Back in the olden days when I was a kid

Even though these students are getting a marginally basic education to technology via their ubiquitous dumb cell phones and smartphones, I agree with your sentiment on socioeconomic class and computer literacy wholeheartedly.

This isn't a fair statement if your school in question was smart and shrewd to get these computers at a high educational institution discount or even completely donated. Even at the full price, 14 new computers these days will not be the equivalent to even a single starter special ed. aides salary. So this isn't some kind of wicked Sophie's Choice style tradeoff your superintendent had to make.

What makes you think those computers were free?



$1.1 million for one school.

According to this, the median wage for a SPED teacher, not an aide is $49,040.

http://www1.salary.com/OR/Special-Education-Teacher-salary.html

Using the numbers you've provided, 14 IPads for your school (if they got IPads) would have totalled about $7700. Standard issue computers would have been even less.

Thanks Beth. That was my point. And any superintendent or school board worth their salt would have half a brain to see if they could get these tech items donated to their respective schools if they decided to do the footwork and SIMPLY called around to a few nonprofits or directly appealed to the tech companies themselves.

You and I have the same profile, Setanta. As for the hands on, Jean Piaget was correct. In math, however, I was fixated at the concrete stage.

And my point is why spend any amount on something that still hasn't been shown to help student outcomes.

Jean who? Never heard of her . . .

George has provided an excellent example of how computers have helped student outcomes.

In any case, the world isn't slowing down/stepping back.

Computers/technology are a reality in many employment areas - not just office work. The plumbing guy makes notes on an electronic device, the electrical guy invoices through a tablet, auto mechanics in shops are recording their work electronically for billing purposes, our hairdresser who works from home has some kind of software for scheduling etc etc

Did all those people grow up with computers in their classrooms? Is their success dependent upon having always had access to such things or did they somehow manage to survive anyway?

Most of my younger colleagues (say, under 35) seem to have had computers in their classrooms at some point. They talk about learning technical things at school 20+ years ago that I'm still figuring out (and I was programming 30+ years ago).

Secondarily, access to jobs is not the same now as it was 10/20/30 years ago. Employers can, and do, demand different basic skills than they used to. The marketplace has changed. Giving children the tools to succeed now includes exposure to computers. It's not my preference, but it's a reality.

I recently listened to an interview with an ethics professor from San Diego. She said that 30 years ago, 70 percent of students went to university to develop a philosophy of life. Now, seventy percent of students are entering university to increase their entry-job income. I find that disturbing.

I agree; those without computer skills will be handicapped in many ways in today's job market.

This discussion (digital education) has come up before. Eve supported your contention, and she can be very convincing, especially with her own son in high school