The way we dance or dress doesnt make us playthings

by Julie Pomphrett
Burlington High School is poised to make history. When students come by the school in August to pick up their iPad 2s (yes, the newest version), it will mark the beginning of an attempt to integrate technology into education that no other school in the state has tried.


If all goes as planned, within a few years, textbooks, pens, and paper will be a thing of the past. With online lesson plans and educational “apps,” school leaders say our entire idea of a traditional classroom will be transformed.

At this point, however, on the eve of this great change, teachers and students are having trouble imagining what exactly the new version of school life will look like.

“I don’t know,” astronomy teacher Ms. Belcher said when asked how she would use the iPads in her classes. “We’ll find out next year.”

A small number of teachers have more thought-out plans for how they will use the devices. English and media teacher Mr. Calvin already uses technology regularly, even without the iPads. He had his students create a Twitter page, and a blog for collecting homework. He uses videos and online personality tests as ways of leading students into the themes of books.

All of this will be easier, Mr. Calvin tells his classes, when they have iPads in front of them.

On the other extreme, another small number of teachers is skeptical to the point of pessimism. Although declining to be named for this story, they predicted the iPads would slow down learning rather than accelerate it. They complained there was not enough transition time for teachers to learn the skills needed to run their classes the way the school expects next year.

The majority of teachers, however, are open to the idea of the iPad revolution, but their excitement is tempered by the limited time they have had to prepare for such a large-scale change.

“The big issue for me is time,” Latin teacher Ms. DeBellis said. She has high hopes that the iPads will improve note-taking, and that foreign language apps will come in handy. But she wonders if the few days that have been set aside for iPad training, over the summer and before school starts, will be enough to really transform her classroom routines.

Students are excited about getting iPads – what kid would not be? – but, like the teachers, most seem unable to comprehend how the iPads will be integrated into school work.

[quote student here]

History teacher Mrs. Carrie recognizes the dangers of distraction that the iPads pose. “In general, students see the iPad as an entertainment device rather than an educational device,” she said.

A common rumor is that teachers will have a screen on their machines that allows them to monitor what any of their students is viewing during class time. Such technology exists, but the administration decided against using it [why?]…

Instead, it will be up to teachers to keep students on-task the old-fashioned way, with encouragement and threats, and by walking around the room. Just like with cell phones, the consequences for misuse will be up to the teacher.

Mrs. Carrie plans to give students who are off-task a zero for the day, and when those zeros add up they could affect students’ grades. Other teachers say they will give out detentions.

Mr. Larkin sees the iPads as a move towards the day when students carry around nothing but a device of some sort, whether it be an iPad, laptop, or some other crazy gadget. He sees the change as a necessity in preparing students for a technology-based future.

“One day, I think technology will be like electricity,” Larkin said.

Some teachers and students, however, question the necessity of the iPads.

“They’re great,” said Mr. Luther, a teacher who specializes in Biology MCAS, “but could you teach without them?”

A number of students question the cost, saying the money could be spent on other, more important things around the school. Senior [who is this?] mentioned the student parking lot, the school’s erratic heating system, and the bathrooms.

[Where are our $$ numbers from Conti?]

[Conti’s explanation of how it will all be paid for…]

With 1,000-plus iPads floating around the school, a big question among students is how each device will be kept safe and sound.

Insurance will be offered when parents come in to pick up their children’s iPads. For a fee, the plan will cover damage and theft of the iPads.

If an iPad is stolen, meanwhile, the school has a way to keep students’ identities and information protected. A program called Caspar will allow the administration to wipe iPads clean of all data and software, no matter where the devices are.

The administration also plans to use Caspar to keep students from visiting inappropriate Web sites on the iPads. Each day when students enter the school’s Wi-Fi “hot spot,” their iPads’ histories will be scanned for unapproved content. If anything fishy is found, [what will the administration do?] “It’s going to be ridiculous,” junior Kyle Burke said. “I don’t even know how they are going to teach.”

Many students said they couldn’t wait to pick up their iPads – for the game-playing apps.

“I’m playing ‘Angry Birds’ all day,” sophomore Trevor Cimino said.

History teacher Mrs. Carrie recognizes the dangers of distraction that the iPads pose. “In general, students see the iPad as an entertainment device rather than an educational device,” she said.

A common rumor is that teachers will have a screen on their own iPad that lets them monitor what their students are viewing in class. Although the school will not be using such a program, Mr. Larkin said any student’s iPad history can be checked at any time “if there is an issue” concerning that student’s use of the device.

So, it will be up to teachers to keep students on-task the old-fashioned way, with encouragement and threats, and by walking around the room. Just like with cell phones, the consequences for misuse will be up to the teacher.

Mrs. Carrie plans to give students who are off-task a zero for the day, and when those zeros add up they could affect students’ grades. Other teachers say they will give out detentions.

Mr. Larkin sees the iPads as a move towards the day when students carry around nothing but a device of some sort, whether it be an iPad, laptop, or some other crazy gadget. He sees the change as a necessity in preparing students for a technology-based future.

“One day, I think technology will be like electricity,” Larkin said.

Some teachers and students, however, question the necessity of the iPads.

“They’re great,” said Mr. Luther, a teacher who specializes in Biology MCAS, “but could you teach without them?”

A number of students question the cost, saying the money could be spent on other, more important things around the school. The student parking lot, the school’s erratic heating system, and the bathrooms have been mentioned.

“They could definitely fix up the bathrooms,” Junior Evan Feely said.

Between students and teachers, the school will be paying for around 1,200 iPads, at $500 each for a 4-year lease. The total, superintendent Dr. Conti said, with accessories, comes to to $200,000 per year.

School officials say the money will come from several sources: parents purchasing insurance on the iPads, savings from money no longer spent on computer labs, and savings on textbooks, which can cost more than $100 each.

“We will not be purchasing any more textbooks,” Larkin stated.

The iPads are also expected to save money on substitute teachers. Next year, rather than have a sub in every class with an absent teacher, the teacher-less classes (say there are 3 every period) can go into the cafeteria and pull out their iPads, where their teachers’ lesson plans will be awaiting them.

With 1,000-plus iPads floating around the school, a big question among students is how each device will be kept safe and sound.

Insurance will be offered when parents come in to pick up their children’s iPads. For a fee, the plan will cover damage and theft of the iPads.

If an iPad is stolen, meanwhile, the school has a way to keep students’ identities and information protected. A program called Caspar will allow the administration to wipe iPads clean of all data and software, no matter where the devices are.

The administration also plans to use Caspar to keep students from visiting inappropriate Web sites on the iPads. Each day when students enter the school’s Wi-Fi “hot spot,” their iPads’ histories will be scanned for unapproved content. If anything fishy is found, Mr. Larkin said, it could result in devices being taken away or getting banned from the server.