Cheap Computers in My Classroom?

richeddy asks: "I am going to start teaching elementary school in the near future. As a new teacher, I have the crazy idea that I might be able to actually teach my students a few things that other teachers just don't seem to be able to teach. This involves teaching methods that might be a bit unconventional. To this end, I am interested in building and installing a network of classroom computers that the students can use in real-world ways. That's right, no glorified flash cards in my classroom! I want my students using computers for research, presentations, writing, data collection and analysis, etc. In order to do this, I am going to have to personally foot the bill for the hardware and software. So I am looking for suggestions on what direction to go. I figure that I will need 5-7 computers to accomplish my vision, and I can't imagine paying for Windows and Windows apps. It looks like my only real option is to build the systems myself, which isn't a problem. Any ideas? Suggestions? Comments?"

Cheap O computers

[xagon7]

You could ask for donations from Parents.. tax write-off for them

You could get the $200 PCs from Wal-Mart.com .. the school may be able to scrounge up monitors for you -- or the donation route or your local Goodwill or Salvation Army.

I home this help "some".

Good luck!

go easy route

[psavo]

If you get some PC's with enough RAM, and 'young' enough, I suggest you run Knoppix [knoppix.org]. It's a CD-ROM distro, and lives from ROM. It doesn't need to be installed, and doesn't need a hard-drive. It can save your settings on a flpppy though. (And it supports burning CD's). It has lots of niceties like autodetecting most if not all hardware, kde, openoffice and alike.

Just make sure..

[aztektum]

they know they're arithmetic, spelling, and the capitals first. don't get them started on oo wiz bang gizmos until they understand their basic studies otherwise they might get distracted. i started playin' those silly learning games in school and never wanted to do my homework.

LTSP

[Anonymous Coward]

The Linux Terminal Server Project [k12.or.us] would be a cheap base for your plan - one central high-spec server, with a load of low-spec workstations displaying the served (remote X) terminals.

Don't be fooled into thinking that the performance will equivelent to the server spec averaged over the workstation machines, the peak performance of the server will be available to each user. Having just one box to administor, and being able to lock it in a cupboard should simplify setup & administration.

ACCRC

[Omniscient Ferret]

There are places that donate computers; one I'm familiar with is at accrc.org. I know that they have Pentium-level machines at hand, and they have passed along many donated computers.

What is your goal?

[TheWanderingHermit]

First, I'd have to say I agree STRONGLY with the post by GaryMannDude above about change. Schools are VERY conservative institutions (speaking from experience -- 10 years of teaching before burnout). They do not like change and administrators are often actually feel threatened by teachers -- especially new ones, who konw a lot of things the administrators don't know -- like how to use technology.

Second -- and my main point: What is your goal? Is it to teach the children the objectives for your year that you have them, or is it to teach them all the things you think they should learn? Almost every 1st year teacher I've ever known (myself included) has spent 12 hours a day or more on lesson plans. This is especially true for elementary students. You don't say what grade you'll be teaching (and there's a big range and a BIG difference between kindergarten and 5th grade), but I don't know a single elementary teacher who spent less than 10 hours a day on prep and grading during their first year.

Do you really want to add setting up a group of computers on top of that? Is your goal to teach or to make a new record for quick teacher burn out? If you are not teaching the basic goals, as stated in your state's/county's/city's guides, it won't matter what miracles you're producing or what the kids can do with computers, you'll be on probation and out the door by the ned of the year.

First year teaching, especially in elementary school, is rough. If you want to succeed as a teacher, spend your first year teaching and finding out what it's like being totally, 100% responsibile for a class of children (including dealing with the administrator and the parents) without your teeachers or an experienced teacher helping you through 1/2 a semester of student teaching.

I admire and applaud your goals, but trying to do all this in your first year is asking for burn out and a new career. Spend this year, and likely the next, learning your profession. After you've been teaching for a few years, then make plans for how you're going to integrate the computers into your classroom. You'll do much better if you tie the computers in directly to the required objectives (in Virginia teachers are responsible for teaching the material stated in the Standards of Learning for each grade -- and yep, the Standards of Learning are called S.O.L.s), so when you're setting them up you can show administrators how they tie in directly to what you're expected to teach.

You'll also do much better this way in the long run. You're pacing yourself instead of trying to do everything at once. While your students in the first year won't gain benefits from your computer plans, in the long run, if you pace yourself, you'll reach many more students without burning out.

Good luck!

