laptop lessons report

8/14/2019 Laptop Lessons Report

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This paper is a product of the Northeast and the Islands Regional Technology in Education Consortium.

Lessons Learned About Providing

Laptops for All Students

By Alejandra Bonifaz and Andrew Zucker


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Lessons Learned About Providing Laptops for All Students was developed by EducationDevelopment Center, Inc. (EDC), a partner in the Northeast and the Islands Regional Technologyin Education Consortium (NEIRTEC), with funding from the U.S. Department of Education.Additional funding was provided by National Science Foundation grant #REC-0231147. Anyopinions, ndings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this paper are those of the authorsand do not necessarily reect the views of the sponsoring organizations.

NEIRTEC is a collaboration of Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC), TERC, LearningInnovations at WestEd, and the Education Alliance at Brown University. NEIRTEC is one of the tenRegional Technology in Education Consortia funded by the U.S. Department of Education.

Copyright 2004 Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC). All rights reserved. Permission tocopy is granted for educational use.


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INTRODUCTION

A growing number of states aresupporting one-to-one student-to-computer ratios by purchasing laptop

computers for all students and teachers inparticular schools or at particular grades.Maine has been a pioneer in the ubiquitouscomputing movement, providingcomputers and wireless Internet access toall students in grades 7 and 8. About one-third of Maines high schools will also beproviding laptops to their students in the20042005 school year. Indiana supportedone of the earliest one-to-one initiatives.Michigan, New Hampshire, New Mexico,

Texas, and Vermont are also experimentingwith state-supported laptop initiatives,as are many individual school districtsthroughout the United States, includingHenrico County, Virginia, the largestdistrict-funded laptop program.

Ubiquitous or one-to-one computingenvironments are different from whatone traditionally nds in most schoolsettings because they offer all studentsand teachers continuous access to a widerange of software, electronic documents,the Internet, and other digital resourcesfor teaching and learning. Policymakersgoals for laptop initiatives includeincreasing economic competitiveness,reducing inequities in access to computersand information between students fromwealthy and poor families, and raisingstudent achievement through specic

interventions, such as improving studentsunderstanding of algebra through the useof education software. Other reasons citedfor supporting laptop initiatives includeimproving classroom culture, increasingstudents engagement, making it easierto differentiate instruction according tostudents needs, and solidifying home-school connections. For example, the

former Governor of Maine, Angus King,said about the laptop initiative he initiated:

For more than 100 years, Mainehas always been in the bottom thirdof statesin prosperity, income,education, and opportunity for ourkids. In my 30 years of working onMaine economic issues, no idea hashad as much potential for leapfroggingthe other states and putting Mainein a position of national leadershipas this onegiving our studentsportable, Internet-ready computersas a basic tool for learning (Curtis,2004a).

Bette Manchester, director of specialprojects for the Maine Department ofEducation, including the Maine LearningTechnology Initiative, adds that, if peopleare really serious about school reform andleveling the playing eld, raising the barfor all kids, these are tools that can reallysupport change (Curtis, 2004b).

Although one-to-one programs

vary from one another, they have eachdemonstrated that a comprehensive,systemic approach is needed if the initiativeis to achieve the desired goals. No onecomponent is sufcient for a successfulinitiative, as represented in the illustrationon the cover page. If its not goingwell, says Bette Manchester, its usuallyabout the leadership. There needs to bea leadership team that looks at thingsthrough three different lenses: the lens ofcurriculum and content; the lens of theculture of the building; and the lens oftechnical needs.

As a way of helping states and districtsinterested in laptop initiatives, NEIRTEChas reviewed lessons learned to date frommany laptop initiatives around the country


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and has prepared this guide. Drawn fromarticles and reports about current andpast programs (see references at the endof the paper), as well as conversationswith policymakers, this guide can be of

practical help to emerging initiatives. Butit is important that this information not beperceived as a recipe. What is necessaryor appropriate for a particular laptopinitiative will depend on its specic goals,circumstances, and needs. Nonetheless,these lessons are intended to increaseinformation sharing across laptop programsand help leaders and stakeholders buildon existing knowledge. Because large-scalelaptop initiatives are so new (Maines 7th

graders received their laptops in 2002, forexample), there is still much to be learned.

