My favorite quotes from visiting Waverly-Shell Rock’s 1:1 iPad Deployment

Today I visited the new Waverly Shell Rock Middle School, in Waverly, Iowa. Their school was devastated by flooding back in 2008. With the help from FEMA, state, and local resources, the school reopened in the fall of 2011 as a 5th grade thru 8th grade middle school featuring a 1:1 ipad rollout to all 600 students. The building was not designed specifically for one to one, but instead for classroom computers instead. The change to 1:1 iPads came about when they determined that they were about to deploy a comparable amount of desktops and laptops. District-wide, each teacher has an ipad and each student grades 5 thru 8 has a 16Gb iPad. Next year, iPads will be deployed to all 9th thru 12th graders (approx 750 more).

My full notes from the visit are available at: My notes from the Waverly-Shell Rock 1:1 iPad Open House

My favorite quotes from the day…

#4) “Our goal is that everyone has technology so we can take the focus off technology”

#3) “We don’t have a technology initiative, we have a learning initiative”
All too often, it’s seen as a tech initiative. In our own district, the 1:1 question is always directed to technology instead of the curriculum directors… which is a sign that we still view it as technology, not a learning initiative.  We have some work to do.

#2) A quote from a visitor… “Our school needs a flood”
My take on this quote.. some of this is about wanting new furnishing and new technology, but perhaps some of it is about the change that was produced due to the flooding. Sometimes we need to create our flood or storm in order to produce the change that we need.

#1) Teacher quote: “the iPad won’t transform education, I have to, it’s still up to the teacher”
Wonderful insight from a teacher who has a new school and the latest technology – but still understands that the teachers impact is and will continue to be the driving force for students.

Pictures from today………………….

A short throw projector in each room

cafeteria

Even the filing cabinets have soft seating!

It’s called Strategies, not Spec Ed

Jackie checks out the chairs in the team/shared areas

Lots of soft furniture everywhere!

Markerboard tables, how cool!

Spacious Science Rooms

Tables/furniture in the team/shared areas

The cafeteria

The library

The loneliest room in the school – the computer lab

The main entrance and office

Thumbs up from Jackie on the AV classroom table

View of the cafeteria from above

iPads DO NOT belong in shared carts.

Several of our schools have asked….”Our school would like to buy 30 iPads. Should we place them in a cart to make them available to all classrooms?”

My response: No.

I don’t hate iPads. Really, I don’t. It’s the cart that bothers me.

I realize other school districts are placing iPads in shared carts – so I understand that it’s technically possible. Instead my concerns relate to whether this type of deployment actually matches up with your desired expectations and outcomes. Many times, schools want to put technology on wheels to make it available via check out from the media center – simply because that’s what we’ve done before. For example, our district still has many laptops on shared carts, but I feel the the iPad is different. It doesn’t need a cart, it needs a classroom.

Why am I so obsessed with keeping iPads out of carts?

1) If you’re fighting to put them in carts, its usually because of equity. I’ve heard things like “My desire is to make sure the technology is available to everyone.” Of course, I read this as… since it’s available to all, it’s owned by no one, cared for by no one, and the expectations for quality usage goes to no one as well.

2) Technology assigned to check out carts is not cared for. Let’s be honest, we’ve all opened up a shared cart and found broken devices. Since no one “owns” the devices, it’s just easier to return broken devices and let the next person deal with it.

Instead, I’m proposing that we consider the findings from our earliest iPad testers…

1) The ability for a teacher to review, select, and install their own apps is critical. If we expect teachers to find solutions to meet individual student needs, we need to let them “own” the device. In other words, the device is best managed by the classroom teacher.

2) Training and deployment of equipment should go hand in hand. Giving training to teachers who “might” use a shared cart is not meaningful and takes time and training resources away from others.

3) If iPads are assigned to my classroom, I feel I am responsible for making sure they are used for the best possible purpose. Yes, this action alone sets an expectation that doesn’t exist with a shared cart.

4) Classrooms that have less iPads than students are reporting the following – they need to break up into groups, centers, and rotations. In some cases, the iPad is becoming the factor thats helps them move away from whole class instruction.

5) Assigning them to classrooms could mean that you don’t have enough money to buy them for every classroom. But do you need them for every classroom? Is everyone ready for training and expectations for use? Why not find out who is ready – and proceed with them first?

6) Our earliest testers reported that the students cared for the devices as if they were their own, since they belonged to their classroom.

My final response to the question: Don’t buy the cart, your best bang for the buck is to assign them to classrooms not a cart.