When reading scores are down, how should one proceed?  There are many responses - one of which is to throw money and technology at the problem.  I saw this recently.  I was told 10 computers were purchased for my school for a new “swell” reading program.  OK, so why am I concerned?

First of all it is a tough budget year.  I didn’t think we had money to make such a purchase.  Secondly, no furniture was purchased and it appears no thought was given to where the systems would reside, their power needs, and their connectivity needs.  They just came in from “over the wall”.  Maybe the program they were purchased to support is the greatest thing ever…but wouldn’t the software run on systems we already own?  Wouldn’t the programs run in a thin-client environment where the expense, power, and connectivity needs could have been minimized?

There seems to be a process that must be followed when a teacher wants to purchase technology.  There is a bottom up review policy which includes the tech folks, the building administrators, and the curriculum supervisors and ultimately, central office.  But the process does not apply when started at the top.  Oh well, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth you say?  Were all the licenses purchased for these systems?  Can they be used for other purposes?  Are the teachers onboard - the ones that will have to use this program?

Well, maybe.  But surely this isn’t the best way to implement programs.

The budget process is very interesting this year.  We are looking ahead to the 2009-2010 school year and there are technology items that will have to go.  Or at least they will not be refreshed, renewed, or revised.

I think we have an interesting opportunity.  With less funds available I think we eliminate the technologies that are “fadish” or of lower comparable value.  For sure we are keeping TurnItIn.com - our English classes have started using it and it is growing in its importance in the department.  The students seem to interact much more with TurnItIn as their vehicle.  It is an affordable product - so it is staying.

The amount of toner we will purchase will be less next year.  So we need to focus on technology that will eliminate or minimze the use of paper.  The Smart Board offers opportunities along this line by offering the ability to capture its output in the form of PDF files taht can be posted on our web site.  The hardship of using a printer might be a blessing in disguise.

Products like my PassMathSOL will get a look, too.  This product offers everything on line…the practice tests, problems, and analysis.  It is green from the respect of requiring the use of no paper.

My impression is that we need to make lemonade out of lemons (I hate that phrase).  The shortage of dollars provides us the opportunity to think outside the box.  It provides the opportunity for technology to be the answer to the shortage of technology dollars.

Everyone is experiencing cutbacks in their budgets.  These cutbacks will require a different way of looking at your computer refresh plan.  One option is not to refresh the equipment - just keep what you have “a-going”.  But what if there was another option?

Consider the Thin Client.  It will do what you need at a much reduced price!  To help you start to think about the Thin Clients, here is a Google Docs presentation from the Education Technology Leadership Conference in Roanoke, VA, December 2008.  (There are speaker notes available in Google Docs.)

Thin Clients - A Cost Effective Alternative.

We are approaching the end of another school year. So I was reflecting to see what progress was made at my school with regards to instructional technology. Were there any “home runs” that could be used as bragging points? Was there any progress made?

Really, though, how does one measure instructional technology progress? I have anecdotal evidence and artifacts that I can site. But how about improved student test scores? We could measure those, but to be really accurate there would have to be control groups for comparison purposes.

How about professional development? We did have teachers attend professional development courses that addressed instructional technology. But is there a way to measure how this training impacted those teachers methods or lesson presentation. My sense is that the PD must have helped - the teachers agreed it was beneficial.

Still, I am wondering about real technological impact - The kind that changes class room environments and how a teacher conducts daily business. How do we determine if instructional technology is successful?

My school now is using 3 thin client setups using the   solution.  Two of the setups include a new PC with 2 nComputing adapters so that each computer is “transformed” into 7 computers.  These setups are used by students now on a daily basis and they have been in use for over a month now.

They are performing just great!   Students are using MS Office, Adobe CS3, internet access, and our local network as if they were working a individual computer stations.   This past week they were used to run the NWEA MAP test.  Again, they performed flawlessly.  The next and final hurdle to pass is the online SOL (Standards of Learning Tests for Virginia.)  This will occur in the next 30 days.  We do not anticipate any issues.

If you can share experiences - please do so.   These thin clients are looking more and more like a good solution to help drive down the cost associated with purchasing new and replacement computers.

I observed a teacher with a laptop in my school the other day. What made this unusual was not that the teacher was using the laptop and was connected to the world wide web - what made it unusual was the teacher was connected using Sprint internet connectivity via a wireless connection.

This commercially available service enables teachers (and students) to surf the internet without being connected to the school network. Currently, it is possible for students and teachers to access the internet via laptop or cell phones (Blackberry devices). It is not prevalent yet, but it might be just a matter of time.

So, as technology leaders should we be concerned?

It seems to me that these devices offer a way to bypass the current authorized user policies that school systems currently utilize. That means they can visit sites that educators might want blocked.  But I fear there may be a bigger issue that may manifest itself if school systems try to control access to these devices during the school day or while on school property - It may be impossible to police or to enforce policies.

So it seems that we might be better served if we embrace these tools. If we go at this correctly, an opportunity might be presenting itself.  It might be that schools could be unburdened from supplying computers and bandwidth in the future if the students are supplying the computers and network access. Wouldn’t that be something!?!

I would like to stir up some thoughts on having computers in a class room. So, here are my questions:

1. What is the right number of computers to have in a class room?
2. If your class size averages 20 or more students, is having 2 or 3 computers in the class room a good idea?
3. If you had money to buy a new set of books or one computer, which would you choose and why?

Hopefully, some of you will chime in and add input and maybe some new questions.

This document proposes and inventory plan based on available funding and bandwidth for a local school system. Click on the image to launch the PDF file.

(Click on my picture for the podcast.)
This post is an audio podcast that furthers the discussion of using Thin Clients in the school environment.  In particular, the discussion focuses on licensing of Microsoft Office products and operating systems.  I spoke with Romelo Perez of nComputing on Monday, April 7.  He was very generous with his time and provided some insights that are discussed here.

Has the Virginia State Department of Education approved thin clients for use during SOL testing? This would be a big deal! Thin clients offer a cost effective alternative to purchasing and refreshing aging computer equipment.

We have two thin client setups at my school. The first is an old Dell machine driving three nComputing thin client workstations. The second is a new Dell desktop driving six nComputing workstations. Both are in daily use and both seem to be “passing with flying colors”.

We have not tested the SOL’s on them yet but it is our plan to use them during the next batch of SOL testing. We have tried the SOL training modules and they worked just fine.

Here’s what they can do - Microsoft Office, Internet Access, Adobe CS3, IGPRO, SASI, Groupwise, and file access. There is still one major unknown. “What is the software license policy really going to be when software vendors realize that schools are using thin clients?”

Stay tuned…or chime in with your observations and thoughts on thin clients.