"It was moved by Remely and seconded by Cappucci that the Board awards the Email Archiving Bid to Ideal Integrations in the amount of $49,682 as the lowest responsible bidder meeting specifications. (Copy in official minutes.)"Why was it built in the building that is being torn down? Isn't this proof that we can make 21st century classrooms out of 1972 buildings? Isn't this a little premature since this sort of thing becomes obsolete the very next day you buy it, let alone something that will be used fifteen years into the 21st century? Why didn't we buy a spell check program for the District website? Ideal Integrations has checked this blog 108 times since April 23, 2011. Is this equipment being used to follow this blog or does Ideal Integrations have a vested interest in Mt. Lebanon?
Monday, May 23, 2011
21st century classroom
For those of you who did not see the video made by the School District, you can see what a 21st century classroom looks like here. Of course, I have lots of questions about this. Who paid for this? How much did it cost? Did we get it from the same company that sold us the RTK hardware?
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7 comments:
I came across this website today, and I have to say this strikes me as much more representative of what a 21st century "classroom" is likely to be.
Video from Khan Academy
What I would like to see them add is a proficiency map (like shown at the end of the video) for the teaching staff as well as for the student, so that everyone, not just the students, benefits from the sense of healthy competition that this fosters.
From a technical standpoint, the advantages of virtualizing a lot of the instruction mechanisms in software are less overhead, easier upgrades, and greater platform independence.
The technology shown in the video from the school district is excellent - but it's mostly hardware. Especially the laptop bays and the voting doohickeys. It seems to me a more effective way of dealing with that would be to have students bring their own compatible learning device that stays with the student. The costs in purchase, replacement, wear, maintenance, and support staff to keep ~25 laptops in ~100 (?) classrooms seems like a big money sink. Whereas a program that would allow students to connect, manipulate the main display (at teacher discretion), vote, and record and review status would be a) simpler, b) cheaper and c) better suited to foster student ownership and involvement in their own education.
I remember the stuff that was carved into, stuck under, or melted atop the desks at the HS when I was there. I can only imagine what sort of stuff goes on now with community laptops.
Back then, the few computer labs were a better model because kids were unlikely to have a computer at home or be computer literate. But now that iPhones and iPads are ubiquitous it seems silly to dump a lot of money into employing that model in every classroom. The focus needs to be on education technology, not the other way around.
Matt:
Good point on students using their own devices. First, they have a personal reason for taking care of the laptop or other device.
It saves time, how much time will be WASTED in each and every class checking out and in the computers.
If the student carries the "device" with them all day, that confusion and wasted time is eliminated. They're also familiar where folders and apps are located on their personal device.
I found this on the Apple Ipad. I've never used one, but they seem like a smart option to look into.
http://www.cliffsnotes.com/Section/Five-Reasons-Why-an-iPad-Is-Right-for-High-School-and-College-Students.id-311001,articleId-176085.html
I'd imagine if a school was requiring there purchase, Apple would set up some kind of reduced pricing for the captive audience. Besides they'll fit better on those 21st century desk, leaving room for binders and notepads.
Dick Saunders
Following up on Matt's and Dick's comments, here is what Apple has to offer.
Apple in Education
Dick,
My thoughts exactly. The video even shows the disarray the students left the laptop cart in.
Attacking my own proposal - the two most obvious flaws or weaknesses would be security (authentication and malware prevention) and logistics (power and wireless internet connectivity).
I would solve all but the power problem by using web accessible software using a district-run id program as the authentication service (for parents, imagine Dashboard with an "app store" for all of the classroom stuff - such as the virtual whiteboard tools in the district video).
Power would be a building-level infrastructural concern. Either you position the desks in the rooms (or the outlets themselves) in a way that facilitates corded operation of the laptops, or you provide some other logistical consideration (scheduling, common recharge areas, spare batteries) to solve it.
But you're absolutely right that manufacturers would love to contract with the district to source those student laptops. Universities have been partnering with Apple, Dell, etc. for years. To the extent that this would provide some revenue to the district on top of the cost savings w/r/t district-owned machinery, all the better, right?
This was just emailed to me from a reader who lives in Scott.
Here is a link to the news release that CV just signed an agreement with HP to provide laptops to all CVHS students.
District signs agreement with Hewlett-Packard for One-to-One Laptop Initiative
An article from EDCATION WEEK TEACHER titled:
Technology Integration Isn't About Technology
Here's the link:
http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/leading_from_the_classroom/2011/05/technology_integration_isnt_about_technology.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+LeadingFromTheClassroom+%28Leading+From+the+Classroom%29
Though the article is very pro Apple it does make some good points, especially this last paragraph.
From Having Technology to Using Technology
So before buying that technology, think about what you'll do with it, and how you'll do it.
And remember these important points:
Does technology enhance the quality of your life? If so, you know that technology isn't about the hardware specifications or code in the software, it's about how the use of technology has brought you more happiness because it helps you access or do something you enjoy.
Does technology enhance the quality of learning in your classroom? Do you collaborate and learn from your colleagues, share resources, and access the collective knowledge and resources on the Internet? Are your lessons more enriching and engaging through your use of interaction, multimedia, and creative authoring tools? Are your students more inquisitive, analytical, and creative as they use technology to collaborate, create, and apply their learning in real world contexts?
If your answer is "yes," then, you know that technology integration in schools is about the learning process, and not about technology.
If your answer is "no," then it's time to start thinking about why you have these tools, and how you can start using your existing resources more wisely.
Dick Saunders
The thing that bugs me about the “21st-century classroom” is that the whole “classroom” idea ignores the promise of the 21st century. Soon the phrase will sound just as foolish as “21st-century icebox” or “21st-century telegram.”
For almost all of human history, knowledge was bound to atoms, and that bondage has forced us to access knowledge in ways that are incredibly expensive and time consuming. Until recently, if you wanted to learn something, you had to take your entire body and move it somewhere else. You had to go to a library or a book store, where you might hope to find some books that had the knowledge you sought stored in the atoms of the ink on their pages, or to a school campus, where you might hope to find some people who had the knowledge you sought stored in the atoms of their brains.
But now, with modern information technology, knowledge has been liberated from its physical bonds and can be sent from one end of the earth to another, instantly, for nothing. Now, unlike all previous times in human history, you need not go where the knowledge you seek is stored: the knowledge you seek will come to you.
Therefore, the idea that well into the 21st century we will continue to educate our children by doing something incredibly expensive and time consuming – moving their bodies to and from some central location that we call a “classroom” – is going to seem as antiquated and wasteful as having to drive somewhere to learn something you could just as well have Googled.
Already, with my mobile phone and things like MIT OpenCourseware and Khan Academy, I can access a wealth and quality of knowledge that was beyond almost all of humankind only a few years ago. Further, I can access this knowledge anytime, anywhere, for free. It’s literally in my pocket. I can do this today.
To think, then, that well into the 21st century we will continue to limit our children to the learning that can be found within the walls of a building within our community is to ignore what makes the 21st century the 21st century.
So, let us tip our hats to the classroom. It has served us well, but its time is drawing near.
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