Tech Tidbit: Newman’s One-to-One Laptop Program in the Sixth Grade

[FULL STORY]

Part of Newman’s philosophy is a belief that technology is not only important, but vital to education in the 21^st century.  To this end, students in the Middle and Upper Schools are assigned tablet PCs to use in class and at home. To ensure that the School’s fleet of portable PCs receives its proper care and feeding, the youngest computer users are taught PC responsibility. Read on to find out why 6^th graders are keeping an eye out for their styluses. 

Sixth graders are introduced to their VERY OWN laptops in stages, with plenty of time to acclimate to the new responsibilities that are asked of them.  Sixth grade English teacher Alexis Watts describes the process: “At the sixth grade level, students are introduced to the technology in gradual steps.  For example, the students were not initially given their styluses; only after the students demonstrated a firm understanding of the technology and proved to Ms. Simons that they could handle the responsibility of keeping track of their items were the students granted the privilege. ” Respect is after all a part of the Newman Way. 

Once that stage was complete, new responsibilities were added on. When the students demonstrated that they could keep track of and protect their PCs from damage or loss, they were allowed to take them home at night. When students stared accumulating files and documents, it offered the perfect teachable moment to discuss file management, system backups, and other necessary procedures. 

The sixth grade team works together to help their students learn about proper PC use. While Kathryn Simons teaches the students about stylus use and tablet functions, Elizabeth Townsend creates a video tutorial on backup techniques and system updates. Each teacher shouldering some of the burden lightens the load for all. Ms. Watts adds, “This systematic approach to technology instruction is just one more advantage of the team approach to middle school teaching!”

Getting your own personal laptop in the 6^th grade has become a rite of passage at Newman.  One 5^th grader said excitedly to another, “next year, we get our very OWN computers.”

It is this enthusiasm about technology that encourages teachers to create lesson plans that include computer use in the classroom. Newman students are always preparing for the world that awaits them. Consider them well prepared!