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A step beyond books, text messaging could become part of the learning process in Clark County schools
Monday, Sept. 6, 2010 | 2 a.m.
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- Students back in class as district shows off newest school (8-30-2010)
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One day, not that far off, a teacher starting out on a genetics lesson may ask her middle school class, “How many of you can roll your tongue?” (It’s inherited.)
And instead of a wave of eager hands shooting up (or crossed arms and schoolchild indifference), 30 heads will hunch over cell phones, thumbs drumming, and text their answer to the teacher.
“Wow,” she will say, after looking at her cell phone, “40 percent of you can roll your tongue!”
Randy Thomas, the Clark County School District’s director of networking services and telecommunication services, said some children don’t want to be the only one to raise his or her hand, some children fear having the wrong answer.
The anonymity of texting gets more children to participate in class, if not actually learn something, teachers tell Thomas.
At any rate, the district is exploring what wireless can do.
For a cash-strapped school district, it means a new resource at little or no cost. Many students have cell phones and know how to use them. And under some service plans, the phones themselves are cheap or free.
Although the district is experimenting with pilot programs, a wireless classroom won’t happen overnight.
There are technical drawbacks (networks slow down with lots of users), security and distraction worries (how do you get children to pay attention in class while using a cell phone; how do you keep them from using it to cheat on tests?).
Of course, the superintendent must propose it, the School Board must approve it, and the public must be allowed to debate it.
Still, “we’re on the cusp of a paradigm shift,” Thomas said.
“The cell phone, the smart phone, is much more than a phone,” he said. “It’s a computer. Kids may not have what we used to think of as a computer at home. How can we leverage that in an educational environment?”
“Maybe in a class of 35 children, four children can’t afford a computer, four children have a really low-end computer that can’t run this application, another four children have computers that crash all the time, another four children have a computer that’s better than anyone else’s,” he said.
“So your district-provided computer is a minimum level of support.”
And outside computers complicate defending against computer viruses.
But even with unlimited tax revenue, there will never be enough computers for every child: There aren’t enough electrical outlets.
The district is experimenting gingerly with wireless. A pilot program allows students to use an iPod Touch.
One recently opened magnet school, West Career and Technical Academy, with 750 freshmen and sophomores, encourages students to bring their own laptops to use on the school’s wireless network.
But the wireless classroom is some time off.
On paper, current cell phone networks offer speedy access to the Internet. A typical wireless network might offer 50 megabits per second of bandwidth, 10 times what might be offered on a home network.
But as anyone who has ever used Wi-Fi at Starbucks or elsewhere knows, the more users there are, the slower the network becomes, whittling that 50 megabits into smaller and smaller slices.
The large computer behind the wireless network, like a waiter taking orders from a large party at a table, must pay attention.
“It has to talk with 30 people, but actually transition from person to person,” Thomas said. “It talks to you, transition, then it talks to you, transition.” The network slows down as a consequence.
“Everybody complains, and I get the service call,” he said.
Thomas’ network counterpart at UNLV had a crisis.
The system worked fine for casual use during the semester, but when an instructor decided to give the final exam online, assigning the computer to work beyond 100 percent, it crashed.
“You design for the worst case,” Thomas said. “But I’m sure it happens all the time — the people using the technology didn’t share their plans with the people designing the technology, and the people designing the technology didn’t bother to ask.”
And then there’s what Thomas calls the Burrito Problem. Wireless networks are open to small irritations, such as nearby microwave frequencies.
“Literally, if someone puts a burrito in a microwave oven in the next room, it could crash the wireless in this room,” he said.
Principals worry about other things. High school students being able to text means they could text anything, including answers to tests, said Ron Montoya, principal of Valley High School.
Discipline, always a problem, could go by the wayside. Cell phones would “make it impossible for a teacher to teach,” he said.
Clark High Principal Jill Pendleton worries about the fundamental fairness of requiring a potentially expensive piece of consumer electronics. “We have families who can’t even afford to buy shoes.”
And teachers worry about still other things. Ruben Murillo, president of the union representing the majority of the district’s 18,000 teachers, said he has no way of knowing what they think about cell phones.
“But I do know there are those who are really resistant to technology because they’re not tech-savvy,” he said.
On the other hand, some students think it would be terrific.
