The Massapequa School District is expanding its one-to-one Chromebook initiative for the 2016-17 school year, which puts a device in the hands of all secondary students. This is part of the district’s mission to elevate learning through “anytime, anywhere access” to information.
This marks the first year that all seventh- through 12th-grade students in the district will have a Google Chromebook, which they can use at home and at school. Ed Kemnitzer, the executive assistant for technology integration of curriculum support and development, said that about 3,500 students have now been equipped with this technology.
Seventh- and eighth-grade students were the first to receive Chromebooks in December 2014. Those students kept their assigned devices into the 2015-16 school year, when the program expanded to include ninth grade. To complete the initiative at the secondary level, Massapequa High School juniors and seniors were handed Chromebooks for the first time on Aug. 30 and 31. This year’s incoming students at Berner Middle School were given their devices on Aug. 26 and 29.
“The primary purpose of our ‘Learning…Anytime, Anywhere’ one-to-one platform is to allow students and teachers efficient and effective access to instructional and communication resources,” said Robert Schilling, executive director for assessment, student data and technology services. “This fall marks a milestone, in that all grades seven through 12 are now involved in this platform.”
Chromebooks are laptop-like devices designed to access the Internet using the Google Chrome operating system. Their speed, low cost and the ease of use have made them a device of choice in education worldwide. Countless Internet-based resources are now readily available to Chromebook users, such as Google Docs, which allows students and teachers the ability to work on the editing process together, each from their own machine.
“At the secondary level, it’s pretty much the primary tool in the classroom,” said Kemnitzer of the Chromebooks. “We believe in how instructional technology enhances and redesigns the learning experience.”
Secondary teachers all received Chromebooks prior to their students and received professional development on how to effectively utilize web-based resources in instruction. Kemnitzer said that since the one-to-one initiative began three years ago, some teachers have moved to paperless classrooms.
Wireless capability has been upgraded throughout the secondary schools to support the use of these devices. The district also has 750 Chromebooks available throughout its six elementary schools for use during the day, with plans in place to upgrade WiFi in those buildings this year.
