Did you know BJP recently purchased enough Chromebooks to ensure a 1:1 pairing for our students?
“When the pandemic first hit last year, we did a lot of research about how online learning might affect our students,” said Assistant Principal Sara Shannon. Lack of access to technology quickly proved a crucial obstacle. “We found that 23% of BJP’s students - almost 1 in 4 - couldn’t access the internet via a computer at home.”
That number didn’t even tell the whole story. Even if a student did have a computer at home, one device wasn’t always enough. “The entire household got pushed online,” notes Erin O’Neill, one of BJP’s counselors. “That means parents were working remotely, siblings were also in online school, and other relatives were still using the device for entertainment and normal purposes.” |
BJP’s administration acted on this data quickly. “We interceded and did a lot of work to ensure everyone could access online learning. It was tough because resources were stretched to help so many newly remote students in New York.” recalls Principal Arte, “but that was just a temporary fix, until the end of the school year.” Remarkably, thanks to temporary devices and online learning tools like Freckle, 94% of BJP students achieved one year of academic growth in both ELA and math, according to BJP's MAP testing.
This new Chromebook program has given the administration greater flexibility in its COVID planning. Now, students can rest assured knowing they have a device to do their classwork and homework on at home. It has also given teachers the ability to use new online resources and plan new lessons. “I'm able to give extra work to students who understand a concept while working on the board with students who need a little extra attention,” said Mr. Braithwaite, S,J,, one of our math teachers. “Everyone is learning more with this enhancement of our resources.”
L: Alumni of Brooklyn Prep discuss 42, the Jackie Robinson biopic, with eighth grade students who watched it as part of a unit on Catholic Social Teaching.
R: Sixth graders meet Paulette Singer Barrett, a survivor of the Holocaust, as part of an English unit called "Why Do We Remember the Past?"