So maybe good lobster isn't the only thing Maine should be known for -- maybe it should now be "lobsters and laptops". When they started this one-laptop-per-child program several years ago, most thought it would be a disaster. Now, not only have they pulled it off, but they're expanding it -- and unlike Chicago, kids in Maine actually get to take their computers home with them. I believe Chicago pays a comparable rate for the computer leases (compliments of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation), but the computers in Chicago are in use during school hours only -- on the other hand, a good chunk of them get trashed in the first year or two, so I'm sure our insurance costs are nice and high.
I wonder what Maine does in the way of security deposits, etc. to make this work. And I also wonder whether they'll be more or less successful in rolling this program out for high schoolers as they were with the 7th & 8th graders...
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I think it all depends on the population of the schools. Something tells me the demographics of any Maine school are vastly different from your average CPS school. (Heck, isn't the student population of CPS higher than the whole state of Maine? )
ReplyDeleteI know of one elementary school in Chicago that has one-to-one laptops. The kids take the equipment home. They have not had one loss in the year since they started the program. So it is possible, even here in Chicago.