1:1 - Is it worth it?

I am often curious about how my school would work if all students had their own laptop computer. If we were wireless throughout our building. What would that look like? What would the kids be like with an extension of themselves? Would they treasure the piece of equipment they were lugging around? Would they respect it? Would they work harder because of it? These are all of the things I wonder.

I also wonder how we would handle the purchase of the laptop. I know one thing... The laptops that our school has, the rolling carts, are beat up. They are not taken care of at all. They are missing buttons, keys, and the cords are snapped off, so they are unable to be plugged in for charging.

Perhaps, if the students had to have their parents purchase their own laptop, possibly they would take care of it better? Maybe the school could provide a case to carry it around, but the family would have to pay for it? It makes sense that it would be the student's laptop. So they would understand ownership. Also, for the kids who can not afford the payment, maybe there could be a grant written or a payment plan.

A great blog I found that has been implementing a 1:1 program is Technology In the Middle, which is written by Patrick Woessner . He presents many different ideas as well as the challenges of implementing a 1:1 computer environment at his school for 7, 9 and 10. I wonder why they chose those grades? Hmm?

I really like the four themes the school is implementing. They are:

• Information Management and Research
• Digital Citizenship
• Communication and Collaboration in a Global World
• Creativity, Critical Thinking, and Design

Each one of the items are outlined and explained in the blog. What I really liked about the plan is that they actually have a plan! They are working together with the staff, library as well as the computer teachers to unite!

I believe with anything, if there is not strong leadership and a plan, things will not work out the way they were originally envisioned.

Another good point written about in Patrick's blog and it was all over the news last week, was the story about Universities banning laptops and internet service in the classrooms. Patrick says it is an educational injustice. I think I agree. Why not engage the student and as the teacher, possibly change the way they are teaching? Embrace the technology. If the lessons were engaging and fresh, the students would not need to turn to myspace and solitaire during the lecture.