Video of teachers in a New York school with their personal experiences with 1:1 classrooms.

Its Not the Tools Its the Thinking

The idea of putting a 1:1 program in place is a very disturbing thought to many educators. These same educators will mostly agree that our students need to be exposed to more and more technology. This class has discussed "disruptive" education many times and technology is a great definition of "disruptive" education. The 2010 Horizon Report K12 discusses the need for education to break out of the norms we have been using for generations and jump into the 21st century and utilize the technology we have at our fingertips.
To see the full report and to access other valuable tools related to education visit
http://wp.nmc.org/horizon-k12-2010/

1:1 Infrastructure

When starting to put together a 1:1 plan infrastructure is a critical part of the process. The two major parts that need to be looked at are the actual Computing Devices, and The Network these devices will need to run on.
Some things to think about when choosing your device:

• Size
• Carrying case/extra protection from students
• Battery life
• Capabilities
• Flexibility
• Standardization
• Length of use

Some things to think about when setting up your network:

• Stability, security, and reliability
• Ability to perform with large numbers using simultaneously
• Ability to grow

To see a complete rundown of an infrastructure plan go to http://www.k12.blueprint.com/

1 to 1 Implementation

Discussing a 1:1 computer initiative with some of the people in my school districts technology department is like discussing what a child wants for his birthday. The technology department gets very excited and nervous about discussing such a venture. One of the biggest things that I took from these discussions concerning implementation was the concern over timelines. The thing that the technology department stressed was the need for a staggered implementation period. The thoughts of handing out laptops or netbooks to every student and teacher in an entire grade or school building was an overwhelming thought. The idea of starting with a group of properly trained staff, supportive and understanding administrators, and informed parents made the technology department much more understanding and excited.
The need to start a 1:1 program in stages is a much better way to assure a greater degree of success down the road. The buy in potential increases when many of the potential hiccups are worked out on a smaller much more controllable group. The ability to have a small group of well trained staff that have already gone through a year of 1:1 program as "in school assistants" would be a great asset to the technology department and in turn the school or district as a whole. The technology department also liked the idea of a staggered implementation when dealing with the financing of a program such as this. The staggering of implementation give a district the ability to purchase equipment over an extended period, which would be easier to get buy in from the districts stakeholders.
The implementation of a 1:1 program is something that would bring excitement and concern to any district or school that is considering it. With the use of careful planning and a staggered implementation process the likelihood of success is much greater.