Obama Education Secretary Pushes Digital Education
Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN Texas Were getting to a point where its going to be cheaper for kids to have the handheld devices than it is for them to have the textbooks" said Principal Bonnie Hansen of Sequoia High as Secretary of Education Arne Duncan stood beside her. But what Duncan & Hansen didnt mention is that Moorseville N.C. had to lay off 65 school district employees
including 37 teachers to fund their MacBooks-instead-of-textbooks program.
The digital education movement hasnt taken over Sequoia High just yet. Student Council President Marina Poole said the only evidence of new technology over more traditional methods of teaching methods were wireless clickers students used in a physics class to answer lecture questions.
She said there would be pros & cons to replacing pencils and books with iPads and smartphones. I could definitely see it as a distraction for a lot of kids she said. I would hope people wouldnt abuse it.
But according to a recent
New York Times article while Duncan said educators should have nothing to fear about technology
practical implications often prove differently.
Sixty-five jobs were recently eliminated Moorseville N.C. including 37 teachers which resulted in larger class sizes in middle schools it is 30 instead of 18 which district officials say they can be more efficiently managed because of the technology. Nonetheless some question the move to costly items.
Families pay $50 a year to subsidize computer repairs though the fee is waived for those who cannot afford it about 18 of them. Similarly the district has negotiated a deal so that those without broadband Internet access can buy it for $9.99 a month.
Duncans hope? That in five years hopes the sight of students hunched over because of textbook-filled backpacks will be a thing of the past.
These are really tough economic times but Ive been very public that we need to move from print to digital as fast as we can" U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan outside of Sequoia High School in Redwood City California recently during one of his first stops on a Back-to-School Bus Tour promoting digital education.
Swapping textbooks for e-readers might seem unthinkable for school districts that are receiving fewer state dollars year after year. But Duncan cited the case of Moorseville N.C. which started providing
MacBooks instead of new textbooks to about
4400 students in a district that saw test scores rise while continuing to rank at the low end of per-pupil spending in the state.
Hansen believes digital textbooks for all 2000 students at Sequoia High in five years is absolutely" possible and agreed with Duncan that it may not be a financial burden for school districts.
Technology will never replace teachers" Duncan said. I think the optimal thing were aiming for is great teachers getting access to great technology."
Catlin Tucker a Sonoma County English teacher said shes allowed students to use their cell phones in class to take part in discussions and has never had a problem with distractions.
As soon as the phone is included the attention and participation is heightened said Tucker who has written a book on classroom technology. This is how they engage with the world.
