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How To Help Our Public Schools With Technology?
armorer writes "I'm a programmer engaged to an inner-city public school teacher. I've been thinking for a long time now about what I can do to help close the technology gap, and I finally did something (very small) about it. I convinced my company to give me a few old computers they were replacing, refurbished them, installed Edubuntu on them, and donated them to her classroom. I also took some vacation time to go in, install everything, and give a lesson on computers to the kids. It was a great experience, but now I know first-hand how little technology these schools have. I only helped one classroom. The school needs more. (Really the whole district needs more!) And while I want to help them, I don't really know how. With Thanksgiving a week away and more holidays approaching, I suspect I'm not the only one thinking about this sort of thing. I know it's a hard problem, so I'm not looking for any silver bullets. What do Slashdot readers do? What should I be doing so that I'm more effective? How do you find resources and time to give back?"
How much technology did they have in the first place?
You see, I'm still not sold on the idea that PCs in every classroom is a solution to the woes of modern education but it would be nice to know what your experience is compared to mind. I haven't been in a non-college classroom in nearly 20 years and at that point it was mainly the computer labs plus a handful scattered between other departments. The PCs outside of the computer lab didn't seem to serve any educational use at all even though students had access to them.
Also, a bit off topic but, why isn't this an AskSlashdot topic? I think that line is getting badly blurred.
Dedicated Cthulhu Cultist since 4523 BC.
I think that there is something to be said for that. I work in school IT myself, and there are definitely some things for which computers are invaluable, others for which they are certainly convenient; but I hardly think that computers are a magic bullet.
The real problem is this: Computers are perhaps the greatest "force multipliers" for people's abilities and personalities since the advent of mass literacy and public libraries(perhaps ever; but I don't know, and don't need to take up that point). Unfortunately, they will multiply a person's tendencies for good or ill.
If you have a kid(or adult) with some time on his hands, reasonable autodidactic tendencies, and some interest and enthusiasm for something, the internet is the best thing ever. Virtually any technology related subject is yours for the learning online. You can look at opencourseware stuff, you can talk to actual scientists who blog about science, you can access huge amounts of data on all sorts of subjects(and access library catalogs to look for the rest), you can get in touch with organization of all kinds, etc, etc. For somebody with drive and enthusiasm, the internet is basically the best thing ever(obviously, people before the internet had opportunity, some had a lot of it; but the internet is really good at making a fair amount of opportunity available to anybody who can access it).
Unfortunately, if you have a kid(or adult) who doesn't have much in the way of drive or interest, or is easily distracted, the internet can and will latch on and suck them dry. Flash games, funny youtube videos, porn, pimping your myspace, etc, etc. Now, none of that is bad per se, some amount of mindless entertainment is harmless enough; but if you are the sort of person who can get distracted by such, the internet has several lifetimes worth, with more added every day.
Unfortunately, computers and the internet haven't really changed the game of education. They let driven kids kick ass and unmotivated kids fail hard. The real trick, which is unfortunately much harder than getting computers in front of kids, is getting kids who will benefit from being in front of computers.
In observing teachers I've had, and teachers at the school I work in, this is the aspect of good teachers that impresses me most. A great teacher can actually inspire students, turning mere rule followers, and even the downright troublesome, into learners. Once you have learners, you just need to stand back and help out where needed, they'll figure it out. Teachers who can make learners, though, have my respect.