The lessons are presented in ve maincategories: Planning, Training & ProfessionalDevelopment, Managing Change, andMonitoring & Evaluation.

PLANNING

Align the laptop initiative withyour goals

As noted above, policymakers supportlaptop programs for different reasons,including: increasing the equity of studentsaccess to technology and information,increasing economic competitiveness(one of the reasons that former GovernorAngus King supported Maines laptopinitiative), creating a more active learning

environment for students, and increasingstudent achievement. The question is, whatareyourprimary goals and what will beneeded to achieve them? Bette Manchestersrole, for instance, is to make sure that werefocusing all of the technology effort on thework of the Maine schools as they attemptto meet the Maine Learning Results [thestates education standards] and our Maine

guiding principles (Manchester, 2004).

Focus on key goals for studentslearning: Which goals for students aremost importantincreased motivation,better writing skills, test preparation,technology prociency, broader accessto Advanced Placement courses, helpingstudents succeed in algebra, or any of manyothers? To meet the goals you establish,you may need to license appropriatesoftware or websites, provide focusedteacher professional development, selectnew curricula, implement new policiesfor technology use, create new resources,develop new assessments, or engage the

community in supporting your goals(Jeroski, 2003). For example, Maine,in response to needs identied by thestate department of education, chose toimplement a professional developmentprogram to help rural middle schoolsimprove the teaching of mathematics usingthe laptops.

Align your technology policiesand supports with your goals: Is bridging

the digital divide between wealthierand poorer families an important goal? Ifso, home use is important. Home use isalso important if teachers are expected togive homework assignments that requirethe use of the laptops. (Note that if thelaptops do go home, insurance needsto be considered.) Similarly, if studentsare expected to do homework usingthe Internet, or enroll in online coursesoutside normal school hours, then it maybe important to help some families accessthe Internet from home. Henrico County,Virginia, for example, offers families theoption of signing up with an InternetService Provider at low cost. In someinitiatives, parents are trained and are alsobeneciaries of the initiative.


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Build a strong leadership team at

all levels

Strong leadership is needed atall levels, from the classroom and the

school to the district and the state. Forexample, Indianas experience showsthat strong and visionary leadershipthat encourages collaboration and risk-taking is needed from teachers, as wellas from administrators. According topreliminary results of an evaluation,the ongoing success of one-to-one inIndiana is dependent upon the supportand involvement of building-level leaders(Lemke & Martin, 2004). Similarly, Bette

Manchester believes that, You really needto spread the leadership for a project.And giving teachers a lot of say andresponsibility for how this project is playedout is really critical (Manchester, 2004).

Meet on a regular basis: In Maine,school leadership teams (including theprincipal, a teacher leader, the technologycoordinator, and the librarian) meet on aregular basis to assure that all aspects ofthe laptop program are moving at a similarpace, including the technical infrastructure,professional development, software needs,etc. Technical needs alone ought not drivethe initiative; instead, the educators in thebuilding need to own the technology work(Manchester, 2004).

Think about funding for the long

term

Ongoing training and technicalsupport are costly and require a long termcommitment from the operating budget.Most of the initiatives reviewed for thisdocument faced unexpected costs due totechnical difculties (such as inadequatenetwork bandwidth), and personnel oftenrequiring more training than was planned.

Successful programs use multiple sourcesof funding, including appropriate state andfederal programs.

Use outside funds, when possible:Maine uses a variety of federal, state,and local funds to support the laptopprogram. Maine also used a grantfrom the Gates Foundation to provideprofessional development to principals andsuperintendents involved in the laptopinitiative, as well as a U.S. Departmentof Education award to support a rigorousevaluation study.

Develop solid partnerships both

inside and outside the schoolsystem

Developing partners establishes afoundation for the project.

