Roosevelt and East Windsor and a fourth-grade teacher, will join students this year.

"This year we want to continue to get better and better," Weinbach said.