Dr. Dereck Rhoads, new principal of Bluffton Middle School, outlined his vision for a technology course to be offered to 6th and 7th graders of the South Carolina Lowcountry school. The reason Dr. Rhoads gives is "As technology revolutionizes our world, schools must seek ways to prepare and equip students with the skills to compete in an ever-demanding global economy."

Here are the features of Dr. Rhoads' vision that are extrodinary:

Every student at Bluffton Middle School will take this technology course and create a digital portfolio.
This technology course will be based on ISTE NETS and the South Carolina Internet Safety Standards.
Wants students to use Web 2.0 applications to create assignments for core academic classes to demonstrate the practical application of the tools.
Students will learn how to evaluate information found on the Internet and use it appropriately.
Wants students to understand what Media Literacy means and how to decode its messages.
Stress cyber safety to students as they use the technology. This will include how to use Social Networks, such as Facebook, properly and maintain privacy that will prevent problems later in students' lives.

I know there are other courses in technology that may incorporate some of the points above. However, I have never heard of a course that incorporates all these points. Whoever takes on the task of creating and teaching such a course will have a big job ahead of them. Dr. Rhoads will need to find someone creative enough to make his dream a reality. If anyone has any ideas on what should be included in this course please share them in the comments.

Click here to read Dr. Rhoads' blog post on the technology course at Bluffton Middle School.