By Roger McKinney

rmckinney@joplinglobe.com

RIVERTON, Kan. — Educators from upstate New York on Wednesday looked to the Riverton School District for approaches to technology education.

“New York state is becoming more picky about meeting state standards,” said Craig Halvorsen, a middle-school teacher at Taconic Hills Central School in Craryville, N.Y. He said his school superintendent is seeking ways to improve technology education.

Halvorsen said it’s important for pupils to explore technology at all levels.

“Who knows what careers that can lead into?” he said.

Riverton technology teacher Marty Falling and Megan Wells, a 17-year-old high-school senior, explained the technology program that starts in sixth grade and continues through to high-school graduation. The program is designed around technology pods supplied by Depco, of Pittsburg. The pods include those for drafting, vinyl-sign making, desktop publishing, computer animation, Web page design, digital photography and engineering.

“There’s not one kid I know of who’s afraid of technology,” Falling told the visitors. He said his classes are full, and he has pupils on waiting lists to get into his classes.

Though he is a teacher, he said sometimes the situation is reversed.

“I will learn from my high-school students,” he said.

He said teachers sometimes are more reluctant to delve into new technology, but they soon become comfortable with it. He said part of teachers’ job evaluations is how they use technology in their classrooms.

Wells said that as a sixth-grader, she became interested in the pod dealing with small gasoline engines, and that led to her rebuilding the car she now drives. She told the visitors that her interests now lean toward digital photography and video production.

Falling said one of his goals is to provide pupils with skills they can use to gain jobs directly out of high school, if they choose not to continue their education.

Becky Murray, Riverton Middle School principal, talked with the visitors about the school district’s demographics, including the poverty level. Teachers Julia Veronezi and Lynda Akerman said Craryville doesn’t look much different, but Kansas is flatter.

They said their area of New York was once more of an agricultural economy but now is mainly service businesses. Halvorsen said Craryville has become a bedroom community for New York City commuters.