Warsaw Sixth Graders to be First 1:1 Device Class
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By David [email protected]
Tuesday evening, Chief Technology Officer Brad Hagg presented the school board with a three-year 1:1 technology plan for the corporation as well as discussion on the financial aspect of the plan.
In 1:1 education, every student has their own portable computer device.
WCS has chosen the iPad Mini for students’ use. Hagg said the Mini functions like a full-sized iPad but has a 7.9-inch screen compared to the 9.7-inch screen of the iPad. He said the Mini was chosen because teachers are familiar with full-size iPads and the cost structure fits well with the 1:1 initiative “with a path to ownership of the device.”
By the end of the three-year plan, all students in grades sixth through eighth will have devices. The total cost for leasing all devices for all three years will be $308,640, paid through a grant, the Capital Projects Fund and textbook rental fees.
In the first year of the plan all sixth-grade students will receive iPad Minis at a total lease cost of $51,440, Hagg reported. Devices will be leased for all sixth- and seventh-grade students at the same cost per grade in the second year, and in the third year devices will be leased for grades sixth through eighth at a total cost of $154,320.
Using the Professional Learning Communities process, all sixth-grade teachers will receive informal and formal professional growth opportunities. Teachers will collaborate and participate in professional growth opportunities with middle school teachers as the year progresses.
The sixth-graders will receive information literacy instruction, assessments, eBook instruction and access as well as take part in project-based learning, research and collaboration. They will get instruction on the iPad Minis.
WCS plans to lease about 550 devices per grade level per year. Hagg reported the $154,320 three-year lease cost of the first batch is less than the cost of purchasing the devices, estimated at approximately $165,000.
In the first year, $25,000 of the payment will be paid from an Indiana Department of Education $100,000 Digital Learning Grant WCS received this year to implement 1:1. The other half of the first-year payment will come from the Capital Projects Fund.
After the initial year, the Minis will be collected from the sixth-graders and prepped for the following school year. When students return as seventh-graders, they will get the same devices back, Hagg stated. While that year’s sixth-grade students will receive their own Minis.
“We’re not married to this device forever. Only for that (first) cohort,” Hagg stated.
In year two, $53,380 of the cost of leasing Minis for two grade levels will be paid out of CPF. The other portion, $49,500, will be paid from textbook rental fees.
“By the second year, 10 of 11 of our buildings will have some implementation of 1:1,” Hagg said.
In the third year of the plan, all WCS students in grades sixth through eighth will have devices. Warsaw Schools’ obligation to pay for the three grade levels’ devices out of CPF will be $80,070. The other portion, $74,250, will come from textbook rental fees.
At the end of the school year, the eighth-grade students may elect to purchase the Minis they’ve used for three years for $45 to $50. At the end of the three-year lease is a balloon payment, and selling the devices will help cover that expense, Hagg reported.
Board Secretary Randy Polston asked if lost devices were figured into the three-year plan. He was also concerned about filtering content for the students.
Hagg said guidelines are being looked at now, but the devices will be filtered through the same policies at students’ homes as they would be at school since the devices belong to WCS. To help prevent damage, he said they are looking at new cases that are sturdy and water resistant. In case of theft, he said optional insurance may be offered for parents.
“We’re working within the existing budget without requiring you to come up with more money,” Hagg said.
WCS has to start somewhere, and there will be bumps in the road, but the three-year plan gets it started, he concluded.[[In-content Ad]]
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Tuesday evening, Chief Technology Officer Brad Hagg presented the school board with a three-year 1:1 technology plan for the corporation as well as discussion on the financial aspect of the plan.
In 1:1 education, every student has their own portable computer device.
WCS has chosen the iPad Mini for students’ use. Hagg said the Mini functions like a full-sized iPad but has a 7.9-inch screen compared to the 9.7-inch screen of the iPad. He said the Mini was chosen because teachers are familiar with full-size iPads and the cost structure fits well with the 1:1 initiative “with a path to ownership of the device.”
By the end of the three-year plan, all students in grades sixth through eighth will have devices. The total cost for leasing all devices for all three years will be $308,640, paid through a grant, the Capital Projects Fund and textbook rental fees.
In the first year of the plan all sixth-grade students will receive iPad Minis at a total lease cost of $51,440, Hagg reported. Devices will be leased for all sixth- and seventh-grade students at the same cost per grade in the second year, and in the third year devices will be leased for grades sixth through eighth at a total cost of $154,320.
Using the Professional Learning Communities process, all sixth-grade teachers will receive informal and formal professional growth opportunities. Teachers will collaborate and participate in professional growth opportunities with middle school teachers as the year progresses.
The sixth-graders will receive information literacy instruction, assessments, eBook instruction and access as well as take part in project-based learning, research and collaboration. They will get instruction on the iPad Minis.
WCS plans to lease about 550 devices per grade level per year. Hagg reported the $154,320 three-year lease cost of the first batch is less than the cost of purchasing the devices, estimated at approximately $165,000.
In the first year, $25,000 of the payment will be paid from an Indiana Department of Education $100,000 Digital Learning Grant WCS received this year to implement 1:1. The other half of the first-year payment will come from the Capital Projects Fund.
After the initial year, the Minis will be collected from the sixth-graders and prepped for the following school year. When students return as seventh-graders, they will get the same devices back, Hagg stated. While that year’s sixth-grade students will receive their own Minis.
“We’re not married to this device forever. Only for that (first) cohort,” Hagg stated.
In year two, $53,380 of the cost of leasing Minis for two grade levels will be paid out of CPF. The other portion, $49,500, will be paid from textbook rental fees.
“By the second year, 10 of 11 of our buildings will have some implementation of 1:1,” Hagg said.
In the third year of the plan, all WCS students in grades sixth through eighth will have devices. Warsaw Schools’ obligation to pay for the three grade levels’ devices out of CPF will be $80,070. The other portion, $74,250, will come from textbook rental fees.
At the end of the school year, the eighth-grade students may elect to purchase the Minis they’ve used for three years for $45 to $50. At the end of the three-year lease is a balloon payment, and selling the devices will help cover that expense, Hagg reported.
Board Secretary Randy Polston asked if lost devices were figured into the three-year plan. He was also concerned about filtering content for the students.
Hagg said guidelines are being looked at now, but the devices will be filtered through the same policies at students’ homes as they would be at school since the devices belong to WCS. To help prevent damage, he said they are looking at new cases that are sturdy and water resistant. In case of theft, he said optional insurance may be offered for parents.
“We’re working within the existing budget without requiring you to come up with more money,” Hagg said.
WCS has to start somewhere, and there will be bumps in the road, but the three-year plan gets it started, he concluded.[[In-content Ad]]
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