By Haleigh Ehmsen-
Mount Vernon School Board member Shannon Amundson was one of the five board members who voted to table the 1:1 Technology Initiative until next year. “I wasn’t hearing enough public support and there are a lot of facility needs that need to be taken care of before we implement something new,” she said of the vote. The initiative was directed toward the middle school and Amundson said, “In the middle school a lot of work has been done [in support of] the initiative, but the board hasn’t accurately heard what the high school teachers need. It’s a full district conversation.”

What Amundson said is supported by the results The Mustang Moon found surveying district staff in all three schools on April 10 to find out what they think about implementing the 1:1 initiative. While most middle school staff members were in favor of purchasing a device for each student, most high school staff were not.

High School Response:
The high school staff surveys showed that most are not in favor of implementing 1:1 next year. Responding to the question asking if high school staff was in favor of 1:1 in their school building, 1 (5.6%) was in favor of the initiative in the high school building, 16 (88.9%) were against the initiative in the high school, and 1 (5.6%) was undecided. In responding to whether it is best practice for the district, 2 (11.1%) were in favor of the initiative in their school district, 11 (61.1%) said no, and 5 (27.8%) high school staff members were undecided.

High school social studies teacher Maggie Willems wrote in an email, “I believe that adequate access to working and appropriate technological tools is essential to move forward the learning for all students in the Mount Vernon Community School District. I am not sure that we need a 1:1 model in order for this to occur. I’d like to advocate for additional working laptops or other tools that are accessible to classroom teachers to use in lesson delivery or for student research and assignments.”

High School Student Response:
Overall, the students at the high school were more supportive of the 1:1 initiative than their instructors. In a survey conducted by The Mustang Moon on April 19 of 243 high school students during their English classes, 133 (54.7%) were in favor of the school purchasing laptops for every student, 64 (26.3%) were opposed, and 45 (19%) were undecided. In answer to whether or not having a personal laptop would be beneficial to education 155 (63.7%) said yes, 58 (23.9%) said no, and 30 (12.4%) were undecided. Mount Vernon freshman Aubrey Lyon wrote in response, “As of now, the 1:1 would be a waste of money as teachers have not prepared curriculums that make use of them. Plus Mount Vernon does not currently have the tech support to solve problems and keep [laptops] running for all the students. Overall, the cost of the laptops themselves plus insurance and repair would heavily outweigh their daily use in the classroom.”

Senior Cody LeClere responded, “Honestly, our school is lucky to have as much availability to computers as it does. We have 3 labs AND 2 carts. When is enough, enough? Update books or films; buy some art supplies, anything but more computers for kids to play on. We are here to learn and there’s plenty of time to waste playing pointless games at home.”

Some high school students anonymously responded favorably to 1:1 in comments on their surveys, saying it would help with organization. Freshman Brandon Keen wrote, “We should’ve had this two years ago.”

Middle School Response:

The middle school staff’s opinion varied widely from that of the high school. In response to whether or not they would want the initiative in their school building, 18 (94.7%) said yes, none were against, and one responded undecided. 17 (89.5%) said that they were in favor of the initiative in their school district, none were against, and two (10.5%) were undecided.

“I believe a 1:1 initiative would help the students in Mount Vernon in a variety of ways,” eighth grade Science teacher Rob Hanson responded. “The students are living in a digital age where they are using smart phones, iPods, iTouches, PS3 systems, etc. They are constantly surrounded by technology but when they come to school they are powering down, rarely getting on computing devices for educational purposes. The main benefit is the development of 21st century skills: improving communication skills, problem-solving skills, and self-directional skills through rigorous and relevant curriculum. This is really about changing the way we teach to help the students learn, keep the students engaged, provide equal access for all students, and prepare them for their future.”

Eighth Grade Student Response
Eighth grade students have had access to iPads this year in Mr. Hanson’s science classes and middle school teachers have been to various technology conferences to better understand how technology can benefit students’ education. The Mustang Moon conducted a survey on April 19 of 74 eighth grade students. 58 (78.4%) were in favor of the middle school purchasing a laptop for every student, 10 (13.5%) were opposed, and 6 (8.1%) were undecided. Eighth grader Erin Belding wrote in response, “Laptops would have helped with things like projects, essays, and homework.”

63 (85%) eighth grade students responded that having a personal laptop would be beneficial to their education, 6(8.1%) said it would not be beneficial, and 5 (6.9%) were undecided.

Elementary School Response:
While many elementary teachers thought students in their school were too young to handle the responsibility of 1:1, staff members were more enthusiastic about offering the initiative in the district as a whole. In response to whether or not they would want the initiative in their school building, 1 (8.3%) said yes, 9 (75%) said no, and 2 (16.7%) were undecided. In response to the question asking if staff were in favor of 1:1 in their district, 4(33.3%) said yes they would want the initiative in their school district, 3 (25%) said no, and 5 (41.7%) were undecided.

Lisbon Community Schools Response
Neighboring Lisbon Community School District implemented this initiative nearly two years ago in the fall of 2010 providing each seventh-twelfth grader with a Mac Book. The Mustang Moon conducted a survey on April 12 of Lisbon’s secondary teachers and students to understand how 1:1 is working for them. Out of the 13 teachers that completed the survey 8 teachers (61.5%)were in favor of the initiative when it was first proposed, 1(7.7%) said they were not in favor, and 4 (30.8%) were undecided when first proposed.

Now that it is in progress, the response has shifted to being even more supportive: 12 (92.3%) teachers are in favor of the initiative and only 1 (7.7%) is against.

Lisbon teachers responded that the initiative has been very effective in their classrooms making research and various technological projects easier and more frequently assigned. They also commented that they use less paper and communication is much easier with students.

Out of the 82 Lisbon students that took the survey 67 (81.7%) students said that they were glad their school went to 1:1, 8 (9.8%) said they were not glad their school went to 1:1, and 9 (11%) were undecided.

Obviously this change has impacted the classrooms in Lisbon and affected various learning styles. Most students responded that having their own laptop made them more organized, and it helps with research, typing papers, working on projects and it helps them learn more about technology and the way their computer works.

“It has helped me research more things for homework and projects in many of my classes,” Brittany Frey, a junior at Lisbon, said. “It is much easier to write papers, print them and to email them. Instead of trying to use your home computer or finding time to go to the computer lab it is very convenient to just pull out your computer and have it wherever you are.”

But there is always the temptation of having the entire Internet at your fingertips. Many students said that access to Facebook and other websites aided in procrastination. With abuse of this privilege certainly a concern, Lisbon implemented a rule that with any failing grades, student Internet privileges can be lessened.

“Teachers expect a lot of your homework to be turned in via e-mail so if something is wrong with your computer or the Internet at the time, things can be counted as late and grades are sometimes affected,” Lisbon freshman Kyla Ford said.