In this article Mr. Goldberg asks the question what about wireless schools? A new school is being built in your area and they say that there will be no wires involved for the technology that is going to be used in that school. This is due to the Access Points (APs) which are devices that send out the wireless signal. Some extra wiring is involved with this process but they will be put to good use. Also, Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) is a protocol used for wireless applications to enhance security. This is very important in a school setting. Now the school is ready to be build but what standards are involved with putting together a high-tech school? There are several different standards that are available through the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). This company has all of the standards that anyone and everyone can look up and use for all sots of different types of projects. One example is Bluetooth, we have heard this term in the last 6 months or so because of cell phone use in cars. Bluetooth is a low-power, low-cost, royalty-free standard that has been said to be a good way to interconnect with small devices. This interconnection is what schools are looking for in a technology driven district. Mr. Goldberg suggests that lab and media centers be the focus for students when learning this technology. He also states that the classroom is the strongest case for technology interaction with students. Making wireless technology avoidable for school districts is where the money is in today's society. Now that the prices have gone down schools are have LCD projectors to show videos or other media to their classroom. Mr. Goldberg looks forward to a wireless future for all schools, and this may not be in the distant future like some may believe.
I think that this is a great way to show that technology is not only affordable now but practical. School district may be old and stuck in the "stone age" but they are slowly becoming aware of what is going on in the world. I have recently been in a classroom where they have mobile devices that come and students can play with. They are the i-pod touch, and each student has an assigned number to one of them. The i-pod touch set comes on a cart with foam around each device and a charger so that when the student is finished they just plug it back in. The cool thing is that students can read books, play spelling word games, etc on these devices. I thought WOW!! this school is not old and crashing in the technology department at all! I believe if more schools were like this one then students and teachers would be excited to learn.
It's not coolness factor that counts, by Don Hall
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In this article, Don Hall talks about the emphasis on what is "cool," in
particular with technology. He says that there is too much focus on what's
cool, w...
14 years ago
Alyssa,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this article mainly because I know very little about the technical side or "how to" of computers (wireless or not!). We have certainly come a long way to not have to have wires all over the place to run our technology. I can see that the wireless aspect is a great security tool for schools. It sounds from your article that it is also becoming more of an affordable option now as prices are coming down. I enjoyed also hearing about the school you visited that has the mobile computer (ipod touch) lab. That is very cool!!
Alyssa,
ReplyDeleteI thought your article brought out some interesting points about wireless technology and hoping that we do see wireless tech classrooms. Especially if prices are more affordable then schools in low income communities could receive them as well. To be honest thought there was a little skepticism with going wireless or like the class you visited. I don't see the schools I have visited or plan to teach ever having ipod touch's in their classrooms. Some of the classes I have visited only had one computer and it was the teachers personal computer. I do hope that one day that all schools would be given the opportunity to have wireless classrooms.