Alabama iBook pilot program could lead to expansion
updated 12:25 pm EDT, Wed May 25, 2005
iBook program success
The with an Alabama elementary school could lead to a expansion of the program. The 3-year program, which included 41 sixth-graders, could expand to all sixth graders, according a report in The Birmingham News: While many students have sad faces, administrators are happy with the results of a pilot program that put laptops in the hands of sixth-graders for a year. The program will continue into the next two years and could expand to all sixth-graders in the Vestavia Hills school system. Currently, 360 are enrolled." A decision to expand the program would come during the 2006-2007 school year.
"Most teachers saw not only significantly increased class time on computers, but also improvements in attendance. They mentioned that students seemed less distracted and got more work done on time, and there were fewer disciplinary problems."
The school expects to conduct a more formal analysis of the program and will use a group of parents, teachers, administrators, and other officials to evaulate the success of the program--which is the first of its kind in Alabama. The $127,000 lease program included 75 laptops for three years as well as training, software and a service plan.
