Brookswood becomes an Apple Distinguished School

January 22, 2018

The Cat Pack teachers, led by Jim Cartlidge and Gregg Jennens at Brookswood Secondary became Apple certified on January 18. Ten teachers were handed their certifications by Apple representatives Tom Metuzals, John Maschak, and Allan Gauld, along with the announcement that Brookswood is now considered an Apple Distinguished School.

There are 400 Apple Distinguished Schools worldwide, with only a handful in Canada. This means that Brookswood secondary is a resource for other teachers to come and learn how to use Apple technology in the classroom. As well, as a part of their certification course, they wrote a book that is available for download on the iTunes store.

The certification involved eight units on either iMac or iPad. They are then able to take additional courses in Swift Programming. The courses are, according to the Apple education website, “designed to take [teachers] from foundational skills to integrating iPad and Mac into everyday lessons to the newest techniques in classroom innovation.”

Students are able to sign up for Cat Pack courses, which are technology focused. They use Apple technology to engage in learning in several different subjects including math and science. The courses are for students from grade 8 onwards.

The school was given an Apple Distinguished Schools plaque as well as a banner to proudly display. The teachers who completed the training and became Apple certified are Michelle Allen, Deb Bergman-Wood, Robert French, Jim Cartlidge, Michael Goldsack, Gregg Jennens, Christopher Krahn, Charlotte Noakes, Principal John Pusic, Chelsea Shinkaruk, and Lindsey Zaragoza.