Slashdot Mirror
Ask Slashdot: Cheapest Functional Computer For Students?
An anonymous reader writes: I've started a second career, teaching English at a High School in a middle class area. While the large majority of students have a computer and internet access at home, about 10-15% do not. I assign papers that must be typed, I have papers turned in online, and I plan to freely refer to texts, videos, and other resources that are available online. This gives an extra disadvantage to students that may be from the poorer end of the strata, and also means extra inefficiency for me, as I have to make allowances for students who don't have a computer available at home.
Right now, I have to tell them to either use school computers during the day, or to pick up a $170 laptop (more than enough — I administer the class using such a laptop). However, I was surprised at the lack of a super-cheap option for students. I'd love to see something for $20 that any student could afford easily, or perhaps I could just gift to a few students. I feel like something in this price range could be sufficiently powerful for basic word processing, youtube videos, and internet searches (internet access is a separate issue). But looking over my options I see:
1) The very cheapest Chromebooks are also in the $170 range.
2) Android Sticks have been around for a while, and do cost in the $20 range, but don't seem to have matured into a generally usable technology. Surprisingly, there doesn't seem to be a community effort to easily turn these Android sticks into Ubuntu/Mint sticks.
3) Students can't be assumed to have the technical know-how to fix up a Salvation Army computer (I wouldn't mind helping out a bit, but I don't want to turn into tech support)
4) A Raspberry Pi costs $70 once you include a case/power supply/etc, and students would receive a big bag of parts.
5) Cheap Windows Tablets have glitches, and don't have an HDMI out.
6) There isn't a good solution to using a cell phone as a desktop computer.
Are any of my assumptions wrong? Are there any other options I'm not considering?
Right now, I have to tell them to either use school computers during the day, or to pick up a $170 laptop (more than enough — I administer the class using such a laptop). However, I was surprised at the lack of a super-cheap option for students. I'd love to see something for $20 that any student could afford easily, or perhaps I could just gift to a few students. I feel like something in this price range could be sufficiently powerful for basic word processing, youtube videos, and internet searches (internet access is a separate issue). But looking over my options I see:
1) The very cheapest Chromebooks are also in the $170 range.
2) Android Sticks have been around for a while, and do cost in the $20 range, but don't seem to have matured into a generally usable technology. Surprisingly, there doesn't seem to be a community effort to easily turn these Android sticks into Ubuntu/Mint sticks.
3) Students can't be assumed to have the technical know-how to fix up a Salvation Army computer (I wouldn't mind helping out a bit, but I don't want to turn into tech support)
4) A Raspberry Pi costs $70 once you include a case/power supply/etc, and students would receive a big bag of parts.
5) Cheap Windows Tablets have glitches, and don't have an HDMI out.
6) There isn't a good solution to using a cell phone as a desktop computer.
Are any of my assumptions wrong? Are there any other options I'm not considering?
I've no suggestions unfortunately - but I think it's good to commend imaginative uses of this forum
Students who don't own/can't afford computers almost certainly don't have/can't internet access either so there's not much point in finding an ultra-cheap one when the service cost would be a much bigger issue (with a $20 computer, internet access in most places costs more than that EVERY MONTH).
Sounds like you either need the school at the administrative level to have a policy that students need to have a cheap laptop (not unreasonable) provided by school or parents or you need to let your english students use their pencils and papers. I would think that reasonably legible handwriting would be a good skill to have and if they are going to learn that anywhere it is in english class.
The true cost of that computer asset does not start and stop with that one-time purchase.
I think you might also be overlooking the fact that these families don't have a computer because they also cannot afford the $40+/month for broadband internet access to take advantage of all the online resources you wish to present to your students.
And trying to keep that cost fixed by using a computer offline 100% of the time is rather pointless in today's environment.
"Cheapest Functional Computer For Students?"
An Arduino running Haskel?
Are any of my assumptions wrong? Are there any other options I'm not considering?
Yes, you shouldn't design your curriculum assuming students will have limitless access to a computer and internet. Don't have paper turned in online, print out resources to pass out to the student, show the videos in class, and make the amount of typing such that it can be done on school/library computers without excessive burden. There is nothing about learning the English language that requires a computer.
Since the OPs school district isn't one that provides students with hardware, and some (increasingly more) do, then he/she has no business making it a requirement to have access to a computer in order to do their work.
The best thing out there, designed specifically to address your concern, is the XO laptop by the laptop.org people for their "One Laptop Per Child" campaign: http://laptop.org/en/
Their price is $35 per unit, and they take significant cuts (and some creative solutions to be sure) to get there. They're not exactly readily available, particularly for US schools, but it may be worth talking to them. It's possible these would be enough for you, if you could get hold of them, but I'd consider them pretty under-powered for an applicable middle-school or higher education where there are other options.
The XO is a good data point for what you sacrifice going below the entry Chromebook or hp-11 style laptop, or even an android tablet with a keyboard. Also, it sets the bar at $35 so your hopeful target of $20 seems unlikely; the XO has been around for years and they probably can't go much lower, and you're not likely to get many people competing for this space, at least not for profit. The DIY kits (i.e. raspberry pi) you've already addressed and those are even more expensive. The idea of hooking to an existing TV (with an Android Stick) may have merit, but there's still the price of a mouse, keyboard, and a capable TV in the first place, so the real price is higher.
Anyway, I think you're going to be hard pressed to find better solutions. It's a noble goal, but the industry just isn't there yet, despite good examples of people trying. Hope this helps.
