Alternatives to the School Computer Lab

Students Need Access to Technology Near Their Classrooms

Feb 27, 2009

Computer labs are a common approach in many schools, but there are alternatives to ensure that students have technology when they need it.

Many schools set up computers in labs with twenty or thirty computers in one location. Such labs have several advantages. It is easier to maintain computers that are in just one or two locations. It is sometimes easier to teach computer skills to students who are all following along at once.

However, David Zandvliet argues in his 2006 book, Education is Not Rocket Science, that computer labs are a throwback to the time when engineers used computers to design rockets and secrecy was critical. Students in the 21st century need access to computers on a regular or daily basis, and computer labs are not conducive to continuous access.

Instead of investing funds in computer labs that take up valuable real estate and limit access for many students to times when the teacher can sign up for whole-class instruction, there are several alternatives.

Computer Banks

Set up banks of computers in classrooms or near them. A bank of five or six computers is more accessible to students when they need to use the technology instead of waiting to sign up for the computer lab. Nancy Frey of San Diego State University says, in personal communication, that having computers set up in labs far from the learning action is a little like having a “pencil lab” for which they must sign up before they can write. Technology is, or should be, a critical and readily available learning tool just as important as a pencil and readily available to students.

Memory and File Access

Flash drives are an excellent and portable tool students might use to save their work as they move from computer to computer. Online storage is another useful tool. Students can save their work in an online folder and retrieve files when they need to do so.

Laptops

Many schools purchase laptop “carts” that can be wheeled from room to room. This solves the problem of the space taken up by a computer lab, but it does little to promote access to computers if teachers must sign up for the entire cart. Increasingly, schools allow students to check out laptops during the school day using a checkout system. A computers-on-wheels cart may contain 15 laptops, but the computers need not be kept together as a set at all times. Netbooks, small computers with Internet connection capability, are increasingly affordable tools, as well.

Handheld Devices

Handheld devices or personal digital assistants (PDAs) are inexpensive alternatives to equipping every student or classroom with computers. With a PDA, students can use nearly full-size keyboard to record data, use online resources, or participate in threaded discussions. Students who create documents on a PDA may upload their work to a classroom computer before replacing the PDA in the charging station.

Conclusion

Computer labs tend to reinforce whole-class activities and teacher-centered instruction. Data from the California Department of Education is encouraging, though. In 2004-05, forty percent of teachers reported having access to and using new technologies in the classroom. When students can use technology as a regular learning tool in the place where most learning occurs, the classroom, everyone benefits.

References

California Department of Education. (2006). EdTech Profile, 2004-05. [From the home page, use the search tool to find the 2004-05 report].

Zandvliet, D. B. Education is Not Rocket Science: The Case for Deconstructing Computer Labs in Schools, 2006, Sense Publishers.

The copyright of the article Alternatives to the School Computer Lab in Teaching & Technology is owned by Tom Wolsey. Permission to republish Alternatives to the School Computer Lab in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.