The Digital XPress is a project that will increase student achievement in English/Language Arts by enabling teachers to make effective instructional use of technology in the classroom. Specifically, teachers will learn to use digital cameras and digital image editing software to stimulate and support student writing in a wide variety of standards-based instructional activities. They will also use a teacher-controlled, online publishing environment to allow students to publish their written compositions for others to read and react to. This use of digital media and the authentic outside audience for student work made possible through the Digital Express will increase motivation and cognitive engagement among learners, resulting in increased achievement on the Palmetto Achievement Challenge Test.

This four year project will match high-need districts to form collaborative partnerships. These partnerships will increase the diversity of student interactions among all schools involved, and will especially help students from high-need schools expand their vision, set their academic sights higher, and bring their level of achievement into compliance with State standards. A teacher support system consisting of customized training and an online collaborative community will help ensure the success of the project.The project will have a direct impact on 2000 students and 96 teachers in 8 school districts across South Carolina. It will also establish and validate a low-cost model for increasing achievement in English/Language Arts that will benefit schools and students statewide by presentations made at state and national conferences. Teachers across the state and nation will have access to the Digital XPress model and lesson ideas through the project’s website.

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