Exploring Hispanic culture through technology

BYRAM — Eighth grade Spanish classes at the Byram Intermediate School have completed a month-long exploration and research project into the Spanish speaking countries of the world. Students, working in teams, were able to virtually visit Hispanic countries over the internet and learn about them using each team's Power Point presentation. Students discovered the geography, historical information, cultural expressions, imports and exports, economies, governments, places of interest and important people in these countries. After each group had compiled their research, they developed a Power Point presentation to teach their classmates about their respective countries. They also developed quizzes which yielded peer-graded results. According to Spanish teacher Omar Mendez, the students learned valuable research, development and presentational skills and were able to expand their knowledge of the Spanish-speaking world.