Tulsa Public Schools Spending

[nathanm]

I'd support that if they discontinued printed text books.

Seems like too easy a target for theft to me. Not to mention great for increased eye strain, among other issues. It would be a lot nicer than lugging forty pounds of dead trees around, though. If they wanted to replace books with (good) eInk readers, that would be fine by me. It's a better fit for a book replacement, IMO. Not to mention a quarter of the price.

Tablets could be useful for shared classroom use, though.

[Townsend]

Seems like too easy a target for theft to me. Not to mention great for increased eye strain, among other issues. It would be a lot nicer than lugging forty pounds of dead trees around, though. If they wanted to replace books with (good) eInk readers, that would be fine by me. It's a better fit for a book replacement, IMO. Not to mention a quarter of the price.

Tablets could be useful for shared classroom use, though.

Any tablet replacing printed text books would be an improvement in my opinion.

edited to add:  ibooks2 was specifically designed to replace paper text books.

[Gaspar]

TCC has been doing it for some of their programs for quite some time now.  Works very well.  The school gets a deal on the iPads from apple and then sells them to the students with the appropriate texts pre-installed.  I believe the School of Nursing is doing that.

[Townsend]

TCC has been doing it for some of their programs for quite some time now.  Works very well.  The school gets a deal on the iPads from apple and then sells them to the students with the appropriate texts pre-installed.  I believe the School of Nursing is doing that.

What have been the negatives?

[rdj]

This won't be for iPads.  I believe you will see it used for a reading tablet of some sort.  The struggle the technology and library departments are having is figuring out what standard to go with.  When you try and deploy that many tablets with a long replacement horizon you need to get it right.  You'd hate to end up with betamax.

TPS lacks basic technology.  Many of the district's PC's cannot run recent operating systems.  The catch 22 for schools is they have to use operating funds, which are in short supply, to upgrade (ie, new RAM, etc) or repair existing PC's.  They can't use bond funds to do this.  Bond funds can only be used for brand new equipment.

[RecycleMichael]

I serve on the foundation board for a Tulsa Public middle school. We are constantly raising money to pay for things like new computers.

[heironymouspasparagus]

Here's a thought...teach reading, writing, and arithmetic....BEFORE we through computers at the kids....

Especially writing - the hand/eye coordination needed extends to other areas of endeavor, and slows down the "putting on paper" enough to let some mental editing occur inside the process.


Musings - pros and cons....

http://stateimpact.npr.org/ohio/2012/06/08/the-pros-and-cons-of-using-computers-to-teach-students-how-to-write/

[TheArtist]

Here's a thought...teach reading, writing, and arithmetic....BEFORE we through computers at the kids....

Especially writing - the hand/eye coordination needed extends to other areas of endeavor, and slows down the "putting on paper" enough to let some mental editing occur inside the process.


Musings - pros and cons....

http://stateimpact.npr.org/ohio/2012/06/08/the-pros-and-cons-of-using-computers-to-teach-students-how-to-write/

"through" computers at kids? 

[Townsend]

"through" computers at kids? 

Right?

[Gaspar]

What have been the negatives?

I have heard only positives.  The woman that works part time with me (while attending school at TCC) says it is so much better than carrying around texts, and the ability to highlight and index selections from the books making them searchable is also a plus.  All of her books and notes are in one place, and backed up in the cloud with Dropbox.

[nathanm]

Here's a thought...teach reading, writing, and arithmetic....BEFORE we through computers at the kids....

Technology can help with that. And has been since the days of the Commodore 64. Aside from the penmanship aspect, anyway, but that's a lost cause.

Don't get me started on the racket that publishers are creating in higher ed with digital textbooks.

[Townsend]

Don't get me started on the racket that publishers are creating in higher ed with digital textbooks.

I prefer the digital racket over the printed text book racket.  Some things won't get fixed.

[heironymouspasparagus]

...throw....


Early and still half asleep....not to mention, I'm a high school graduate!!

I will put a number on it.  No computers until 9th grade.  (I also say no calculators until 9th grade...)

[Townsend]

...throw....


Early and still half asleep....not to mention, I'm a high school graduate!!

I will put a number on it.  No computers until 9th grade.  (I also say no calculators until 9th grade...)

My friend's kids have more computing power in their pocket than NASA had to land on the moon.  1st grade and 3rd grade.

I know, I know..."land on the moon" 

[nathanm]

I prefer the digital racket over the printed text book racket.  Some things won't get fixed.

At least with the printed book racket you can buy used unless your professors choose to participate.