HTSD embraces one-to-one
By Emily Ready
November 22, 2017
By Emily Ready
November 22, 2017
Get ready Hampton! Beginning this fall, laptops will be coming to students as the district begins implementing one-to-one technology initiative. A phenomenon that has been spreading to schools nationwide, the one-to-one initiative seeks to provide laptops and other devices to students for use at home and school. And just like every other school out there, we have our own specific plan set in place.
In the last week of October, students in grade 2 will be receiving iPads whilst the students in grades 4,7, and 9 will be receiving HP laptops. Freshman will get to “trick-or-treat” for their new device on Monday, October 30 at the Device Distribution Night from 7-8:30.
So why give students their own devices? Mrs. Roos and Mr. Halter, Hampton High School’s instructional coaches, have been actively working on the one-to-one plan and have all the important info for the new program. They believe it is going to be a great way for teachers to conduct lessons without being limited to only using a textbook as their main resource.
“It will help students to develop resource and communication skills that are important for life,” says Halter. They are hoping for students to develop and improve upon areas such as conceptual and strategic thinking, as well as communicating and working with others through the use of technology.
When it comes to a major change such as this one, the school district will inevitably have to deal with possible concerns and issues from parents. According to an article from The Tribune Review, many parents in the school district are concerned about the amount of screen time that their children will be subjected to each day.
Most of these concerns were voiced from parents who have kids at the elementary level because they feel their young children should not use these devices at school all day and then bring them home. Parents do have the option for their child to opt out of the one to one program, but this means another homework plan will be set in place for the kids who are not apart of the initiative. If parents do decide for their children to receive school distributed devices, then they will have to expect an estimated $25 fee to purchase insurance, which will cover any breakage, loss, etc. However, there may possibly be a fund set in place for those who cannot afford the costs.
Even though there are some expected concerns with this program being put in place, there are also many benefits that will hopefully come out of it as well. Mrs. Roos says, “It will be beneficial because no matter what career path anyone goes into, they will have to use some form of technology, so this way students will have an understanding of how to use it as a resource and use it to communicate with others.” Technology is becoming a bigger parts of everyone’s lives today and teaching kids how to build the skills to effectively use them will help them later in life when it will be important.
“I’m excited for it to happen. It is a step towards growth and improvement in the school district,” says Mrs. Roos. She feels it will help teachers to see which kids need improvement in different areas of learning, and everyone, in a way, can be at their own pace.
About the one-to-one initiative, Mr. Halter states, “I am curious and interested to see how the program will work. Things like this always need time to settle out before we can see how it’s really working.”
So even though the plan will begin at the end of this October, the full program will not be complete for another three years. It might seem like quite a long time, but it gives the school district the room that it may need to adjust and improve upon the program.
Change is on the way, Hampton! Who else is excited for the start of this great new program?
In the last week of October, students in grade 2 will be receiving iPads whilst the students in grades 4,7, and 9 will be receiving HP laptops. Freshman will get to “trick-or-treat” for their new device on Monday, October 30 at the Device Distribution Night from 7-8:30.
So why give students their own devices? Mrs. Roos and Mr. Halter, Hampton High School’s instructional coaches, have been actively working on the one-to-one plan and have all the important info for the new program. They believe it is going to be a great way for teachers to conduct lessons without being limited to only using a textbook as their main resource.
“It will help students to develop resource and communication skills that are important for life,” says Halter. They are hoping for students to develop and improve upon areas such as conceptual and strategic thinking, as well as communicating and working with others through the use of technology.
When it comes to a major change such as this one, the school district will inevitably have to deal with possible concerns and issues from parents. According to an article from The Tribune Review, many parents in the school district are concerned about the amount of screen time that their children will be subjected to each day.
Most of these concerns were voiced from parents who have kids at the elementary level because they feel their young children should not use these devices at school all day and then bring them home. Parents do have the option for their child to opt out of the one to one program, but this means another homework plan will be set in place for the kids who are not apart of the initiative. If parents do decide for their children to receive school distributed devices, then they will have to expect an estimated $25 fee to purchase insurance, which will cover any breakage, loss, etc. However, there may possibly be a fund set in place for those who cannot afford the costs.
Even though there are some expected concerns with this program being put in place, there are also many benefits that will hopefully come out of it as well. Mrs. Roos says, “It will be beneficial because no matter what career path anyone goes into, they will have to use some form of technology, so this way students will have an understanding of how to use it as a resource and use it to communicate with others.” Technology is becoming a bigger parts of everyone’s lives today and teaching kids how to build the skills to effectively use them will help them later in life when it will be important.
“I’m excited for it to happen. It is a step towards growth and improvement in the school district,” says Mrs. Roos. She feels it will help teachers to see which kids need improvement in different areas of learning, and everyone, in a way, can be at their own pace.
About the one-to-one initiative, Mr. Halter states, “I am curious and interested to see how the program will work. Things like this always need time to settle out before we can see how it’s really working.”
So even though the plan will begin at the end of this October, the full program will not be complete for another three years. It might seem like quite a long time, but it gives the school district the room that it may need to adjust and improve upon the program.
Change is on the way, Hampton! Who else is excited for the start of this great new program?