The advances of modern technology have truly changed the educational landscape in Mississippi over the last decade by offering educators more tools than ever before right at their fingertips to help prepare students for a global workforce. One of the most significant and visible changes in just the last few years is the notable absence of textbooks in many classrooms across our state. In schools and districts, administrators are embracing the one-to-one technology model, which seeks to ensure each student has an electronic device – a laptop computer or tablet – to use for educational purposes. The devices can often save the district money on textbooks as teachers and students opt instead to use eBook versions, and students can access free online resources more easily. In many districts, students are issued a device they can take home with them to use for studying, homework and projects outside of school, as reported by the Daily Journal’s Emma Crawford Kent. They are then required to return the device, checked out in their names, to the district at some point. The Tupelo Public School District began its one-to-one technology initiative in 2009, with the introduction of laptops for seniors at Tupelo High School. All students in sixth through 12th grades received devices the following year, and the district later introduced one-to-one laptops in third through fifth grades. Starting in the fall, second-grade students also will have the devices. THS officials say the technology has now become part of the learning environment and that teachers have truly started using the devices as a resource. In the New Albany School District, all students at New Albany High School have iPads, which they check out at the beginning of the school year and return at the end, much like textbooks. New Albany students in kindergarten through eighth grade receive laptop computers, which they are also allowed to take home. One-to-one technology has also opened doors for schools to offer online and blended learning classes, particularly in Tupelo and Booneville. For Booneville Schools superintendent Todd English, a major draw of one-to-one technology is the devices’ ability to put a world of information in students’ hands. Booneville students in second through 12th grades have laptops, while kindergarten and first-grade students have iPad minis. One of the most important benefits the model offers, area educators say, is that students are being exposed to technology, making sure they are prepared for college and careers in a digitally-driven world. There’s no telling what students 10 years from now will be using in the classroom, but having advanced technology in the classrooms of today will surely help our students be better prepared to compete for jobs across the country and world when that time comes.
Comment on OUR OPINION: Technology model changing classrooms across state
Daily Journal, Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal
Tue, 03/28/2017 - 6:59am
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