Reflecting on Our Year of 1 to 1 Classrooms

After our first full year of Chromebook implementation in our classrooms, we have had sometime to reflect on its impact on our students and how we respond as educators to ensure they get a quality education.  Additionally, our school is fed by an elementary school that is 1 to 1, so our incoming 6th graders provide some insights into the impact of this technology on our students.  We have identified some winners and losers in this process and some suggestions to improve learning outcomes.

Winners

Ability to navigate multiple learning tools.  Using Google Classroom, Canvas, Get More Math, Google Slides, Sheets, you name it, we use a wide variety of learning applications across our schools.  Kids have a better understanding that computer apps are tools.  Each tool has an optimal application and kids are starting to learn how to apply this.  No different than physical tools, iPad, Chromebook and smart phones all have their niche. 
Digital communication:  Its easier than ever to contact a student, teacher or parent.  Kids will ask me for missing work via digital communication.  I can quickly get back to them, so in a sense, there are no excuses.  Students are more than willing to check grades and, in many cases, will message me as soon as they see something they need to improve.

Losers

This is my biggest concern:  The ability to write by hand.  I still do it as an adult, but most of my writing is digital.  I believe there is value in being able to write by hand.  Brainstorming, drawing and creating sketch ups require fine motor skills.  There is a debate going on whether this is a problem.  This is a topic I would like to study in more detail as the research comes out.  Some of the initial thoughts indicate that learning the fine motor skills of handwriting activate different area of the brain than typing does.  The ultimate question, how important is this skill?  Here’s an article to look at, I am sure there will be more research in the future to examine this issue   http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20171108-the-uncertain-future-of-handwriting

A Draw

Classroom management.  On one hand, kids on computers get engrossed in their work.  Classrooms are quieter than ever.  On the other hand, there is a whole new world of pop up games, sites and workaround kids can use to avoid work.  Our hardware deployment to our students moves much faster than our ability to manage their online behaviors.  This requires the teacher to be vigilant and observe more closely during class.  In tradition non one to one classrooms, it was obvious who was avoiding work, being off task or distracting others.  In the digital era, these same behaviors are much more subdued.  In most cases all students look like they are working, but the reality is that not all students are focused on the tasks at hand. 

An interesting observation

In all my years teaching, kids always want to show me their test scores when they finish an online test.  I never ask them too and this is never been part of the classroom expectation.  I believe this is part of student’s basic human desire to connect with the adult in the room (good or bad).  They want to show me how they did, even though the computer instantly tells them their score.   This make me wonder what the limits to the one to one classroom will be.  Is there a point that too much online interaction takes away from physical face to face connections we all seek out?

Moving Forward

I am looking for balance.  That means using a variety of teaching strategies, both high tech and low tech.  Students will hear me lecture and discuss.  Students will create unique products in our maker space and interact in social media spaces.  They will write, they will read a book.  I hope to challenge them in a changing classroom that helps them all learn in their own unique way.   I believe this is the new challenge to teachers, we have every tool in the world, we just need to use them in the right way. 

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