Technology

The Presentation High School 1:1 iPad program is designed to enhance and transform the educational experience of all students through the use of technology. This program enables all students to have a school-issued iPad device for use in the classroom and at home.

The students' iPads are fully loaded with the latest education-based apps, such as Notability, Google Drive, Google Chrome, PowerSchool and Canvas, just to name a few.

Our faculty engages student learning in a variety of ways, with the iPad being at the center of the educational experience, offering collaboration, digital assignments, correspondence, digital texts, handouts and even testing.

Presentation has adopted the use of the Canvas Learning Management System with every course having a digital equivalent through our Canvas Platform.

Students log into their Canvas accounts via their school-issued iPads where they have access to all of their assignments, notes, quizzes, tests and grades. They receive faculty handouts, complete and turn in homework and work with other students in collaboration groups.

Students can also log into their Canvas accounts on their home computers to complete work in the event their iPad was not readily available.

Our Canvas Platform offers students all of their upcoming assignments, homework, handouts, quizzes and tests, conveniently linked with their calendar and all available 24/7 in one easy to use location.

Every Presentation student is given a school email account through our Google for Education Platform. Their email account is tied to their Canvas account and iPad device, allowing for easy collaboration and communication.

Each student also receives a secure Google Drive storage space in the cloud, allowing assignments, notes, handouts and files to be easily moved between apps and backed up.

Students also have 24/7 access to Google Docs (word processor), Google Sheets (spreadsheet application) and Google Slides (presentation application), all based in the cloud and accessible on any device with internet connectivity.

Every Presentation classroom is equipped with the latest learning technology, including overhead digital projectors with dedicated Apple TVs, allowing students and faculty to mirror their iPads during collaboration and share information.

All classrooms have docking stations with digital A/V controls, allowing for presentations, BlueRay films, digital audio and even broadcast streaming of media events.

The Presentation campus has more than 85 wireless access points, including one in every classroom, allowing students to always be connected to our secure fiber network with filtered internet connectivity.

Network and Airprint laser printers are located across campus for student use, allowing easy printing via the students’ iPads. Classrooms have comfortable mobile desks and chairs, allowing for fast and easy configuration changes in support of the learning modality of the moment.

The Presentation campus boasts two state-of-the-art computer labs that offer desktop systems in a conventional smart classroom with high-resolution color printers.

Additional mobile carts offering laptops are used across campus in any of our classroom environments. All of our labs are equipped with the latest Adobe Creative Suite, Microsoft Office Suite and Google for Education software suite.

Presentation also offers an award-winning robotics program with an on-campus technical lab for robot construction and programming.

Students will learn how to touch-type the alphabetic/numeric keyboard and the numeric keypad with 90% accuracy on a one-minute timed test. At the completion of this course, students will be able to format research reports and tables in Google Docs; create spreadsheets, graphs and charts in Google Sheets; design academic presentations in Google Slides; understand the concepts of digital literacy and safety; and use advanced research techniques on the internet. Additionally, students will learn the functions of digital photography, basic photo editing in Pixlr, sound editing in Audacity and simple video editing using iMovie. Web site creation will be taught using HTML and Google Sites. For more information, click here.

The students in this after-school class will be responsible for producing the various videos used on campus to promote events and school news. Students will learn the basics of broadcast journalism and apply them in the production of these videos including the weekly Panther Report. Students will learn how to operate HD cameras, edit using Adobe Premiere Pro CS4, film on a green screen, report school events, and be an anchor for broadcast media. Students will be assigned to teams that apply to their interests and talents as part of the crew. All students will be required to keep a detailed binder and documentation of their projects. Mondays will be lecture days and days to critique the Panther Reports and other projects that have aired that day or the week prior. Wednesdays will be filming days for both Panther Report and sports activities.

Some sports activities and campus events will fall on other days. Fridays will be spent learning how to edit and as open lab time for editing projects in progress. Students will also have the opportunity to attend orientation and studio classes at CreaTV in downtown San Jose to learn how to use professional broadcast equipment including studio cameras, grid lights, microphones, sound boards, light boards and special editing programs. There will be one orientation and 2 studio classes that are optional. All additional studio classes will be available. Students are required to film 3 to 5 events including sports games.

This class meets Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 3:00 pm to 4:30 pm. Click here for more information about the Panther Report. Click here for more information about this course.

Digital Video Production I: Students will learn how to create digital films with the Adobe Production Suite (Premiere CS4, Aftereffects, and Photoshop) and the use of digital cameras. Students will complete exercises demonstrating the entire production process: pre-production (scripting, storyboarding), Production (lighting, filming, producing), and post-production (editing and digital special effects.) Students will study the film industry and its history, as well as current events in the film and television industries.

Digital Video Production II: Having mastered the basics in Introduction to Digital Video Production, students will be creating one mini feature in this class. Choosing to work in groups or individually, students will complete all phases of production (pre-production, production, and post-production) on one master project. Through the use of tutorials and field trips, students will expand their knowledge of the industry, the editing software, lighting techniques, and sound editing tools.

For more information about these courses, click here.

Digital Photography I: This course is an introductory course to digital photography. Students will learn basic digital SLR camera operation using a school provided camera. Creativity and strong visual composition will be an emphasis in this course. Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom will be introduced and used for editing imagery. Also, the historical development of modern day photography and famous photographers will be explored. Students will be able to link photography to other art forms and disciplines and will understand its applications to careers within contemporary society.

Digital Photography II: Photography II is an intermediate to advanced digital photography course. Students will further develop their skills in camera operation and procedures by building on the skills introduced in the first semester. In this section of the course students will learn to work with more technically advanced photographic equipment and challenging lighting conditions. Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom will be used to manipulate and alter images. Students will continue to evaluate critically their work and will engage in ongoing study of the history of photography. A strong concentration of contemporary photographic artist and the impact of imagery in modern world will also be explored.

For more information about these courses, click here.

The AP Computer Science A course is an introductory course in computer science. Because the design and implementation of computer programs to solve problems involve skills that are fundamental to the study of computer science, a large part of the course is built around the development of computer programs that correctly solve a given problem. These programs should be understandable, adaptable, and, when appropriate, reusable.

At the same time, the design and implementation of computer programs is used as a context for introducing other important aspects of computer science, including the development and analysis of algorithms, the development and use of fundamental data structures, the study of standard algorithms and typical applications, and the use of logic and formal methods. In addition, the responsible use of these systems is an integral part of the course. The topic outline on pages 8–10 summarizes the content typically taught in the AP Computer Science A course.

For more information about this course, click here.