Starting this spring semester, John Dewey High School is making a significant advancement in educational technology by providing each student with personalized Chromebooks. The days of sharing devices are over thanks to this initiative. Students now have their own device to explore, learn and operate like never before.
John Dewey High School originally had placed Chromebook carts in almost every classroom so that students would have access to technology to do their work online.
Yet due to the amount of damage and mistreatment the laptops were reported to have, John Dewey is switching to personal laptop use, giving freshmen, sophomores, and juniors personal Chromebooks to bring home and back. Students are now responsible to bring their own provided laptop for class and keep it well maintained.
“The carts and many of the Chromebooks in them are damaged—students can be very destructive—and most devices have reached the end of their life,” said Assistant Principal Mr. Antonucci, the who is the staff member tasked with managing the new Chromebook system.
After having these Chromebook carts for several years students are heavily damaging them by removing key caps and damaging the screen.
Overall, they’ve become increasingly slow when in use. This would be the main reason the school administration has decided to switch to providing students with their own Chromebook, still managed by the school, but for now are theirs for the school year. This initiative was also supported by mayor Eric Adams.
“A major challenge is that freshmen struggle to stay focused when Chromebooks are out. I often have to remind them when we’re not using them because the screens can be very distracting. However, a key benefit is that students can take their work home and keep everything organized in one place,” said Ms Amato, a social studies teacher who teaches freshmen every day.
Social Studies teacher Ms. Amato agrees with this viewpoint as well. Freshman are adjusting to the new high school experience and can easily be distracted, having their own Chromebooks will only add onto that and interfere with teachers lesson plans.
That being said, Chromebooks do play an important role in class with being able to do work online and taking that same work home to be completed.
“I no longer have to waste a big part of class time getting a laptop from the cart, making sure it works well, is charged, and has all the keys I need,” said Grisel Rivera, a freshman at John Dewey High School.
Rivera shares her content with having her own personal Chromebook, not needing to worry about using a damaged one. She does admit that she struggles to keep it charged, that being her only downside.
Just like Rivera, other students have shared the same experience with their new personal Chromebook. “It’s made things much easier in classes that use laptops often. I no longer waste time trying to find a working device. My Chromebook turns on quickly and works well, so I don’t struggle like before,” said Stephanie Gonzalez, a junior at John Dewey High School.
“Chromebooks are a great tool,” said Ms. Amato “But like any tool, they’re only effective when students use them at the right time and for the right reasons.”