Mariah Eppes, 17, a senior and the Clark High student body president, realizes there are technical drawbacks. “But if there were airwaves just for schools, that would be cool!”
Zhan Okuda-Lim, 17, a senior at Valley High, said he was confident. “The friends that I have will use it for the right purpose.”
The change, if it comes, won’t be earthshaking.
“It’ll be like cell phones themselves,” Thomas said. “They were big, they were clunky, only a few people had them. They got smaller, they got cheaper, they got better and more people had them. The same thing is going to happen in the classroom.”
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How many chldren from the lower economic strata of our community will be able to afford cell phones for texting answers to teachers? Give me a break please! We have some children who do not get enough food at home, we are feeding them at school now, and soon we will be providing them cell phones, lap tops and pay for their internet connections as well? Nice idea, but get realistic!
Using cell phones and texting is a great idea, but the kinks need to be worked out.
On the positive side, it represents the type of interactive educational strategy that works well for students. They can remain anonymous in posting their answers. Teachers can also post video lessons for viewing on smart phones.
On the negative side, not all students can afford cell phones, much less smart phones for watching video lessons. Also, allowing texting would allow students to text each other (answers to test questions) and other social, non-educational purposes.
Classrooms need technology. The "real world" will use technology. There are systems that provide a handheld device for each student for the purpose of inputting data. These systems also provide immediate feedback to students on the correctness of their answer. This allows the teacher to instantly assessess the effectiveness of their lesson and provide help where needed.
I like the idea of allowing each child to bring a laptop to school. If CCSD only allows them to log into the school network, they can focus on success rather than spending classroom time on a social network.
A little research by the reporter would reveal there is technology today, wireless technology, that allows students to respond to teachers electronically and they ARE NOT CELL PHONES. There are multiple manufacturers of these hand held "clicker" devices that send a signal to the teachers computer. Students can send in numerical and alphabetical answers. NO PHONES needed.
I had a hard time reading kids are scared to answer because they might have the wrong answer, yet it is no big deal for poor students that don't have the money for cell phones. Give me a break.
The "clickers" mentioned above do cost money, nothing is free, but allows all students to participate and takes away the distraction of the cell phones in class. Do a little research Anthony Rameriz and you can have yourself a good positive educational story.
So instead of teaching them how to be more assertive in class, we are considering ways to enable their inability to communicate orally?? Will speech even be a necessary skill in the future? Writing with a pen or pencil? Seriously.
50% drop out rate in Las Vegas. Can someone tell me why this isn't considered the 2nd worst calamity to hit Las Vegas after 15% unemployment?...and in my view might be worse.
And I don't hear a word from Harry Reid about it. This city is going to be churning out more welfare, more food stamps, more homeless shelters than any city in the country if they don't find a way to address this situation.
50%!!!!
Disgusting numbers...and someone writes an article about texting in class? Man talk about SCREWED up.
TomD it is nice to see someone quickly blame Reed. I personally blame all people who are not employed by the school district (Federal judges, the Sheriff, all senators like Ensign and lets not forget the House of Reps people too) and lets not forget those who do not have kids in school. Yep, that is the smart thing to do, blame those that don't have any control or say in the situation. Nice!
In my classes I strongly resist using any technology that takes the place of face-to-face discussion. Nothing should be employed in the classroom which supports hiding behind technology.
Reid is a Senator. Spin it any way you want. He needs to address a 50% drop out rate. It's out of control.
I haven't made up my mind on how I feel about this issue, but what I do like is the fact that this issue exists. So many times, I have parents that say, "That's not the way I learned it, and if it aint broke, don't fix it" (or something to that effect). Well, this is proof that the world of education is everchanging (as is the entire world). There probably should not be any subject that we teach the same way it was taught 25 years ago (maybe even 10 years ago). There are still many parents that need to have an open mind to new, innovative ways of teaching. Isn't that pretty much the idea of reform? To all of you parents who embrace these new ideas, good for you!
I don't trust any child with technology. My kids tell me that the cell phone bans in their schools are a joke and that all the kids have cell phones out all the time.
Besides, there are many ways to achieve the same "benefits" of using cell phones in the classroom without using cell phones. The little devices mentioned in an above comment work very well, in my opinion, having used them myself.
