Post #20: My Trip To the ACCESS Lab

Wow! I'm speechless! I visited the ACCESS Lab at Satsuma High School a few weeks ago and had the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Litaker, the ACCESS Lab instructor. The ACCESS Lab at Satsuma is used mainly as a way for students to get core classes needed to graduate, but it also offers students courses in Latin, Chinese, as well as others. This is Satsuma's second semester with the ACCESS program, and it works out very well for students as well as teachers. The lab in Satsuma has many features. They include: an instant cam, 25 lab tops, two flat screen TV's, a document reader, and the Tandberg. I asked Mrs. Litaker if she had any idea how much the ACCESS Lab costs and she replied anywhere from $50,000.00 to $80,000.00.
The ACCESS Lab has a limit of 25 students per class, but in Satsuma, the school got a grant to purchase 15 additional lab tops. These lab tops are now used in the ACCESS Lab so more students can benefit from this amazing technology. Mrs. Litaker told me that students that do poorly in a academic classroom setting usually do much better with the ACCESS classes. This seems like a great way to get students who are otherwise uninterested in class room activities to get involved and excel in academics.
The coolest part of the ACCESS Lab is the Tandberg. It is like the brains of the ACCESS system in a particular location. From this station, which I am pictured behind in one of the photos, you control what goes on with the lab and what the students are doing. The Tandberg allows instructors to make phone calls, play a DVD, it has the document camera, the instant camera, and it is equipped with a touchscreen.
There are a few issues that need to be worked out with the lab at Satsuma High. They simply do not have the instructors or the equipment to allow every student, freshman through senior, to utilize the ACCESS Lab. Next semester, Satsuma High School will try and implement that every student must have at least one half credit from an online course. Overall, it was a great visit, and an interesting trip. I expressed interest to Mrs. Litaker that I would enjoy becoming an ACCESS Lab instructor after I finish college. I am from a rural area and if I could bring this technology to small rural schools, the possibilities would be endless. Thank you Satsuma High School and Mrs. Litaker for taking the time to show me the newest and most innovative way to educate my future students.