Take into account stakeholderslevel of interest in the one-to-oneinitiative and demonstrate success early:Stakeholders initial perceptions oftechnology inuence their predisposition

to carry out an initiative like one-to-onecomputing, and they can either facilitateor hinder the implementation process.Therefore, in large systems it may be bestto begin with volunteer districts or schools,as many states are doing, rather than theentire system. Maine, for example, beganits initiative in a small number of pilotschools. Speaking of the rst of the laptopschools in Maine, former Governor King

said, [it] was critical because it gave us atest site that we could point to (Curtis,2004a).

Develop business partnerships:Business partners, including hardware andsoftware vendors, can help reduce costs andbuild a more effective team. In addition,this type of partnership may help increase


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technical and training capabilities as well asdecrease skepticism from some stakeholdergroups (Edwards, 2004).

Develop partnerships withevaluators: Maine began at an early stageto use university-based teams of evaluatorswho could quickly provide the legislaturewith information it wanted aboutimplementation of the laptop program.

Plan logistical details carefully

Laptop initiatives are often delayed ordisrupted by small, logistical details ratherthan by major problems. The director

of the Buddy project in Indiana, NancyMiller, provides the following advice toother educators, Think long-term. Ensureimpact by ensuring that the mundaneaspects of the project (maintenance,upgrades, insurance, replacement ofequipment) are planned and supported(Lemke & Martin, 2004).

Help protect the computers: Oncelaptops arrive, they need to be stored in

a secure place that is accessible on a dailybasis, especially in case students are notallowed or choose not to take their laptopshome. To transport the computers safely,a well-cushioned carrying case will helpprevent damage. Similarly, to reducestudents intentional or unintentionalmisuse of laptops, it is important todevelop and establish a code of conductthat species the rights and responsibilitiesof students with regard to the care anduse of laptops (Apple, Proles in Success:Henrico).

Set up lters and other controlmechanisms for laptops: In Maine, theiTunes software (a digital jukebox) wasnot provided on students computers,although it is usually provided with

Apple iBooks, because using iTunes wasa potential distraction. Similarly, one ofthe lessons learned from Henrico Countyis the importance of having a certain levelof control over the type of information

students use in the classroom and at home(Edwards, 2002). Henrico staff addedcontrols to limit what students could accessat school and recongured the laptopsto limit le sharing and downloading ofinappropriate materials (Edwards, 2003).

Design systems for distributionand for daily management: Prior todistributing the laptops, inform studentsand parents about the code of conduct

through a seminar, workshop, or in otherways. Require students and teachers to signthe acceptable use policy for proper useand care of laptops. Create an inventory;Henrico for example, scans barcodes toensure an accurate and efcient inventory.Collect insurance payments and forms.Establish a Help Desk (telephone-based,or other) for troubleshooting and technicalquestions, so students know where to turnif they experience problems (Edwards,

2003). It is also essential to have a systemin place to manage the daily use anddistribution of the laptops. If the laptopsdo not go home, who will collect anddistribute them daily, and when? If theydo go home, what is the process used tocheck them in and out? If a student doesnot bring his or her laptop to school, whathappens? Laptops need to be charged, andoften re-charged, prior to and during the

school day. Where will this occur? Is thereadequate power and/or space available?Will the laptops be collected and thenredistributed during recess, lunch, gym, andextra-curricular activities?


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TRAINING & PROFESSIONAL

DEVELOPMENT

Training and professionaldevelopment of staff at different levels are

fundamental components of a successfullaptop program and should be part of theinitiative from the start.

Provide training and professional

development for teachers and

administrators mainly on

curriculum integration, not only on

technical skills

Teachers participating in one-to-oneprojects agree that in order to make thetransition to ubiquitous computing, theyneed assistance integrating technology intothe curriculum, not only help developingnew technical skills. One piece of advicefrom Gunderson High School (San Jose,California) to other schools consideringone-to-one computing is, the success ofyour laptop program depends on havingteachers who feel condent in the use oftechnology (Apple, Proles in Success:Gunderson). Similarly, Bette Manchestertold principals in Maine, it was reallycritical that we set up staff developmentduring the day and that we bring teacherstogether by content area (Manchester,2004). Maine provides staff developmentfor technology integration in all subjectareas, including training teachers to useproject-based learning.