On that note, how much will it cost to outfit all the schools with wireless tech? I know about the E-Rate things, but I've been at schools that have had wifi installed and the network availability was just shoddy. How much will it cost for the district to upgrade for the increased bandwidth and network usage? Another bond measure? And that "Burrito Problem" is easily gotten around, though it does cost money to place extra base stations.
Ms. Pendleton and Mr. Montoya have the right idea, that this whole idea is shenanigans.
And Bias-check: Mariah Eppes and Zhan Okuda-Lim are the Student Body Presidents of their schools under Ms. Pendleton (Clark) and Mr. Montoya (Valley) respectively (see the Bernhardt and William exhibit at the mall). a) they are probably both popular teenagers who own and heavily use cell phones and drive cars around. b) Ms. Eppes, allocating any portion of the US Frequency Allocation to schools would be a great disservice to the thousands of square miles of this country that do not have schools, since that totally wastes bandwidth. Also, people would have to build wireless devices just for the school "airwaves," driving costs up. c) Mr. Okuda-Lim, considering that you represent the "upper-crust" of the public school system, you may be right. But then again, there are a lot of people who aren't your friends.
@devilswin99 Ironically, that is exactly what the AYP for the schools I looked at show- whites and asians comfortably making the academic and graduation and attendance benchmarks, while blacks and Hispanics squeak by or fail.
Randy Thomas ... CCSD Networking director, said ... "... some children fear having the wrong answer." I supposed that this NON-TEACHER, network genius, is also a child psychologist - and has credible experience in how the mind works.
THIS CELL PHONE IDEA IS NOT THE PRODUCT OF AN INTELLIGENT, NOR EDUCATED, ANALYSIS. It is this same type of exploitive (and budget busting) "thinking" that has fostered the use of computers in the classroom for years. My experience as a part-time computer science teacher for a number of years, has shown me that TECHNOLOGY does not teach a student WHAT THEY SHOULD LEARN - nor how. It is only a tool. The Harvard Business School does NOT used computers to teach, and they are college graduates - not unschooled children.
It is the "busy time" that teachers must use to fix computer problems - for each child - that takes away from class subject matter, and a child's academic education.
Want proof? FInd a school where teachers DO NOT computers, and they pay attention to EACH child's question. Where children are each ENCOURAGED - even for a few precious moments - to speak out on a subject; to listen to others, and ultimately join in finding their own way of expressing an answer. They will be proud of their accomplishments. This will induce participation.
There, you will find a successful teacher, who COMMUNICATES with students, who challenges students to INTERACT, is HELPFUL to those who need ENCOURAGEMENT, and makes a child FEEL LIKE THEY ACCOMPLISHED SOMETHING THAT DAY. Children gain confidence with knowledge and experience in learning how to READ. When they learn what is in a book, they will be eager to repeat it in the classroom.
For more than 20 years, CCSD has failed to ensure that EACH child has a book to take one home. Only 1 in 3 students have a book - and must share it in the classroom. So How do students do homework - without books? Could this the primary reason for a 50% dropout rate?
This technology bent that CCSD schools are on proves only one thing: it is not working! And we hear the SAME discussions, year after year. I once told (former) Governor Kenny Guinn at a conference, only 1 in 3 CCSD children had SCHOOL BOOKS. His answer was: we are working on it. Well, that was in the 1990's. ARE WE STILL WORKING ON IT? We cannot afford books, but we can buy computers, networks, and cell phones?
Children have needs that have to be met. That is where learning begins. Not with a computer or a cell phone to confuse them, and waste a teachers time correcting misuse of such devices. And finally, parents need to be more involved with their child's education -and not let the CCSD run wild by spending tax money to explore new uses for technology.
vegasmom22- I could not agree more- we are training people not to orally communicate- and when they do they dont know how- we are going to tech ourselves out of existence-
As many authors have written computers are not necessary to learning and can inhibit learning if the software is bad, the teacher not trained properly or the equipment faulty. Students DO NOT need computer skills they need to learn to read, write and master basic math skills which is best taught by reading, writing and memorizing. Other studies have shown that students in college who have never used a computer need less than a semester to master the equipment. What computers do is create anti social behavior in the very young and inarticulate young adults.