As technology plays an ever increasing role in education, Assistant Superintendent Rodney Troutman said district staff are striving to blend traditional and online instruction to improve student learning at Parkland.

At the Aug. 28 school board meeting, Troutman reported a goal for the 2012-13 term will be "to pilot blended instruction practices on the secondary level by creating online educational units of study as a transitional piece into a blended school approach to learning."

Students will benefit from the blended style by having individualized, expanded opportunities to learn from online resources.

While the blended system will help students with learning weaknesses, the online material will also provide enrichment beyond the traditional classroom setting.

Troutman compared the blended classroom to the one-room schoolhouse, in which students from many grades were working simultaneously on different topics at various skill levels.

"Such differentiation is a thing of beauty," Troutman said. "When you visit a classroom today, everyone is busy, but not everyone is studying the same thing."

Tracy Smith, assistant to the superintendent for operations, said within five years each student will be equipped with a personal, electronic learning device to access onine resources.

Troutman said the district is aiming to incorporate free online textbook resources to complement existing textbooks.

Looking at other objectives for 2012-13, Troutman said the district will be working on a transition from PSSA standards issued by the state Department of Education to Common Core Standards developed by the federal Department of Education.

"The national standards are more rigorous than the PSSA standards and require greater depth of knowledge," Troutman said.

Another focus area for 2012-13 will be to address the needs arising from the growing diversity in the school district.

"Parkland looks very different than it did 15 years ago," Troutman said.

Professional development experiences will be offered on diversity, as well as opportunities in collaborative practices and team building, and the use of assessment data as an intervention tool.

In addition to academic objectives, the district will continue to pursue energy efficiency initiatives to provide financial savings while also promoting environmental stewardship.

Troutman said Parkland will look for "green" alternatives when repairing or renovating existing facilities and will continue to foster environmental conservation through recycling and energy saving initiatives.

Troutman said the Human Resources Department is being installed in the former tax office, which has been closed down at the administration building.