Assess the technical andprofessional development needs of schoolstaff: Effective training builds upon existingknowledge. Knowing at an early stagethe different technical prociencies thatteachers and administrators have can helpyou develop a professional developmentplan that is sustained, rigorous, and

effective in addressing their needs (Lemke& Martin, 2004). Offer training for bothcurriculum-specic and cross-curricularapplications. At the same time that teachersare learning about technology integration,

technology coordinators need staffdevelopment about school change processesthat support the key goals of the laptopprogram.

Form a Technology LeadershipTeam: From the onset, administratorsat Gillispie School in La Jolla recognizedthat the laptop initiative would succeedonly if all teachers received ongoingprofessional development (Apple, Proles

in Success: Gillispie). They thereforeformed a Technology Leadership Team,which trained teachers new to classroomtechnology integration and providedongoing training and mentoring to teachersat all levels and specialties. Similarly, DanEvans, former State Superintendent ofIndiana advises new initiatives to puttogether a team that brings togetherexpertise in curriculum, learning, schoolchange, and technology. Focus on getting

teachers ready to use the tools in powerfulways for learning (Lemke & Martin,2004).

Use a variety of training andprofessional development formats:Teachers value both formal professionaldevelopment events, such as workshopsduring the school year or summer, andinformal opportunities to learn from theircolleagues. Team meetings, departmentmeetings, and other ongoing events canbecome occasions to discuss technologyintegration. Co-teaching opportunities canbe useful, as well as demonstration lessonstaught by more expert teachers. Onlineprofessional development is a viable option,especially because all the teachers havelaptops. Providing teachers with a menu


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of training opportunities is a good idea.

Partner with local universities,education organizations, and otherinstitutions: Explore whether localuniversities and/or education organizationshave the expertise and capacity to assistin training teachers, administrators, andothers. The one-to-one program in Indiana,for example, formed collaborations withIndiana University, Purdue UniversityIndianapolis and The Center for InteractiveLearning and Collaboration for teachertraining on curriculum integration (Lemke& Martin, 2004).

Provide administrator professionaldevelopment: Training is often planned forteachers while leaving administrators aside.However, administrators play a leadingrole during implementation and theyalso need guidance, advice, and training.Indiana, for instance, collaborated withApple to organize seminars like ProblemsEncountered with Teachers IntegratingTechnology to help administrators improvetheir leadership skills (Lemke & Martin,

2004), and Maine has also provided schooladministrators with substantial professionaldevelopment about the laptop program.

Make professional developmentexible: As teachers and administratorsreceive training, their needs change.Therefore, it is critical to keep updatingprofessional development. The key is toplan as best you can but to remain exible,the past superintendent of Henrico points

out. Technology changes at the speedof light and so do the training needs ofteachers (Edwards, 2003). Connectteachers professional development toother key initiatives in the state or districtthat affect them, as Maine is doing to tryto increase achievement in middle schoolmathematics.

Train parents on basic technical

skills and inform them about the

code of conduct and rules involved

Establish a training requirement

for parents: From the outset, Maine hasexpected parents to attend a 90-minutetraining before the laptops are allowed togo home. Similarly, in Henrico County,parents of every middle school studentare now required to attend a 90-minutetraining session before picking up thelaptops. These sessions provide technicalinformation about the machines as wellas an explanation of the code of conductestablished for the use and care of laptops.

In order to establish such a requirement,however, training sessions should be easilyaccessible to parents. Henrico offered thetraining several times throughout the day,accommodating parents schedules (Apple,Proles in Success: Henrico).

