Goal of high-tech schools is near

Thursday, Nov. 29, 2001 | 8:38 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- A 1997 goal of having a networked computer in every public school classroom in Nevada is nearly complete, a state official said Wednesday.

Fred Dugger, chairman of the state's Educational Technology Commission, told the Legislative Committee on Education that there is one computer for every classroom. But only 70 to 80 percent of the schools are tied into the network, he said.

Former Gov. Bob Miller, as part of the 1997 educational reform package, set the target for one computer in every classroom. So far about $45 million has been allocated by the state for technology for the classroom.

Dugger said he hopes to have the networking finished by the end of this biennium. It is completed in Clark and Washoe counties and Carson City, but some rural counties have not yet hooked up.

One of the difficult tasks remaining, Dugger said, was to evaluate whether this technology has helped students progress in their studies. Computers are only one part of the educational program, he said. And it will be hard to single out the impact of the computers.

"We still have to evaluate this," he told the committee, headed by Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno.

Raggio said "great progress" has been made since he and Miller developed the reform package. But test scores of students have not increased as hoped for during the period.

In this biennium, Raggio said, the committee would work closely with the Governor's Task Force on Taxes, which is reviewing how much money the state will need in the future and what sources of funds are available.

Raggio said the state spends more than 50 percent of its budget on education so the committee should work with the tax task force.

The legislative committee also endorsed spending $5,000 to hire George Perreault of the College of Education of the University of Nevada, Reno to evaluate charter schools in Nevada.

Five charter schools, including Odyssey and Keystone in Clark County, will be reviewed by Perreault and a two-member team to determine how they are functioning.

Perreault said he performed a review in North Carolina. He and his team plan to visit the schools in March or April and present the report to the committee by the end of June.