About this same time the media center converted to an automated circulation system, greatly enhancing service to students and teachers. Today Howard sports a new computer lab adjoining the media center with 21 Macintosh computers which are connected by a local-area network. The next phase involving a wide-area network with connections to the classrooms and the rest of the Grand Island Schools began in the summer of 1996. The computer lab greatly enhances the instructional program as students learn keyboarding skills, type stories and reports, draw pictures, create graphs, and practice math and problem-solving skills. Teachers use email to correspond with colleagues and to participate in curricular projects.
Students use the Internet as a research tool.
They create HyperStudio stacks and student web pages to share their learning in a fun and interesting way.