Netbook Integration

Hi all,

I work for a large urban school district and just found out one school in my district will be purchasing Netbooks for all the teachers at this schools. I'm not sure which model is being purchased but here is an example of a Netbook (http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=netbooks&safe=active&a...).

Does anyone have any resources for integration of Netbooks in Education or the Classroom? Please share. Thanks.

Tags: Education, Integration, Netbooks

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Permalink Reply by Doug Walker on December 17, 2009 at 8:16pm

I started to research this option as well. The base model netbooks are very reasonable. However, I did not find this to be a reasonable option for a school. You really want XP pro not home. You want to easily network to file servers (like home folders). You also need to get a good warranty. If it a teachers primary classroom computer that needs to be next day warranty fix or replacement. (like the typical Dell 3 year complete care). After I added these features and looked at the cost I was not that far away from the price of a full blown laptop. If the teacher is going to create and stream multimedia and work with interactive whiteboards a netbook might not have enough processing to handle everything.

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Permalink Reply by Jeffrey Thomas on December 18, 2009 at 7:14am

We did a pilot program for our 3rd grade classrooms. We bought 25 of them and had high hopes. You are correct about the cost. Although the cost is less than a full blown laptop (not by much though), the lack of computing power causes a big problem. In addition, try explaining the restricted capabilities to teachers who want to load up the netbooks with all sorts of software. In addition, don't forget the RAM upgrade. In the hands of tech-savvy users the netbooks would be an acceptable option, but that usually isn't the case. I would go with laptops unless the netbooks were used solely for low-power apps. (Remember, flash videos are not low power!)

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Permalink Reply by Ricardo on December 18, 2009 at 12:45am

Netbook applications in the classroom make sense. Especially in a web 2.0 environment. If supported by a stable wireless network, netbooks carry the potential to empower both teacher and students alike with limitless access to content and authorship possibilities. Through e-books, online production tools, and social networking schools can offer rich learning experiences and rewards.

Even data storage issues can be addressed via cloud-computing, much of it is even free. One key factor in the success of such a set up, however, is the assurance of onsite support staff. Without it, schools are left stranded if and when equipment fails or networks go down. Classrooms must be as free from technical troubles as possible for creative academics to take off. Wouldn't you agree?

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Permalink Reply by Doug Walker on December 18, 2009 at 6:20am

I completely agree. I just found that when you add in a network capable OS and a solid support agreement they are just as expensive as a full size laptop in most cases. I could not agree more that having the technology at the desk is what we should be doing.

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Permalink Reply by Tia on December 18, 2009 at 7:57am

Thank you very much for your input. I know that the purchase of the Netbooks are a done deal. I'm not sure which model was purchased though. Do you all have any resources for implementation in the classroom like lesson plan ideas or classroom activities?