Introduction 
To
Teach is to Touch Someone Forever
Author: Unknown
Working on
Kidspiration Project
Salina Intermediate
School Principal
P-3rd Grade Principal Youmans
with my Class!
Working on
K-W-L Chart
Mrs. Awad-Jumah's Class
Rapping the "Tilt of the Earth" song!
Hello, my name is Amal Awad-Jumah! I am currently a 4th grade teacher at Salina Intermediate School in Dearborn, Mi. I have been teaching for 15 years now! For more information, please click on the links below!
I obtained an associate's degree in 1984 from WCCC. Then, I attended Wayne State University where I obtained my bachelors degree in education in 1987. My major was science and my minor was mathematics. After that, I obtained my masters degree in Bilingual Education in 1997. Finally, In 1998, I earned a bilingual endorsement.
I became interested in technology after I attended a MiClimb training seminar in 2001. MiClimb is a software tool created by teachers and the Michigan Department of Education . The purpose of MiClimb is to clarify, give examples of instruction and assessments and resources for the Michigan benchmarks for the four core subjects.
After that, I attended many MiClimb training sessions on my own and became a Michigan certified trainer myself! I conducted six training sessions for other teachers. Then, I began using more software applications and integrating technology into my lesson plans whenever possible.
I am currently pursuing a Computer Application Certificate from HFCC and I am attending numerous technology workshops and, of course, I am in the MITTEN Program at the University of Michigan!
My ultimate goal is to obtain a COAT T Certificate and to become a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) while I'm still teaching!
Salina Intermediate School is located in the Southend of Dearborn City. The area is comprised of almost 100% Middle Eastern immigrants. The majority of our student population is of Yemeni and Iraqi background . Also, the majority have been in the country for a short time. Two out of three parents are illiterate in Arabic and/or English. We have a 90% poverty rate based on the number of students who receive free breakfast and lunch.
Some families suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome and are considered to be victims of torture (per a federal grant received by the Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services to work with some of our families.) There is no public transportation to and from the Southend, a geographically isolated area, which impedes the ability to seek and sustain employment.
Many children have "never been schooled" or have had inadequate schooling. Medical and dental care are minimal due to lack of insurance or knowledge of good practices. The majority of students qualify for bilingual services based on low LAS scores and/or falling below the 40th percentile on the Tera Nova standardized test. Almost 80% of students are functioning below grade level. Six of my students receive special education services, social work services, speech and/or language services.
Most of my students do not have any access to home computers. Those students who do use the computers have very limited skills. They are not independent users and still require a great deal of assistance!
Despite the facts, Salina is still a high tech school and is a "Science and Technology Theme School". Our goal is to integrate science and technology throughout the curriculum. We have found that by using technology and a variety of educational software with our bilingual students, it profoundly effected students' motivation, progress, comprehension and success!
We have two computer labs in the school. They each have approximately 20 student computer stations with Kidspiration, Inspiration, MS Office, Hyperstudio, MediaBlender, ImageBlender, i-Movie, i-Photo and Appleworks software installed.
Almost every computer in the school has internet access (Internet Explorer). We have an LCD computer projector in each of the computer labs, a teacher station with the Network Assistant software to help teachers manage and supervise students (LAB MANAGER).
Also, we have three digital video cameras in the building with editing software, three other LCD computer projectors for school use, one laser color printer and a scanner. Every classroom has a new 36" TV monitor.
The second computer lab has been recently rewired and updated due to a technology bond that was passed in the city of Dearborn (2003). We anticipate more student computers in our classrooms, in the near future.
Also, everything will be networked to accommodate the Media Delivery System. This system includes four VCR's, three DVD's, a life camera, a PowerPoint slideshow of school news, and offers a lot of video and audio capabilities for the teachers.
In my classroom, I am working on creating a "Mini-Lab". We have three MAC desktops, two PC desktops, one Mac laptop and two printers. Some of the software installed includes: Appleworks, ImageBlender, MediaBlender, Hyperstudio, Kidpix, Kidspiration and MS Office. Finally, I have two printers and I am proud to say that I have my very own digital camera from a workshop I attended!
According to the CEO Forum's Interactive School Chart (STaR Chart) that I used to assess Salina School's curricular technology integration, I found Salina School to be a High Tech level school. The following are the specific areas that were assessed:
1. Hardware: High
Tech
2. Connectivity:
Mid Tech
3. Content: High
Tech
4. Professional
Development: High Tech
5. Integration
and Use: Mid Tech
Questions or Comments: AwadA@dearborn.k12.mi.us
Dressed for Winter!
Summer time!