Create parent resource centers:Recognizing that a one-to-one computinginitiative can reach out to parents andfamilies, Henrico used Parent ResourceCenters to make training available forparents interested in acquiring basictechnical skills and conducting Internetresearch. Former superintendent Edwards(2004) says, We work with parents toincrease their capabilities and comfort levelwith the laptops, which contributes tothe long-lasting impact of the one-to-oneinitiative.

HARDWARE & SOFTWARE

Provide the necessary digital

content and tools

The effective use of laptops depends inpart on the availability of digital resources.


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Purchase or license digitalmaterials: In order for teachers to integratetechnology in the curriculum, and forstudents to use technology, they need accessto the necessary software, online databases,

and proprietary websites. Schools anddistricts should not only take care oflicensing procedures to make the necessarytools available to teachers but should alsoprovide sufcient guidance or training onhow to use the tools.

Create e-learning curriculumwriting teams: Many laptop initiativesprovide opportunities for their teachers,often working in teams, to develop lesson

plans, websites, online courses, electronicdocuments, and other curriculumresources. In Henrico County, teamsconsisting of district curriculum specialists,teachers, and technology trainers workedtogether to develop units that incorporatedigitized content and activities. As oneteacher said, Since I helped developelectronic lessons, I understand them fromthe inside out, and I can provide insightsfor my colleagues back at school (Edwards,

2003).

Identify software needs andrestrictions: Prior to purchasing laptops,determine the key productivity toolsneeded and establish a standard softwarepackage to be used for word processing,spreadsheets, presentations, and so on.Standardization will reduce compatibilityand training issues as well as reduce costs.Determine whether email and chat featureswill be available to students and, if so, howthey will be managed.

Build and maintain the necessary

network infrastructure

According to Indianas experience,a critical factor for the effective

implementation of one-to-one computingis the existence and maintenance of a high-quality network infrastructure.

Assess the infrastructure andwiring needs within the school: Theschool may require network infrastructuremodications, which are costly and taketime. If these issues are addressed at theonset, signicant time and trouble may besaved later. Lloyd Brown, assistant directorof technology for Henrico County PublicSchools, gives the following advice: look atyour buildings; look at where the wirelessconnections will be set up; look at whereand how the kids will use the computers;

and then model what they will and will notdo with them. Then, do your homework;talk to your technology suppliers; andgure out what it will take to bring thatmany people online at once (Apple,Proles in Success: Henrico).

Support and maintain networks:Setting up the necessary infrastructureis not sufcient, it is also necessary tomaintain it. The experience in Indiana

showed that infrastructure needs to bewell supported by onsite technical supportpersonnel in order to keep networkcapabilities in good condition and up-to-date (Lemke & Martin, 2004).

Consider purchasing displaydevices: Students and teachers willsometimes want to be able to look ata single screen as a group. In HenricoCounty, each classroom has a displaydevice. Alternatively, classrooms may sharedisplay devices.

Make technology support

available onsite as well as offsite

Have onsite technical assistanceavailable: Teachers across programs often


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mention the lack of sufcient onsitetechnical support. If teachers new tocomputers cannot get the help they needwhen problems arise in the middle of alesson, they will become soured to future

technology use (Apple, Proles in Success:Gillispie School, La Jolla, CA). Someschools contract a full-time onsite technicalassistant, if not more than one. Maine usesstudent technology support teams (iTeams),which consist of technology-savvy students,who help teachers and classmates withtroubleshooting and technical questionsduring the school day (Silvernail, 2004).

Establish clear procedures to

address major technical needs offsite:Some technical needs and repairs requirespecialized offsite services. Developingclear procedures for shipping and repairinglaptops offsite as well as maintaining astrong partnership with offsite institutionscan help reduce delays and make thisprocess more efcient.

Create a student-run help desk:Henrico was a pioneer in establishing a help

desk composed of tech savvy students who,under the supervision of a faculty member,provide help to students and teachers whoencounter technical problems during theschool day. Students take turns workingat the help desk and earn communityservice points for their efforts. Accordingto Henrico Countys Director of PublicRelations, this initiative proved to be veryefcient for addressing minor technicalproblems (Apple, Proles in Success:Henrico).

