Published: July 11, 2009 02:09 am      

One-to-one computer initiative may not take effect until October

With school starting next month, Greater Clark County Schools is rushing to finish training, setting up the wireless network and more for the new $1.3 million one-to-one computer initiative starting at Charlestown High School.

That would allow each student to have a laptop for the school year, which they would be able to take home if they pay for liability insurance.

However, the goal of getting those in the hands of students in August isn’t going to happen, said Mariane Fisher, supervisor of instructional services for Greater Clark.

Fisher said it was pushed back for a variety of reasons, most having to deal with getting the wireless network set up in the original CHS building, which is undergoing a $40 million renovation and addition project.

Fisher said the corporation’s relatively small technology staff is also working set up each of the approximately 800 laptops that have arrived.

Fisher said that Apple representatives said the whole process usually takes about a year and that Greater Clark was doing a good job tackling it quicker.

Another hurdle is getting everyone trained on Macintosh, versus the PCs that are used throughout the majority of the corporation, she added.

Fisher said teachers attended training at the end of June to help get them acquainted to their new laptops. Those who attended got to go ahead and take their computers home with them.

Now, Greater Clark is figuring out details, such as how much people will pay for liability insurance, how will the payment plans work, of free and reduced lunch children will pay a different amount and other issues.

She said before any student will be given a computer, their parent or guardian will have to attend a meeting and sign a form, acknowledging that they understand the corporation’s computer-usage rules.

“There are a lot of details, which takes time,” Fisher said. “It’s coming together though. That’s a great thing.”

She said that’s because she thinks this move will have lasting effects on the school. She said she has worked with a lot of schools on school-improvement plans and two issues that always come up in the high schools are attendance and the dropout rate.

Fisher said she’s done her research to find out how to fix those problems.

“You have to get the students engaged. They want technology and they know technology,” Fisher said. “I think this is going to be an exciting way to get our students engaged in the learning process. I’m excited about the possibilities.”