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Insufficient library resources are actually an issue in my hometown, and were even when I was a hs student in the 90s. No evening hours or weekend hours, and a very limited use internet policy rendered the public library fairly useless for most research papers.
What are you talking about? In order to use the internet type features on a phone, you need to use Wi-Fi or expensive data. Not everyone has 24/7 access to the Internet, and schools shouldn't be assuming that people do. (I do know people who don't have any internet and people who don't have internet on their phones. These people do exist, you know.)
Many people also don't want their kids connected to electronics all the time.
There is a lot of technology being pushed in schools around here, and I do think it's going overboard. Just adding technology isn't going to make students learn more or better, and it's also expensive.
For what it's worth, I agree that schools should not assume that every student has access to internet outside of school.....however what I am saying is that in my children's school there are very few that don't.
What I was talking about in the previous post is the poorer families where every member is walking around with the latest version of the iPhone from which they post on FB, play the latest game craze, watch TV shows/music videos/movies, use GPS and so on. They may not have enough money to pay their electric bill but that phone is never out of their sight.
I have no doubt there are families that don't have either internet at home or phones capable of internet connection, however I know the numbers in my area are very low in that category.
Just because someone says they don't have internet at home, doesn't mean they don't have access another way...just sayin'
Adding...my husband has family in another state that live in federally subsidized housing, get food stamps and have medicaid - and every single one of them are online with their phones all the time.....it's a messed up priority for sure, but it's there.
This past weekend we planned one last electronics-free camping trip to enjoy the final days of summer together. On Friday afternoon, as soon as the kids walked in the door, I asked them to pull any homework and put it in the car, so they could work as we drove to our destination. All was going well until my youngest panicked with the realization that he would be without internet access, because his Social Studies assignment included participating in an on-line discussion. There was no time to arrange an alternate assignment with the teacher, so we came home early to allow him to complete his work.
Now, normally I tend toward being supportive of integrating technology with academics, but this time I felt pretty angry about the situation. I'm in the process of writing a carefully worded missive to my son's teacher, who I'm sure did not intend any harm; however, this is not the first time something like this has come up. It seems to be very young and enthusiastic teachers with whom this becomes an issue. They assume that every middle schooler carries a smartphone and monitors it constantly for updates via text & e-mail in addition to using the school's on-line learning network.
Even my son's choir teacher requires the kids to do on-line homework. A few days ago, he was assigned to listen to and practice with a pre-recorded sound clip and then message his teacher a funny phrase she revealed at the end of the clip through the school's social network to validate he had completed the assignment. While I applaud her creativity, I'm growing more and more concerned that this is placing a very heavy burden on families. If a kid doesn't have internet access, for whatever reason, they're screwed!
Another area of concern is the inconsistency of posts to the on-line learning environment. Our family is busy, so homework time, particularly for our youngest is scheduled right after school. We're finding that his teachers are making updates well after he's moved onto other activities, with the consequence that sometimes he's missing pretty important stuff, so now I'm sitting on the sidelines/stands while he practices, monitoring the websites and texts on my phone myself.
So, I'm curious, parents and teachers, how does your school handle technology? What have been your challenges? How have you addressed them?
Was the assignment assigned after class or did your son forget about the online discussion?
I teach in a school that is newly one-to-one with computers. At the beginning of the year, I sent home surveys and met with parents about what kind of technology my students have at their homes. Of about 25 students, 2 did not have internet access at home. There was an easy solution to this (for me, at least)- before we move on to another subject and especially before they leave for the day, students download or screenshot any online information they may need to complete homework. They do not need internet access to access these saved documents. The few times that I have done online discussions, I allowed these students to type their submissions, if they did not have internet at home, or have the discussion written and as soon as they get to school they can turn it in online. I've never assigned someone during the weekend or added to assignments outside of regular school hours, because I don't rely on my students checking their school email during the off-hours.
Technology can be a great tool to enhance learning, however, IMO, it's not perfect solution to all types of learning
I'd love to have a discussion of the merits and drawbacks of moving toward electronic instruction in school environments. First, though, I'll describe a recent situation that has once again left everyone in our family feeling a bit conflicted about schools & technology.
This past weekend we planned one last electronics-free camping trip to enjoy the final days of summer together. On Friday afternoon, as soon as the kids walked in the door, I asked them to pull any homework and put it in the car, so they could work as we drove to our destination. All was going well until my youngest panicked with the realization that he would be without internet access, because his Social Studies assignment included participating in an on-line discussion. There was no time to arrange an alternate assignment with the teacher, so we came home early to allow him to complete his work.
