Darren Campbell
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 19/98) - Walking into Range Lake North school's Technology 2000 lab you get a look at the future of education.

The room is filled with state of the art MacIntosh computers and various other gadgets and do-dads.

The lab offers students at the Kindergarten to Grade 8 school level a chance to use a variety of materials and equipment. The students learn about subjects like pneumatics, computer sound, the Internet, Web site design, aerodynamics, and desktop publishing.

With the explosion of the use of computers in almost all aspects of society, schools are adapting to how they teach their students. Adapting means giving them exposure to the latest technology. And as that happens, schools in Yellowknife Education District No. 1 and Yellowknife Catholic schools are adapting as well.

Ken Woodley, Superintendent for Yellowknife Education District 1, said the Technology 2000 lab is one way of preparing their students for the future.

"We're preparing kids for life," said Woodley. "This isn't going to give them a proficiency in technology but it will expose them to it so they are used to it, not fearful of it and find it useful."

Woodley said the district has over 1,000 computers in the classroom and all schools have access to the Internet.

Harry Golding, department head for business education at Sir John Franklin high school, said schools have to get students exposed to computers as early as possible in these days.

"If you don't have some kind of knowledge of computers I don't know where you're going to," said Golding. "Look at the want-ads. Quite often they specify you must have computer knowledge."

To expose them to all the latest technology, Golding said students do various projects. They use digital cameras and use programs like photoshop. The school is also setting up a media studies program which requires editing suites and a good knowledge of computers.

The Internet is also popular with both students and teachers. Students use it not only for surfing but for research, while teachers can grab information off it and use it for discussion in class.

Mieke Cameron, principal at Sir John Franklin, said she doesn't see the use of computers lessening in the next few years and schools have to respond to that.

"In the future, I see students bringing laptops in the school," said Cameron. "It's their textbook and we're looking at making that more accessible in the future."