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Thursday 07 June, 2007
District to apply for classroom of future
Initiative aims to provide laptops, high-speed Internet access to Pa. high schools.
The goal of the ambitious $200 million, three-year initiative is to provide laptop computers and high-speed Internet access to every high school English, math, science and social studies classroom in Pennsylvania.
But Haverford school board officials fear that "Classrooms for the Future" may wind up being yet another "unfunded mandate," leaving school districts holding the bill.
"My concern is we're voting on an unknown amount of money," cautioned Board President Dennis Gray. "I'm concerned about the time, the training and the ongoing costs."
But the board decided to move in favor of applying for the grant, on the condition that they could later decline if necessary, based on the advice of the district's technology services director, Jane Greenspun.
"I recommend this, with reservations," said Greenspun. "The opportunity is too good to give up."
If the district receives grant money, Greenspun said, they hope to be able to afford 300 to 400 laptops and to outfit a number of classrooms with electronic whiteboards, digital cameras and scanners.
In addition, the state would provide money to give teachers technology training and for the district to hire a technology coach for one year.
The opportunity depends on funding, however. As of yet, the district does not know how much money they would receive from the state, or if they would get any at all.
In the first year of the initiative 79 school districts received funding, including Upper Darby School District. Haverford applied, but wasn't chosen.
In a March press release, the Rendell administration said they expected an additional 254 districts to participate for the 2007-2008 school year.
"To be funded, or not to be funded, that is the challenge," said Greenspun. "We don't know what they will grant us."
The extra laptops, which would reside in classrooms, would be a much-needed supplement to the computers the school already has, said Curriculum Director Nicholas Rotoli. Many times the computer labs are in high demand during the day, and not everyone can use them at one time.
"There are not a lot of computers available on a period by period basis for classrooms and students," he said. "I think this will make for a different type of lesson, so you go to the laptop like you would go to a textbook."
One of the most attractive parts of the grant is the training for teachers, said Greenspun. It would allow them to better integrate technology into everyday lessons.
"Students are living on the computer and internet without a lot of guidance," she said. "[The computers] would be available for real-time learning."
Several board members said that they agreed the hardware would be useful, but worried that necessary upkeep and training would wind up being a drain on the district's already tight budget.
Gray compared the grant application process to shopping for a used car - arguing that it would be hard for the district to know whether they were going to get a lemon.
After some discussion, the board agreed to seek the grant, but will review it before they accept any state money. If there are strings attached beyond the district's ability to pay, they can consider canceling the project, they said.
If the funding comes through and the district approves it, the school could see new equipment around next January, said Greenspun.
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