[djmitche]

I'm a new middle school teacher, and while I heartily encourage you and hope you the best of success, be *very* careful not to focus too much on the technology. Several times, I've gone to some length to develop a technological solution to a perceived problem, and discovered later that I had wasted quite a bit of (valuable) time because of some misperception of the problem or some deficiency in the technology in my district. As a tech person, it's very easy to focus on large technical solutions to small problems.

That said, I've very successfully taught small kids to build computers from spare parts and installed Linux on them. I then started bringing them up on, what else, Python. We used donated computers, which we stripped for parts. We then tested parts and built new, working computers which the students then took home with them. This was in a summer program, but I see no reason you couldn't do the same with your kids.

I'm interested in hearing the ideas you have for effective use of computers in the classroom. Remarkably, this is a very new idea and you're likely to be on the forefront of ed-tech innovation if you have good, workable ideas.

Re:What is your goal?

[djmitche]

There are a few major current problems with technology in education:

• Little/no IT support
• Lots of expenditure without training
• Most training does not support teaching and learning
• Very few programs specifically, directly support teaching and learning

If what you're doing does not directly support teaching and learning (emphasis on learning), it's not your job. And with a 25-hour job (that's first year teaching with training; I didn't even know what a lesson plan on my first day in my own classroom!), anything that is "not your job" is something you should not, cannot, and ultimately will not do.

I highly recommend the Jere Confrey et al.'s "A Framework for Quality in Educational Technology Programs" in the May-June 2002 Educational Technology and Fulton and Honey's "Emerging technologies in education" in the July-August 2002 volume of same. These articles provide a good background and rubric with which to judge technology ideas, projects, programs, and implementations.

Research your ideas first. If they're good ideas, others will help you with them (this is a new field, starved for truly good ideas and overrun with mediocre to bad ones). If they're bad ideas, you'll find out.

I agree....

[davisshaver]

I am in 8th grade, and i think it would be the coolest thing to have a network of non-regular computers (ie Macintosh Power PC's) running Linux. You might want to wait a little bit, like until you get more experience or even if you get moved up. 5th grade is probably the earliest youll see results that are worth the time effort and money.

LTSP

[charlie763]

You can get one quality computer and then get several old 486's donated for free. You can have the 486's rebotly boot from the main server (the quality PC). Check out this site [k12os.org]. These people make a version of Redhat that is specific for this purpose. Also, check out LTSP.org [ltsp.org].

Wal Mart

[Evro]

Have you taken a look at Walmart.com? I don't know if you could possibly undercut this system [walmart.com] at $299 with no OS. You'll need a screen [walmart.com] too.

• AMD Duron 900 MHz processor
• 200 MHz frontside bus
• 128 MB SDRAM, expandable to 1 GB
• 133 MHz memory speed
• 256 K integrated level 2 cache
• 10 GB Ultra ATA 100 hard drive, 5400 rpm (total accessible capacity varies depending on operating environment)
• 52x CD-ROM drive
• Integrated Trident Blade 2D/3D graphics
• Up to 8 MB shared video memory
• Integrated 3-D enhanced sound
• 10/100 Ethernet connection
• 56 Kbps V.90 Win modem
• Micro ATX tower case (7.06"W x 14.7"D x 13.8"H)
• Total drive bays: two 5.25-inch external, two 3.5-inch external and one 3.5-inch internal
• Available drive bays: one 5.25-inch external, one 3.5-inch external and one 3.5-inch internal
• Total slots: 3 PCI
• Available slots: 2 PCI
• High-speed serial port
• Parallel port
• 2 USB ports
• Game port
• 104-key keyboard
• 2-button mouse with wheel
• Audio port (line-in, line-out, mic-in)
• Stereo speakers
• 1-year warranty, return to Microtel
• Windows and monitor are not included

Easy

[Noodlenose]

I have no idea why the rest of the posters insist on something as complicated as Linux. Ok, it's cheap, but it's a nightmare to administer and install and if you're not a full blown alpha geek, forget it.

I would get a set of mid- to endnineties Macs (pre G3). Why? Networking is dead sinple via appletalk, there is an absolute myriad on scientific software out there for Classic, and the hardware is dead cheap.

Sites like Lowendmac [lowendmac.com] are teeming with examples how to put older Macs into good use in the classroom.

Don't end up getting tangled up in Linux, please.

Dirk

Oh yes, and if you really, really want to use a free *nix, use OpenBSD. [openbsd.org]