potting a student clowning around in the cafeteria, an assistant
principal in Smithtown, N.Y., pulls out a palm-sized device and
checks the student's name against his class schedule. Seconds later,
the youth is busted: He should be sitting in an English class.
More than 800 miles away, students studying biology in Orland
Park, Ill., carry a similar device to a pond near their school.
An attachable probe reads the water's pH level and temperature,
and students use note-taking software to collect the data
they will later download into a classroom desktop computer
for analysis.
Welcome to the latest gadget to make its appearance in the
public schools: the handheld computer.
Sometimes known as a Palm computer or Pocket PC (depending on
the manufacturer's trademark), these compact devices have been
described by the Chicago Tribune as looking like a "cross
between a cell phone and a Nintendo Game Boy." Originally marketed
as a personal organizer for on-the-go business executives and
ardent technophiles, the handheld computer is beginning to catch
the eye of educators, too.
"As with any technology, the issue is what tool is the best
fit," says Tom Schmeltzer, an education consultant in Marietta,
Ga., who specializes in school management and technology.
"The handheld computer is a special-purpose tool that's very
portable and takes the data where you want to take it. It's
all about access to information."
For Schmeltzer, it's not hard to see the attraction of such
devices for school administrators. A good principal, for example,
is always walking the hallways, not sitting behind a desk,
he says. So principals need a tool that allows them to check
their schedule on the fly, determine if a student in the hallway
is supposed to be in class, or jot down a note for later reference.
To date, these palm-sized devices have yet to win widespread
acceptance in schools. Indeed, many educators still view such
gadgetry as a nuisance in the hands of students. But a few
districts are testing the handheld computer's potential.
In New York, for example, the Longwood Central School District
recently equipped administrators and junior and senior high
school teachers with Symbol Technologies' SPT 1500 Pocketable
Computer.
A major goal of the district's pilot project, says technology
director Joe Langan, is to see if the devices can help staff
keep track of the comings and goings of 2,400 students in
the district's massive high school, which is being expanded
to house 3,600. The goal is to take attendance every class
period on the small computers and have teachers transfer the
data at download stations throughout the school.
The system greatly simplifies data collection and provides
administrators with updated information on where students
are -- and aren't -- throughout the day, Langan says. "The
system works because the entire student database can be downloaded
into a [portable computer], and a person -- be it an assistant
principal or security person or guidance counselor -- can
look up the information. It's also used for grading and progress
reporting."
To date, only a handful of school districts are piloting
large-scale usage of the handheld devices, which range in
price from $149 to $450.
But some school officials see a lot of potential. Many, for
example, suggest that teachers could take notes and grades
during the day and then transfer the information to the school's
central database. Special education teachers could easily
access a student's individualized education plan anywhere
in the school.
The computer industry is following these experiments closely,
hoping the nation's schools will prove to be a huge new market.
In many instances, companies are working with schools to develop
new features to make the small computers more useful to educators.
One company wants to use bar-code scanners to allow bus drivers
to record the pickup and delivery of students by scanning
their ID cards. Another project calls for handheld computers
with Internet access to be linked to a wireless computer network
system.
But technology experts say adding a lot of bells and whistles
to handheld computers will not make them an obvious replacement
for desktop or laptop computers. The devices still cannot
handle many advanced computing functions, and their small
size means that entering large amounts of data -- in some
models, letter by letter using a stylus -- can be tedious.
Laptops and desktops are in no danger of being replaced soon.
Yet, some see the handheld computer's portability as its
key selling point. Stephanie Snyder, senior business development
manager for Symbol Technologies, says handheld computers can
go places where laptops cannot.
"What we've noticed is an increase in computer use by teachers,"
she says. "Teachers can set up the dynamics of the classroom
and can move the computers without worrying about wires. You
are able to move the computers where you want them." Also,
she adds, "not many schools can afford to give laptops to
teachers. They've got a desktop, but they can't move it. With
a handheld computer, you can take the device home and use
it and bring it back. The convenience of doing that is amazing."
No one has jumped on the bandwagon with greater enthusiasm
than Consolidated High School District 230 in Orland Park,
Ill., which recently purchased 3,000 Palm IIIxe computers.
All teachers and administrators received the devices, and
1,700 were sold to students at a discounted price of $225
or leased for $75 a year. (For students with skeptical parents,
Palms also are available free during school hours.)
The investment is designed to support the district's new
emphasis on problem-based learning, which requires students
to identify problems, gather information, collect and analyze
data, and propose solutions.
The school uses wireless computer labs with racks of laptops
that are wheeled into the classrooms, but the demand for these
labs exceeded their availability. Because parents were resistant
to the idea of investing in laptops, the relatively low-cost
handheld computer was seen as a viable option.
Although they've been in use only this school year, the Palms
have proven popular, says district spokesperson Jim Sibley.
Using an infrared-transfer system, teachers can "beam" homework
assignments directly to students' computers, and students
can turn in their completed homework the same way. Students
also use the computers to take notes on field trips and share
data in science classes.
At Carl Sandburg High School, biology teacher Laurie Ritchey
says her students have used their Palm computers to measure
the "ecological footprint" of their homes by gathering information
on their families' use of transportation, food intake, and
energy use. This data is easily downloaded for analysis without
the need to retype the information from hundreds of paper
worksheets.
As with any technology, however, the value of the handheld
computer will depend largely on whether school administrators,
teachers, and students find the device particularly valuable
for learning. And that, say educators and technology experts
alike, is something that won't be known until more schools
have put the handheld through its paces.
It's not a silver bullet, but it has great potential, Schmeltzer
says. "I think it's helpful. We're seeing a lot of value in
the classroom in terms of applications. For special purposes,
you can do almost as much with it as a laptop." But, he notes,
"right now, the screen really isn't big enough to do computer-assisted
instruction ... and some things are best done the way you've
always done them."
Del Stover
is assistant editor of School Board News, Alexandria,
Va. This article originally appeared in School Board News,
Oct. 10, 2000.
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