MP Middle School prepares for 1:1 rollout

BY BRYCE KELLY

Mt. Pleasant News

This fall will mark Mt. Pleasant Middle School?s first year of the 1:1 laptop initiative, giving students the world at their fingertips.

However, before staff hand out new MacBook Air laptops to all its students, and MacBook Pro laptops to all its teachers, there are still some strategic planning meetings to be had and lingering questions to be answered. With this in mind, Mt. Pleasant Middle School Principal, Jason Martinez, plans to hold the official rollout until October, by which time he hopes everyone will be as prepared as possible.

?We have some professional development trainings planned for staff, as well as parent and student meetings to address concerns,? Martinez explains. ?We want to get everyone on the same page before we hand out high tech equipment to all our kids.?

The main point Martinez hopes he and the rest of the middle school teaching staff can drive home to parents and their students is the importance of the new program and the responsibility that comes with it.

According to MPCMS? vision for technology, the 1:1 program?s purpose is to help personalize and enhance student learning by teaching 21st century skills, which will allow students to become collaborative problem-solvers, critical thinkers and effective communicators.

?We want to enable students to achieve without limits,? said Martinez.

When the 1:1 program is initiated in October, middle school students will have already attended informational meetings along with a parent or guardian and signed a computer use agreement. Students will also have taken computer information courses independent from their parents to educate them on computer safety, cyber bullying and other technology-based learning methods.

On the other side of the coin, teachers will have also developed teaching strategies that will implement technology into the classroom.

All this planning, Martinez says, is key to the success and continuation of the 1:1 program.

?We aren?t wanting the laptops to distract from learning and we certainly don?t intend for them to replace our teachers or curriculum. They are simply quality tools that we want our kids to be able to use that will better prepare them for the job market,? he explains.

Martinez also adds that waiting until October has given the district more time to glean from other districts that have already made the jump to the 1:1 initiative, including New London, Central Lee, Ft. Madison, Winfield and Washington schools. In fact, he says many of these other districts claim they have found the program not only brings students into 21st Century learning, but it also gives teachers more teaching options and doesn?t discriminate.

?You can program a laptop to fit any person?s learning style, even if that person speaks a different language, or has a physical disability,? Martinez explains. ?Imagine what kind of learning environment will be opened up once every student and teacher in this school has a tool like that at their fingertips. It?s going to be pretty amazing, I think.?

While Martinez and the rest of the MPCMS staff are excited for the implementation of the 1:1 program, he says there are two major challenges that are being thoughtfully considered.

Mainly, the overall continuation of the program with regard to the sheer upkeep involved is the school?s main battle right now. On average, a MacBook laptop has a lifespan of four to five years.

That, combined with the ever-evolving world of technological programming, means that the school will have to keep up with the regular system upgrades required for a 1:1 program of this magnitude. However, Martinez says the district?s hope is to keep this program going as long as possible, despite the obvious challenges.

?We can?t know where the school district will be five or ten years down the line financially or otherwise, but I think it would be a shame to see this program go by the wayside. I want kids years from now to have the same opportunity with this program as our kids will, come October.?

While there are many moving parts to this upcoming change, Martinez says the staff?s commitment to students is unwavering and says he invites any questions regarding the 1:1 initiative.

?Equal opportunity for education and critical thinkers who can go out and conquer the workforce- that?s what we want to see coming out of Mt. Pleasant,? Martinez says.