One+to+One+Computing

To make the computer an essential tool in the classroom, and thus to realize the potential value added from technology, we need to redefine the curriculum in terms of what gets taught, and we need to redefine how it gets taught. A focus on facts and recall, on drill and practice, does not leverage the value of the computer. Rather, having students investigate and collaborate in order to develop a deep, integrated understanding of underlying processes needs to be the focus of a one-to-one computing classroom. In the one-to-one classrooms in which we work, where students use their mobile learning device upwards of 80 percent of the school day, we have seen attendance go up, behavior problems go down, and test scores jump by 30 percent. Schools have long dropped computers into classrooms where they are used as add-ons to an existing curriculum and pedagogy— with little or no impact. Increasing the number of computers dropped into a classroom is not the answer. But when the curriculum and pedagogy are defined for the teacher —and that curriculum and pedagogy take advantage of a one-to-one classroom—then the results are much less dependent on the teacher. Only then can the value added by the one-to-one program be realized for all students. Reference: http://www.districtadministration.com/viewarticle.aspx?articleid=2405
 * Redefining the Curriculum**