5 ms·

I really like the idea. However, there's a brief note in the article which isn't really addressed in detail: students need computer access to use an on-line tex

by Adlai 17y ago

I really like the idea. However, there's a brief note in the article which isn't really addressed in detail: students need computer access to use an on-line text. Although computer access is increasing, poorer students wouldn't have the same amount of access (if any) as students from better-off families. I can think of a few ways to lessen this problem. One would be to ensure that public libraries are freely accessible to students, and offer Internet access for students who don't have it at home. Another option would be to allow students to print out, at school, relevant materials from on-line texts. The second solution would be very expensive in the long run, so I'd say that some form of the first solution needs to be put into effect for the Governator's proposal to succeed.

TomOfTTB 17y ago
As odd as it sounds schools that service poorer students have more computers in general (at least in California where I live). This is because schools are granted what's called Title 1 funds based on the amount of lower income students who attend. Beyond that the state and federal governments subsidize high speed Internet connections like T3 lines through the E-Rate program It still might be a problem but less because of lower income students and more because there's no way to put a computer on every student's desktop
vaksel 17y ago
Computers are more or less a commodity now...I mean you can get one for a few hundred dollars, or a used one off craigslist for 20 bucks, pretty much every household has one nowadays.
- TomOfTTB 17y ago
  Sadly that's not true. The first study I could find (don't have much time to research right now) shows that only 73% of U.S. households have Internet access: http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2006/Internet-Penetration-and-Impact.aspx http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2006/Internet-Penetration...
  - vaksel 17y ago
    Here is a more recent report from December 2008. http://www.pewinternet.org/Data-Tools/Download-Data/~/media/Infographics/Trend%20Data/January%202009%20updates/Demographics%20of%20Internet%20Users%201%206%2009.jpg http://www.pewinternet.org/Data-Tools/Download-Data/~/media/... The younger demographics are much more likely to be online. 18-29 has close to 90% penetration, while the 65+ has only 41%. + the major people who aren't online, are those who don't see the need for it. Needing it for their children, would change the situation. + you also also have geography to consider, Californians are much more likely to have internet access, than some farmers in Ohio.
    - TomOfTTB 17y ago
      "Use the Internet" is different from "have the Internet in their home." Many if not most people do the bulk of their Internet usage in the office. Plus that study doesn't count kids what so ever. Oh, and it's a small issue that's probably not statistically relevant (due to the city populations) but for the record California consists of more farm land than it does cities. Primarily in Central and Northern regions.
  - asciilifeform 17y ago
    > only 73% of U.S. households have Internet access We have no reason to believe that cost is a factor here. I strongly suspect that many of the computer-less households contain an expensive TV set and a cable feed.
pmorici 17y ago
Or just give every student an eReader ie: Kindle in 1st grade and they can use it through every grade. You break you kindle you are SOL.
- blhack 17y ago
  I don't know about that. My kindle seems pretty sturdy (okay, no it doesn't)...but have you ever seen how destructive a 3rd grader can be? I predict that, if this was tried, not a single kindle would make it through elementary school.
  - enomar 17y ago
    Not to mention that many would be stolen.
    - gaius 17y ago
      OLPC has a solution to that, IIRC each unit needs to be regularly in contact with a base station at the school or it disables itself. Or you could just have remote disabling on-demand like BlackBerry.
      - patio11 17y ago
        I'm tempted to mention "that is hardware DRM". Why am I tempted? Because some of the audience will realize "Uh oh, doomed to failure" and some of the audience will say "NO, NO, IT ISN'T DRM. That is to prevent bad people from stealing stuff. DRM prevents me from ... That isn't DRM!"
    - anigbrowl 17y ago
      I thought that at first too. Then it struck me that if every student has one there's not much incentive to steal. Cellphones were desirable objects for many thieves a few years back, but between location tracking and the sheer ubiquity of the things, a cellphone is no longer an obvious grab.

by Adlai 17y ago

TomOfTTB 17y ago

As odd as it sounds schools that service poorer students have more computers in general (at least in California where I live). This is because schools are granted what's called Title 1 funds based on the amount of lower income students who attend. Beyond that the state and federal governments subsidize high speed Internet connections like T3 lines through the E-Rate program It still might be a problem but less because of lower income students and more because there's no way to put a computer on every student's desktop

vaksel 17y ago

Computers are more or less a commodity now...I mean you can get one for a few hundred dollars, or a used one off craigslist for 20 bucks, pretty much every household has one nowadays.

TomOfTTB 17y ago
Sadly that's not true. The first study I could find (don't have much time to research right now) shows that only 73% of U.S. households have Internet access: http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2006/Internet-Penetration-and-Impact.aspx http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2006/Internet-Penetration...
- vaksel 17y ago
  Here is a more recent report from December 2008. http://www.pewinternet.org/Data-Tools/Download-Data/~/media/Infographics/Trend%20Data/January%202009%20updates/Demographics%20of%20Internet%20Users%201%206%2009.jpg http://www.pewinternet.org/Data-Tools/Download-Data/~/media/... The younger demographics are much more likely to be online. 18-29 has close to 90% penetration, while the 65+ has only 41%. + the major people who aren't online, are those who don't see the need for it. Needing it for their children, would change the situation. + you also also have geography to consider, Californians are much more likely to have internet access, than some farmers in Ohio.
  - TomOfTTB 17y ago
    "Use the Internet" is different from "have the Internet in their home." Many if not most people do the bulk of their Internet usage in the office. Plus that study doesn't count kids what so ever. Oh, and it's a small issue that's probably not statistically relevant (due to the city populations) but for the record California consists of more farm land than it does cities. Primarily in Central and Northern regions.
- asciilifeform 17y ago
  > only 73% of U.S. households have Internet access We have no reason to believe that cost is a factor here. I strongly suspect that many of the computer-less households contain an expensive TV set and a cable feed.

pmorici 17y ago

Or just give every student an eReader ie: Kindle in 1st grade and they can use it through every grade. You break you kindle you are SOL.

blhack 17y ago
I don't know about that. My kindle seems pretty sturdy (okay, no it doesn't)...but have you ever seen how destructive a 3rd grader can be? I predict that, if this was tried, not a single kindle would make it through elementary school.
- enomar 17y ago
  Not to mention that many would be stolen.
  - gaius 17y ago
    OLPC has a solution to that, IIRC each unit needs to be regularly in contact with a base station at the school or it disables itself. Or you could just have remote disabling on-demand like BlackBerry.
    - patio11 17y ago
      I'm tempted to mention "that is hardware DRM". Why am I tempted? Because some of the audience will realize "Uh oh, doomed to failure" and some of the audience will say "NO, NO, IT ISN'T DRM. That is to prevent bad people from stealing stuff. DRM prevents me from ... That isn't DRM!"
  - anigbrowl 17y ago
    I thought that at first too. Then it struck me that if every student has one there's not much incentive to steal. Cellphones were desirable objects for many thieves a few years back, but between location tracking and the sheer ubiquity of the things, a cellphone is no longer an obvious grab.