Recently LWSD
made the decision to convert our schools from physical (paper) text books to net
books for all students grades 6-12. Phased
roll-out to the schools included Inglewood and Rose Hill Junior High schools
(now Middle Schools) among others.
Roll-out in phases was done to accommodate the learning curve for staff
and to allow technical support to work out the bugs in a smaller test group before
issuing the net books district-wide.
Netbooks are a
small, lightweight laptop computer. There
are no “traditional” (non-USB) ports; although there are USB ports for thumb or
mini-drives, printer connections and other plug-ins (peripherals) needed by a
user. The school netbooks will come
pre-loaded with security and anti-virus software, online textbooks and are
pretty “locked-down” as to things that could be uploaded by the user or
accessed on the internet.
According to
Kathryn Reith, Communications Director for Lake Washington School District, the
“the funds for these machines come from the technology portion of the capital
projects levy that was passed in the 2010 election. This program was part of
the planned expenditures from that levy.”
There were additional costs incurred for textbooks (physical) and online
licensing, OS and security software, but those were also covered in the CP
levy.
Netbooks usage
will be handled in two ways: Parents
will sign and complete the agreement and pay for insurance in order to allow
their student to take the netbook home; students with families who choose not
to pay for insurance or sign the agreement will check the netbooks in and out
of class every day, similar to checking out a library book.
The District has
stated that families that do not have internet access or have security concerns
about the netbooks may keep the netbooks checked-in at the school. Netbooks are primarily for use in classrooms
but will not be used in all classes or at all times. Students that do not have net books will not
be penalized but may miss out on in-class activities and projects that require
use of the netbook.
From
the LWSD Connections Newsletter:
Laptops
for Middle, High School Students
If
you have a student in middle or high school, your student's school may already
have issued laptops to every student. The Mobile Access for Students
program brings mobile computing devices - such as laptops and netbooks - into
the classroom to improve learning. The program is possible thanks to a
technology levy passed by voters in 2010.
By
the December winter break, students at every middle and high school will have a
district laptop for use in school and at home. To ensure that the operation of
checking out the laptops goes smoothly and has adequate technical support,
schools have been assigned to one of three phases during the fall. Schools
selected their phase based on their readiness operationally and instructionally
for the devices.
We
have prepared a Mobile
Access for Students section
on the district website with information on why this program will help your
student's learning, how it works, and frequently asked questions. Some examples
of the way these devices have affected learning at schools in our district that
piloted their use tell the story of how they have changed teaching and
learning.
The
parent agreement form, student laptop handbook and information on
parent/guardian responsibilities are all posted on the Program
Operation page.
In addition, a copy of an optional insurance policy is posted there so parents
can see whether it may be of interest to their family.
If
your student's school is in the second or third phase of the roll out, the
school will provide plenty of information in advance. For those whose has
already gotten their laptop, you may want to refer back to the district site if
you have misplaced or forgotten any of the information.
Based on these
facts, I have some concerns as a parent of a student in LWSD:
·
Insurance is not required, but
students with no insurance will be required to leave the net books at the
school. The district has arranged for
insurance coverage with families paying $50 for a policy specifically designed
for technology such as the netbook. At
this time, it is unclear if that $50 is for a calendar year (January through
December) or a school year (September through June). Considering that many students will not receive
their net books until December (as is reported in the case of Redmond Middle
School), it is likely that some families will pay the insurance, effectively
twice in a school year.
·
My homeowners insurance will cover the
netbook, but does not cover technology, per se.
According to my agent “the policy isn't really designed very well to
cover single items where the value isn't terribly high.” Our deductible is basically going to cover
the cost of replacement of the item and if it were stolen we would have to show
proof of “break-in”. If the netbook were
left at school, or in a backpack or a friend’s car or (think of all the places
your student has left their sweatshirt, hair bands, shoes, wallet and you get
the picture), we couldn’t qualify that as “stolen” even if it were stolen. The theft would have to have taken place in
our home.
·
Not every family in the LWSD has internet
access. Regardless of the fact that we
are minutes away from Google, Microsoft and hundreds of other technology
companies; there are people that live without high speed internet or any internet at all. The district’s solution is to offer a low
cost internet access for $10 per month to these families.