MANAGING CHANGE

Allow sufcient time for change

and make it gradual

Stakeholders need time not only to

learn about and become comfortable withnew technology, but also to understand thechange process and its implications for theirdaily activities.

Allow time for teachers to becomecomfortable with technology beforeexpecting them to use it for instruction: InMaine, it proved essential to allow teacherssufcient time to become familiar withthe laptops before expecting them to beused in classrooms. Similarly, after rapidlyimplementing the one-to-one programat the high school level, Henrico realizedthat allowing teachers, administrators, andother stakeholders sufcient time between

the planning stage and the distributionof laptops to students is important forsuccessful implementation. Thus, middleschools teachers received their laptops afull year before the students, and that timeprovided the teachers with a high degree ofcondence in their ability to use the laptops(Edwards, 2004).

Provide students with keyboardingskills: Technology integration may become

much more seamless when studentsare given sufcient time pre-launch tobecome familiar with basic computerskills, like keyboarding, as highlighted bythe experience at Gillispie School (Apple,Proles in Success: Gillispie).

Expect change to be gradual:In large laptop initiatives, like Maines,students at different grade levels usuallyreceive laptops in different years. Over the

long term, as computers are used moreroutinely, changes may take place notonly in instruction but also in assessmentsystems (e.g., online testing), instructionalmaterials (e.g., closer ties between textbooksand digital materials, including software),management systems (including data-drivendecision-making), and communications


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with parents (e.g., the use of password-protected websites, such as K12Planet,where parents can view their studentsgrades and assignments).

Foster and maintain stakeholderparticipation and ongoing

communication

When all stakeholders (teachers,administrators, students, parents,technicians, etc.) are well-informed aboutthe project and collaborate with oneanother, emerging problems are more easilyidentied and can be addressed at an earlystage.

Use various approaches to reachout to the broad community: All Maineschools held parent nights at an early stageof the laptop program, and most continueto hold annual parent nights. HenricoCounty created a key communicatornetwork through which 400 stakeholderscommunicate via e-mail to learn aboutaccomplishments and address challenges.Newsletters, community gatherings,formal/informal presentations, andconsultations with community leaders canall be helpful (Apple, Proles in Success:Henrico). The Manatee County, Floridaschool district advises other programsto foster ongoing communication withparents. They did so through continuousparent night gatherings and broadcastsof Tech Time, a TV show that givesinformation about the program and

generates discussions via call-ins (Apple,Proles in Success: Manatee). Meetingwith PTA presidents and creating parentnewsletters can also help.

Involve students: Indiana organizesevents where students act as mentorsto parents, siblings, and the broadercommunity. Through the Tech Days

program, students help local senior citizensincrease their digital literacy (Lemke& Martin, 2004). They also organizeannual presentations at which studentsuse technology tools (PowerPoint and

iMovie) to share their concerns andpropose solutions to problems that theyhave identied (Lemke & Martin, 2004).Henrico involved students from the onset.They created leadership teams, whichincluded students, teachers, and parentsfrom the high schools, to discuss the laptopprogram prior to its implementation(Apple, Proles in Success: Henrico).

MONITORING & EVALUATION

To meet the challenges ofimplementing a laptop initiative, to learnmore about its impacts, and to informongoing debates about the value of theseinitiatives, ongoing monitoring andevaluation are called for.

Make monitoring ongoing

Some challenges may be foreseen andaddressed during the planning stage butothers emerge as implementation takesplace. Ongoing monitoring helps identifyobstacles at an early stage. For example,Henrico County found it helpful to usefocus groups of teachers and students on aregular basis to identify and systematicallyaddress unforeseen problems that occurredduring implementation of their one-to-oneinitiative (Edwards, 2002).

