When New Technology High School opened in Napa in 1996, it was an anomaly in the California public school system. Its students had access to a 1:1 environment with desktop computers at a time when many schools provided little (if any) access to personal technology. Teachers embraced a project based learning philosophy where students collaborated in teams, created presentations and focused on developing workforce skills like communication. The idea behind New Tech’s unique approach to education is to produce students that are career ready.
“Our district was graduating students that may have done fine in school, but were not necessarily coming to the workplace with skills that businesses need. The goal was to create a school where students could learn those skills,” explains Peter Abboud, Academic specialist at New Tech High.
Abboud is a former New Tech student. When he attended the school, it was a two-year program for juniors and seniors. Today, New Tech is a full four-year high school with a waiting list.
A Unique Approach to Education
Teaching students technology skills is central to the mission of New Tech High School, as is exposing students to tools they will rely on in their future careers.
“It’s hard to talk about the technology because it’s such a part of what we normally do,” Abboud says.
That statement is very telling. At many high schools there is a time and place for technology. Students venture to the computer lab or teachers rent a cart of laptops to use in their classrooms. At New Tech, technology is a natural extension of the learning space. It’s always within reach and it’s just another tool students use to complete assignments and work together on projects.
“You use the tools when it’s appropriate,” Abboud says. “You know when those situations are because you know how to use the technology and you know what it’s good for.”
Technology is part of the culture at New Tech and in 2010 when the school went through a remodel it took that concept to another level. Every classroom received a Promethean interactive whiteboard and mobile furniture. You won’t find desks in rows at New Tech High School.
“Our classrooms are generally a lot larger than traditional classrooms because we wanted to have spaces for kids to work in a more casual environment,” Abboud says. “We had our classrooms built in a way that provides for flexibility. All of our tables and chairs have wheels so they move around freely and we have some spaces that have couches built in.”
The school also has a Cyber Cafe, a common space where students go for lunch or break. They have access to a Promethean board in that area as well since you never know when the need for collaboration will strike.
Even classes are run differently at New Tech than they are at a traditional school. Students don’t take just an English class or just a history class. Instead, the courses are integrated so students work on projects that pull both subject areas together.
“That really pushes our teachers to be innovative because they are presenting the content in a different way,” Abboud explains.
There is no bell schedule and no bathroom passes at New Tech. Students are treated like working professionals and they’re empowered to make their own decisions.
“In the workplace, nobody is telling you what to do,” Abboud says. “You have your calendar and you have to manage your own time. We ask students to do that as well.”
A Formula That Works
New Tech High school is a public school with a lottery admission. It’s unique model requires a great deal of money to sustain and as you might expect, that’s certainly not a bill the district is going to foot. A few years after New Tech’s opening, the New Technology Foundation launched as a way to fundraise for the school.
“Their job was to get money from the community and help us to fundraise to keep this school running and get that learning environment administrators really wanted,” Abboud says.
In early 2000, New Tech was awarded a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to replicate their model with other schools. After an acquisition and the launch of additional schools, New Technology Foundation was eventually rebranded as New Technology Network (NTN), which is how it is known today. There are now over 150 schools in 26 states and Australia that fall under NTN.
Not every school is called “New Technology High School,” but the schools under the NTN umbrella are linked by three defining traits.
“It’s the technology, the culture and the instruction that all work together to create the environment that we have here,” Abboud says. And it’s that environment NTN believes will lead to success for students in life beyond the clasroom.
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