CAMARILLO : Board OKs Plan to Improve Technology

A five-year master plan to improve classroom technology in the Pleasant Valley Elementary School District was approved Thursday by the Board of Trustees, opening the door for each of the district’s 14 elementary and junior high schools to create state-of-the-art computer systems for students.

The plan, written by a committee of district educators, officials, parents and a consultant, is the result of six months of meetings and seminars.

According to a report by the committee, implementation of the plan over the next five years would cost $2.8 million, which would come from state grants, not from the district’s budget.

The plan calls for the Camarillo district to formulate technological objectives and guidelines under which each of the schools would develop systems tailored to its students’ needs.

The main goal of the master plan is to promote computer literacy among the district’s 6,473 students and to encourage teachers to become familiar with computer technology by using it for instruction and class preparation, said Erich Anders, assistant superintendent of education.

With the board’s approval of the master plan, $23,106 in leftover grant money will be used for the salary of one teacher to act as technology coordinator through the end of the school year.