Conduct research or evaluation

studies

Because laptop initiatives are new,and technologies are changing, there isstill much to be learned. Some usefulevaluative studies of laptop initiatives havebeen done (see http://ubiqcomputing.org
http://ubiqcomputing.org/http://ubiqcomputing.org/


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for references). However, there is still apaucity of information about cost issues,impacts on student learning in manysubject areas, and other important topics.(Zucker [2004] provides an evaluation

framework and an agenda for studying one-to-one programs.) Some needed studies areinexpensive and could be done in-house(for example, it would be valuable to havemore descriptions of creative teachers usesof laptops during a semester or a year). Inother cases, external grants from federal,state, or private sources may be available forresearch. Maine, for example, is conductinga randomized experimental trial of itsprofessional development intervention in

middle school mathematics, using researchfunds from the U.S. Department ofEducation.

Authors of a new book aboutevaluating educational technology inschools (Means & Haertel, 2004) suggestthat there are a small number of importantevaluation principles that will help guidefuture work:

Look for critical inuences atmultiple levels of the education system:There are many inuences on teachersand students uses of technology. Studythose inuences that are most importantin your context (state or district policies,school leadership, demographics of schools,teachers training and expertise, etc.). Donttry to do it all.

Figure out what youre especiallytrying to teach, and measure that: If youstudy student achievement, focus onareas that are high priorities in the laptopprogram. Even then, the evaluation eld islikely to require the development of moregood assessments of student learningforexample, to measure students higher orderthinking, problem solving, and technology

prociency.

Look for ways to evaluate the long-term costs and benets of the technologyinfrastructure: Both costs and benets aredifcult to quantify, but understandingthem is important. Little has been writtenabout the costs of laptop programs, andabout the relationship of those costs to thebenets.

Let the research question drivethe choice of method: There are toomany interesting questions to ask aboutlaptop programs for you to study them all.Depending on the research questions you

choose, surveys, case studies, experiments,or other methods may be appropriate. Noone methodology is best for answering allquestions.

CONCLUSIONS

As computers and wireless networksbecome more capable and less expensiveeach year, more states and districts areproviding all students with a computing

device. These initiatives are complex andchallenging. States and districts that arenow beginning to implement one-to-onecomputing should try to benet fromthe many lessons that others have learnedthrough experience. Among the mostimportant of those lessons is to focuson the desired goals. According to BetteManchester, the laptop initiative in Maineis not about the technology; it is about

the students learning and about capacitybuilding in the schools (Manchester,2004).

NEIRTECs review of lessons learnedabout laptop programs shows that they fallinto ve key areas. Policymakers must paycareful attention to planning, training andprofessional development, hardware and


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software, managing change, and programmonitoring and evaluation. Thinking aboutthese issues from the outset will help youachieve the laptop programs goals whileminimizing unexpected problems.

The Internet makes it easy to shareinformation about implementing laptopcomputing initiatives. Using onlinediscussion boards, your own website, orin other ways, please share your lessonslearned so that others can benet fromyour experiences.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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Apple. Proles in Success: ManateeCounty Schools Starting Small, Thinking

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Curtis, D. (2004a). A computerfor every lap. Edutopia Online. RetrievedOctober 8, 2004 from http://glef.org/php/article.php?id=Art_1032

Curtis, D. (2004b). The Maineevent. Edutopia Online. Retrieved October8, 2004 from http://glef.org/php/article.php?id=Art_1119

Edwards, M. (2002, July). LessonsLearned. District Administration. RetrievedAug, 25th, 2004 from http://www.districtadministration.com/page.cfm?id=188

Edwards, M. (2003, April).The Lap of Learning. The SchoolAdministrator.American Association ofSchool Administrators. Retrieved August25th, 2004 from http://www.aasa.org/

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Jeroski, S. (2003, July). WirelessWriting Project Research Report: Phase II.Horizon Research and Evaluation, Inc.Retrieved, from the World Wide Web: http://www.prn.bc.ca/FSJ_WWP_Report03.pdf

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Silvernail, D. L. & Lane, D. M.(2004). The Impact of Maines One-to-

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