·
If the district’s goal is to do away
with textbooks, but not all students will be taking their net books home, then
won’t those students still need textbooks
to complete homework? Will textbooks
still be available for those that choose to bring them home or study without
the aid of technology?
·
Redmond High School has approximately
2,100 students in attendance. Consider
if just 10% of those students do not take the net books home; 210 students in
line every morning to check out their net books and those same 210 students
every afternoon back in line to check them back in. And, who hasn’t had a library book that
you’ve returned show up “missing” with a fine attached?
·
How many phones or other electronic
items has your student lost, misplaced or damaged in a year time period? As a parent, we deal with these things by
requiring the child to pay for the repair or replacement, loss of activities, privileges
or making them work it off with sweat equity.
Those options are still in the hands of parents, but first
we must pay for the replacement or repair and THEN get blood from the turnips
that are our children. And, while
they’re suffering the consequences of losing or damaging the first net book,
they’re given a loaner one to use in the interim. (If my child loses or damages his personal phone
or laptop, he’s out of said device until he’s paid for repair or replacement.
I’m not forking over more money so that he can do it again and again and…)
·
So, potentially, a parent could be
paying $50 for insurance, $100 for internet coverage (for 10 months) and up to
$500 to replace or repair the unit. This
is on top of the lunch fees (reduced or not), class activity fees, instrument
fee, ASB, photos, field trip and school supply costs that families pay for
annually. And that’s not even counting
tutoring, sports, mileage, fundraising, clothing and all those other little
fees that add up and deplete our budgets (and need I mention senior year which
is in a category of its own?). Add to
that more than one student in the district and you’ll need a part-time job just
to break-even.
I’ve
spoken to a couple of parents and students who have already used the net book
system and for the most part it’s received good
reviews. The
security is so tight that nothing else can be installed on the netbook; a
search engine is reachable, but it’s limited access (so no searching for
Budweiser Bikini Girls or whatever else it is that young teenage boys look up
when the parental units aren’t looking).
One of my student friends reported that her teacher was going to ask for
all reports and projects to be handed in electronically. She says it’s easier to carry the netbook
than carrying 50 lbs. of text books and cramming them in her locker.
The district’s
motto is “Every child future ready” and I know technology is not just the future;
it’s the here and now. I’m concerned
that with all these exercises to make our children future ready, the basics are
being overlooked.
According to National Center
for Education Statistics “On
average, 3.4 percent of students who were enrolled in public or private high
schools in October 2008 left school before October 2009 without completing a
high school program (table 1).”
“Combining data
from the 50 states and the District of Columbia, approximately 607,000 public
high school students dropped out of grades 9–12 during the 2008–09 school year
(data not shown in tables). This translates into an event dropout rate of 4.1
percent.”
Although there have been several reports that the district has
scored highly in national testing and has improved recently; I wonder how many
of these graduates are ready for the future.
Knowing how to operate a net book
will not make up for the lack of spelling, vocabulary or comprehension skills
that many high school students possess.
Having the opportunity to read and manipulate stories and projects in
real time will not offset the lack of basic math knowledge or organizational
skills necessary to compete and succeed in the current workforce. Technology is many things, but the creator of
knowledge it is not.
I am concerned that although test scores show improvements, our
children are falling further and further behind in graduation standards, college
preparedness and useful life skills. Many students need tutoring just
to keep up; not necessarily to take AP or other college
level courses in secondary school.
“Some
states no longer emphasize spelling or grammar since that knowledge is not
required for state tests. As a result, middle school children may know the
definition of SAT vocabulary words such as "perambulate" and
"quiescent," but they don't know how to spell such basic words as
"independence" or when to use commas or semicolons. Parents turn to
tutors to help their kids bone up on these fundamentals.”
“Findings released Monday by the
non-profit College Board show that 57% of 2012 graduating seniors who took the
SAT, which it owns, earned a combined score below what it says is necessary to
show that students can earn a B-minus or better in the first year at a
four-year college.”
I am not suggesting that we return to chalkboards and papyrus
sheets in order for students to succeed; but it is imperative that we not
overlook the necessity of basic educational skills in our quest to race our
children to the future.
Paige Norman
Redmond, Washington
