Pat Hough, our Technology Coordinator and Design teacher, started at ISB in Fall 2013. With over 25 years of teaching experience, and 11 of those as the technology coordinator at her previous school, Pat has been instrumental in helping ISB achieve technology fluency among staff and students. Since Pat’s arrival, ISB has invested funds from the Annual Fund and a directed gift in technology improvements and updates, including equipment, software, the ISB network, and security. In addition to teaching, Pat supervises upgrades to our network and computer systems in her role as the Technology Coordinator.

You have a very interesting teaching background and have worked at various independent schools. What drew you to ISB?

Pat: I had the opportunity to do a Professional Development workshop at ISB about 3-4 years ago, and there was something about the school I just connected with. I was very happy in my previous position, but I was simply drawn to ISB; there was a lot of heart, and the international faculty and staff were fascinating to me. It just seemed like a wonderful community.

Is your role as the Technology Coordinator and Design teacher at ISB similar to your previous roles?

Pat: My role is quite similar, but my approach is different. The IB curriculum in Design emphasizes process over a final product or solution. Design (previously Technology) involves technology and the use of computers, and investigates the way technology has influenced multiple facets of our lives. This is a very natural pairing with my own evolution as a teacher.

I know that you started as an art educator. When did you transition into technology and computers?

Pat: I started as an art teacher over 20 years ago and very quickly became interested in technology. Once I got my hands on programming in the mid-90’s, I was gone. The very first programming language I learned, LOGO, was developed at MIT in the 1970’s. I knew that this was what I wanted to pursue for the rest of my life. I became a computer lab hog and started taking as many of my art classes to the computer lab as possible.

Design is such a big concept. When I think about design I think about interior and decorative design. What does it mean to teach design from a technology perspective?

Pat: It is a big concept, but in many ways Design is much more appropriate than Computing to describe what I teach. The IB recognizes the broad reach of technology in our lives and re-designed the curriculum to investigate the social and cognitive ways in which technology affects us. I use a variety of tools to address this, including web-based programming and concept mapping. The IB program affords me flexibility to cover both design and computer-based concepts, which is really important. Right now, I am teaching a unit that I call the “IB Learner Profile Selfie”. I am teaching slightly different versions to my 7th and 8th grade students, with the 7th graders working on developing a Selfie based on their future selves and the 8th graders developing a Selfie based on their current selves, focused on how they relate to IB learning. We are incorporating the Selfie and an emphasis on design with concept mapping and an emphasis on computers. It is a very creative assignment.

ISB is your first IB school. Has your teaching style changed because of it?

Pat: The IB curriculum requires teachers to communicate with each other because of the interdependence of units and subject matter. We spend a lot of time planning and reflecting on our units. My planner and the ManagedBac software – new this year – have become essential to me as a teacher!

Can you talk about the kinds of programming skills you are teaching?

Pat: When I first learned programming, I knew that I wanted to teach programming. If offers so many creative and academic possibilities for kids. At ISB, I give the kids opportunities to try a few different areas through online tools via various online academies to work in Python (a programming language). Many students develop fluency in programming.

So this is really like learning a second foreign language!

Pat: Knowledge of any programming language is a very transferrable skill. Each programming language has a particular sequence and syntax, and learning one helps you learn others. It really is like a third language. The jury is definitely in: programming is not only a great mental exercise, but is a skill that greatly benefits our students and opens up many options for their future.

Would you say programming fosters another way of thinking?

Pat: Oh definitely – it’s a different mindset. Teaching Design is like giving kids a new mindset.

If you could have new technology, what would be at the top of your list?

Pat: Updating all the classroom computers. It will happen eventually, but at this point they are 3-4 years old, and I am looking forward to having new tech. When I started, ISB was on the cusp, and it is now leveling up. We are going through so much wonderful growth and change. I have a very strong interest and desire in seeing ISB succeed, because I believe in what we are doing and that this is a wonderful place.