You've read the research, (Dawson, Cavanaugh, & Ritzhaupt, 2008) understand the value, and now you'd like to get laptops in the hands of as many of your students as possible. Unfortunately, the cost of one computer for every student is prohibitive.Try sharing the wealth with wireless laptop carts.
Wireless laptop carts allow schools to ensure that computers are available to the students that will use them in the place that they should be used, the classroom. They save the cost of having to have a dedicated “computer lab” and have been shown to increase teacher technology competence and encourage student-centered pedagogical practices such as project-based and collaborative learning. (Grant, et al., 2004) Additionally, laptops can be purchased as they can be afforded. If a school wanted to buy a cart with two laptops, that would be a good start. Just fill the cart as you can and buy another cart.
What are you waiting for? Go ahead and put a (laptop) cart before that lab.
Dawson, K., Cavanaugh, C., & Ritzhaupt, A. D. (2008). Florida's EETT Leveraging Laptops Initiative and Its Impact on Teaching Practices. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 41(2), 143-159.
Grant, M., Ross, S., Wan, W., Potter, A., Wilson, Y., & Center, E. R. I. (2004). A Modified Laptop Program Putting the Carts in the Classrooms: ERIC Clearinghouse.
Does the teacher ask for the cart to come on a certain date or is there a schedule? Perhaps a combination with one cart running a set schedule and another used by appointment. I can think of many different ways to arrange this. Here's how the idea is being implemented at Wright State University. http://www.cehs.wright.edu/technology/carts/index.php
ReplyDeleteGood question, Nancy.
ReplyDeleteOur two carts are schedule by the person wanting the cast. I like this arrangement so that if a cart is out, you know it's being used by someone that really wanted to use it.
I'm not a big fan of imposing tech on people who aren't asking for it, so I wouldn't vote for rotating a cart around on a schedule.