You are an English teacher.
There is absolutely zero need to have everything typed as a matter of fact you are doing the kids a disservice here because they need to learn how to write legibly.
There is zero need to have the papers turned in online.
If they need to research online then they can and should use the library.
The English/Literature classes are classes where paper should still rule.
I assign papers that must be typed, I have papers turned in online, and I plan to freely refer to texts, videos, and other resources that are available online. This gives an extra disadvantage to students that may be from the poorer end of the strata, and also means extra inefficiency for me, as I have to make allowances for students who don't have a computer available at home.
In other words, you've build your entire course around the experience and resources of the middle class student and what is convenient for you. You are looking for a quick. cheap, feel-good, solution that ignores --- among other things --- the problem of Internet access for the poor and their lack of experience online.
If the computer is working at all, the following tricks might make it like-new:
Open it up and vacuum out the dust. Dust accumulates, especially in the CPU heatsinks, over years, causing them to overheat. For a long time the CPUs have had circuitry that slows the clock to reduce the heat - and thus slows the machine way down, which may be why it was finally abandoned. Suck out the dust and the CPU will be back to its full speed.
Replacing the BIOS backup battery is good, too, as it may be nearing end-of-life - especially as the machine sat on the shelf waiting for a new home. Also: A little time with the battery out may clear out oddball BIOS settings in older BIOS chips that are battery-backed-RAM, rather than flash, based.
If the keyboard is dirty or a little flakey, try washing it with clean (better yet, distilled) water and drying it thoroughly. As long as you don't power it while it's still moist, and don't use hot water or the heated drying cycle in a dishwaher, you won't corrode anything.
Then installing Linux from a live disk, with the use-full-disk options, will clean out any malware and give them a modern, supported, OS with a good and easy to use word processor (Open Office) for free.
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
At the end of the day, you can't demand parents buy computers or can provide access.
Unless there was a stipulation that the kids have it, you might be stuck.
So, maybe we can rephrase the question: I'm a complete prat who is going to insist my students have access to computers even if they don't now, what's the best way to do this?
Maybe you need to be having this discussion with your principal and/or school board. You simply decreeing students get computers might not actually mean anything other than you want it to be the case, and no matter how good your intentions are it might not be possible.
People living hand to mouth don't need some teacher telling them they need to buy a damned computer.
This whole question smacks of someone who is a little clueless and out of touch with reality due to not enough real experience.
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
You can get 1.5 Mbps broadband from comcast or centurytel for $10/month.
https://apply.internetessentia... http://www.centurylink.com/hom...
The 10.00 per month is meaningless to a family who is in poverty. "It's only 10.00" sounds really good when you are not in poverty. I came from poverty so know what it's like not to be able to eat because I had a bill to pay.
Perhaps you are volunteering to pay some of those 10.00/month fees for families and I just misunderstand, but you can call me a skeptic.
-The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.
The only DIY paper computer! Turing complete*
*with an infinite strip of paper, not included
Try it! Library of Babel
Exactly this. Rethink your curriculum.
"I assign papers that must be typed, I have papers turned in online, and I plan to freely refer to texts, videos, and other resources that are available online."
Don't do this. Don't force them to type, don't force them to turn in online, don't refer to text, videos, or other online resources, unless you also offer library resources that allow them to reference the materials without buying a computer and paying for internet connectivity.
"This gives an extra disadvantage to students that may be from the poorer end of the strata, and also means extra inefficiency for me, as I have to make allowances for students who don't have a computer available at home."
Yes. So cut it out. You are unnecessarily disadvantaging them for your own convenience.
P.S.: If someone is using a computer with a spelling and grammar correction capability, how will you catch students with learning disabilities so that they can get help sooner rather than later? How are you going to detect copy and paste plagiarism, if it's possible to copy and paste?
In the teacher's defense, what they teach and how they teach is mandated by the district. Today's teachers just aren't given the same flexibility that teachers had back in my day. Everything is 'standardized' now, including the schoolwork which is approved by the district.... and remember the district is 'sold' the curriculum by private companies who like putting stuff online because it's cheaper for them.
I keep telling people that the US got to the Moon with people taught in a classroom with books, chalkboard, and pencil/paper. Ipads are NOT a necessity for learning no matter how hard Apple tells you that they are.
Something like the Stream 7 tablet at $100
They could get something way better if they bought used instead of new. My local Goodwill has usable laptop computers for $25. That is less than the cost of a single textbook. Most come with Windows and MS-Office pre-installed. As a bonus, some come with a photo collection of the previous owner.
Came here to say this. Add to that local universities and large companies. Both will probably give you relative discounts if you direct business towards them and in many cases they are going to throw away the old machines anyway. My old university had a lot of money, but also had closets full of old Pentium and core 2 duo machines that they had no idea how to get rid of. Craigslist is also your friend.
Used computers are probably the best way to go if you are looking for a machine for sub $50, and I doubt you will be able to go down to 20 unless you or the kids are willing to go dumpster diving for parts or are really lucky.
The other alternative is to do what I did growing up without a computer with typed document requirements. Get to school before class and stay after to type up the documents at the library computers. Just a simple thumb drive allowed me to save all of my documents. I never even owned my own computer until High School (in the late 2000's). If I didn't have time in school I would draft the documents by hand and just transcribe them in the mornings.
"There are lies, there are damn lies, and there are statistics"
Cheap.
When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.