April 1999 — Industry Perspective
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Notebook Programs Pave the Way to Student-Centered Learning
Remember your school supplies? A 3-ring notebook, a collection of pens and pencils, and maybe a protractor, compass and ruler? These tools prepared you for the challenges of a new school year. With them, you could write, erase, measure, draw and communicate.
While
today's students are still required to do much of the same
work, the tools are rapidly changing. Portable computers are
finding a home in K-12 classrooms around the world. Instead
of carrying backpacks loaded with 3-ring binders and
pencils, many students now walk to class clutching notebook
computers. As more schools integrate portables into the
learning process, studies are showing that these high-tech
tools are making a profoundly positive impact on teaching
and learning.
Innovative programs, like Toshiba's Notebooks for Schools (NFS) concept, package low-priced, cutting edge notebooks with powerful Microsoft software and a variety of accessories and value-adds specifically for classroom integration. These values mean greater computing access for students and educators alike. A wide variety of comprehensive leasing and finance plans also now make it possible for nearly any school, teacher or student to participate in notebook learning.
Reaping Positive Results
In the fall of 1996, 55 schools volunteered to take part in a pilot program put together by Microsoft Corp. and Toshiba America Information Systems. This experiment, based on a concept of increasing computer access to K-12 students in Australian schools, became what is now known as Microsoft's Anytime Anywhere Learning (AAL) program.
One of the original pilot districts, Beaufort County Schools, has a student body that comes from widely diversified economic backgrounds. Nevertheless, their initial Anytime Anywhere Learning/Notebooks for Schools (AAL/NFS) program started with 300 eager sixth-grade participants. Today, just two years later, more than half of the county's middle school students are part of the program.
More and more parents are becoming advocates of the program. "I have never seen Melanie as excited about school and learning as she has been since the day she brought her notebook home," said Kitty Ott, mother of an eighth-grade Beaufort student. In addition, due to a school-wide improvement in academic performance, the faculty support is strong. Herman Gaither, executive superintendent of the Beaufort County School District, wants to expand the program to all students as soon as possible. "Our notebook PC students have improved their schoolwork and demonstrated higher-level thinking skills," he explained.
