The Open Letter from Herb Berg, Ed.D.

If you have not already heard about the Kershaw County School District’s bold new technology initiative, I invite you to read this letter.

Over two years of study by the school board, school and district personnel, and the citizens and staff on the district’s Technology Committee lead to this initiative which will put all Kershaw County students at a distinct advantage in the 21st century workplace.

I’ve written before about the critical importance of technology in today’s academic and work environments. Since I became your superintendent, I have worked with the talented staff here to design an affordable program that will eventually put prolonged, direct computer access into the hands of every student before he/she becomes a graduate of our system.

Here’s the bottom line of why this is critically important: when many of us were in school or began our careers, our “tools” were protractors, slide rules, typewriters, microscopes and such. Can anyone argue that the “tool” of today’s college classroom and workplace is the computer?

Any bold or new initiative comes with questions.  In an effort to help our community understand what their school district wants to do, we’ve prepared a Q and A that covers some of the basic questions you may have. Printed below are 10 of those questions.  You can access more by visiting our website at www.kershaw.k12.sc.us and clicking on the latest edition of Inside Schools, our employee newsletter. We will continue to place information about this initiative on the district’s website and in the media as the program is implemented. 

For now, I hope you will take a few minutes to read through the questions below to learn more about this exciting initiative.  I also ask that you join me in supporting this effort that will be the most significant step we can take to arm our students with the skills they need to succeed in the 21st century.
 
                   Herbert M. Berg, Ed.D.
                   Superintendent, Kershaw County School District

1. What is the district’s technology initiative and why was this grade level chosen?
   Ninth grade students and all high school teachers will receive laptop computers this year. Each year that follows, all 9th grade students will receive a laptop.  In four years, all high school students will have a laptop for one to one usage. The new ninth grade academies create a great environment to implement this new program.  Student interest in school should improve during this high school year that traditionally is one where students are at a higher risk for failure and/or dropping out. Starting this program with the 9th grade also lays a foundation for usage throughout high school.
    
2. Why did the district decide this was the best way to utilize funding?
   The power of this program is that it is a major instructional initiative that will eventually affect every student in the district. Providing students with these computers will better enable us to teach them the skills they will be required to use in the 2lst century workplace and make them more successful and competitive when they enter institutions of higher learning and the world of work. Laptops will also target this generation of students who are “cyberspace natives” and used to a stimulating, hands-on, tactile environment which fosters learning.  Overall, learning for students will be more personalized.
    
3. How will this program be financed?
   These computers will be paid for through four overlapping lease agreements.  At year five, the entire cycle will begin anew.  The lease payments would be paid from the general operating budget and would be built into the regular spending plan during each budget cycle.  As each new 9th grade is added, the lease payments will increase up until year four; whereby, the payments will level off and become part of the annual spending plan, much the same as utilities are funded each year.
    
4. How will teachers be trained to integrate the use of laptops in their instruction?
   The district’s contract has a large commitment to professional development for teachers and includes the services of Classroom Connect, a nationally known company with a specialty in professional development and training.  This company will work with the district first to provide hands-on training through workshops and mentoring for all 9th grade teachers as well as on-line training opportunities.  Training for other high school teachers will follow on an appropriate timeline. The district is critically aware that the most important piece to making this program work is teacher training. It is a major part of the district’s overall plan.
    
5. Where else has this type of initiative taken place and what have been the results?
   Various laptop programs have been in place in a number of states including Maine, Michigan, Texas, Georgia, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, and even Beaufort, South Carolina. It is difficult to summarize research results because few of the programs have used the laptops in the same way.  Some have been given to middle schools students, some to particular grades, some to particular classes, etc. Most programs have been successful, and those that were not did not use the same approach our district plans. Generally, however, research agrees that laptop programs improve student motivation, attendance, and performance.
    
6. Will there be any costs/responsibilities for parents of students who receive these laptops? 
   The district is currently discussing the possibility of a minimal cost to parents for an insurance program for the student laptops to supplement the factory warranty. If there is a cost, however, there will be provisions which take into consideration a student’s economic situation as determined by his/her free/reduced lunch program status.
    
7. How will the district keep students from accessing inappropriate sites, conducting inappropriate downloads, emailing and instant messaging in class, or using the laptop in other inappropriate ways?
   Software which blocks inappropriate sites will be loaded on each computer. Classroom management techniques will be shared with teachers.  Other strategies that will be used to encourage appropriate student use of computers are being planned as part of the implementation process. Certainly, inappropriate use will lead to disciplinary action.
    
8. What about other issues related to student and instructional use?  How will these issues be decided?
   High school principals and district staff are currently working with the computer vendor to answer a number of questions that all relate to the implementation process and use of laptops.  Questions currently being resolved include the following: infrastructure issues; notification of parents of policies and procedures for this program; consequences and procedures in case of computer loss, damage, or theft; procedures and timelines for computer repair; issues related to batteries; and management of the laptop program. All of these issues and others are under discussion and will be resolved prior to the implementation of the program.
    
9. Why was this particular vendor selected?
   Three major vendors participated in a lengthy process of presentations and question sessions with district personnel, principals, and the technology committee made up of representative teachers and media specialists. Hewlett Packard (HP) was selected as the recommended vendor after this process.
    
10. How will the district evaluate the effectiveness of this program?
    We will use teacher, student, and parent surveys to gauge a variety of things including training, learning, amount of time the computer is used in the classroom, amount of time used at home, and amount of time used for independent learning.  This first year, the information gathered will be used to set district benchmarks.

District and school staffs realize that as with all new initiatives, some things will run as planned and others will have to be reevaluated.  Our goal is to change the way teachers teach in a way that will foster individualized teaching programs and will enable students to perform better both in today’s classroom and tomorrow’s workplace.