Now, normally I tend toward being supportive of integrating technology with academics, but this time I felt pretty angry about the situation. I'm in the process of writing a carefully worded missive to my son's teacher, who I'm sure did not intend any harm; however, this is not the first time something like this has come up. It seems to be very young and enthusiastic teachers with whom this becomes an issue. They assume that every middle schooler carries a smartphone and monitors it constantly for updates via text & e-mail in addition to using the school's on-line learning network.
Even my son's choir teacher requires the kids to do on-line homework. A few days ago, he was assigned to listen to and practice with a pre-recorded sound clip and then message his teacher a funny phrase she revealed at the end of the clip through the school's social network to validate he had completed the assignment. While I applaud her creativity, I'm growing more and more concerned that this is placing a very heavy burden on families. If a kid doesn't have internet access, for whatever reason, they're screwed!
Another area of concern is the inconsistency of posts to the on-line learning environment. Our family is busy, so homework time, particularly for our youngest is scheduled right after school. We're finding that his teachers are making updates well after he's moved onto other activities, with the consequence that sometimes he's missing pretty important stuff, so now I'm sitting on the sidelines/stands while he practices, monitoring the websites and texts on my phone myself. Teachers are all over the place. Some use just the on-line learning environment, others use independent websites, and yet others send out reminder group texts to students. We're drowning in e-clutter!
So, I'm curious, parents and teachers, how does your school handle technology? What have been your challenges? How have you addressed them?
As a college instructor, I require all my students to use the online learning network. However, I make sure the updates are completed within 1 hour of the end of class, and if they are not then students are automatically given a pass and an extension if they didn't see it. It's disorganized not to have all that ready to go as soon as class is over, and unacceptable to be making updates significantly later. The teachers no doubt know this. As for it being required, it's just kind of an unfortunate reality. A little leeway would be nice, though.
Was the assignment assigned after class or did your son forget about the online discussion?
I teach in a school that is newly one-to-one with computers. At the beginning of the year, I sent home surveys and met with parents about what kind of technology my students have at their homes. Of about 25 students, 2 did not have internet access at home. There was an easy solution to this (for me, at least)- before we move on to another subject and especially before they leave for the day, students download or screenshot any online information they may need to complete homework. They do not need internet access to access these saved documents. The few times that I have done online discussions, I allowed these students to type their submissions, if they did not have internet at home, or have the discussion written and as soon as they get to school they can turn it in online. I've never assigned someone during the weekend or added to assignments outside of regular school hours, because I don't rely on my students checking their school email during the off-hours.
Technology can be a great tool to enhance learning, however, IMO, it's not perfect solution to all types of learning
No, he did not forget about the assignment. The issue has been resolved with the teaching team, which I addressed earlier in the thread. The team has agreed to revisit their homework policy.
You've asked an important question about the assumptions schools make about at-home internet access. I have never been asked to fill out a survey about our kids' access to the internet outside of class, and the school does not provide computers for at-home use. As far as I know, it is assumed that the kids have computers, printers, and internet access, but I will ask my son if his teacher did an in-class survey.
How about the rest of you? Have you received a survey from school about your family's access to technology and the internet?
Edit: No, my son has not been asked in school whether or not he has access to the internet at home.
Last edited by randomparent; 09-05-2014 at 07:45 PM..
The district I grew up in does survey and track internet access (I'm aware of this because one of my parents is a longtime district employee, and the other is a longtime board of education member). They do so because it serves an area that is quite rural, and not only is in-home internet access not a given, wifi is very limited, and there is very spotty cell reception, period. It's tough for people who have little experience in truly rural areas to remember sometimes, but this is reality for the people who live in these areas.
Most schools survey on the AUP form. If you live in a district that doesn't use AUPs than you are likely in a very subpar district in terms of technology to begin with, as they are the norm almost every where.
Most schools survey on the AUP form. If you live in a district that doesn't use AUPs than you are likely in a very subpar district in terms of technology to begin with, as they are the norm almost every where.
Ah, I didn't' think of that. I'll have to go back and look more closely at that form in the BTS packet.
Most schools survey on the AUP form. If you live in a district that doesn't use AUPs than you are likely in a very subpar district in terms of technology to begin with, as they are the norm almost every where.
AUP - Acceptable Use Policy, for anyone not fluent in ed-speak.
As we've found out on this forum, what one person thinks is SOP everywhere, really isn't. I'm not in a subpar district. We do do surveys, but for whatever reason, a tech survey was not done before our HS went to 1:1 laptops.
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