Timing for statewide laptop program isn't right

By JDS/Staff Writer
In his State of the State Address, Gov. John Baldacci called for the Department of Education to expand on its one-of-a-kind laptop program for seventh- and eighth-graders statewide to include all high school students.
The program would call for the DOE to lease 100,000 computers from Apple Inc. that would carry a price tag of roughly $25 million, all paid for by current instructional technology funds in the education budget.
As Gov. Baldacci said on March 10, “Maine has been a leader in putting technology to work in the classroom. We are going to revamp our laptop program and turn it into a powerful tool for the entire family. The Department of Education and the Department of Labor will work to make sure every one of those computers has software preloaded to connect Maine families with the services available at our state’s CareerCenters.”
According to a March 12 story in the Portland Press-Herald¬, the current program for seventh- and eighth-grade students costs the state roughly $12.4 million, or $289 per laptop. That cost includes software, tech support, wireless, repairs, training for teachers and a host of other services.
From all accounts, the current limited program has been a worthwhile venture for schools and has given teachers another powerful tool to use in the classroom and putting laptops in the hands of high school students has been in the works since the law was crafted in 2002.
The thing is, at a time when school administrative budgets are being cut back, when the DOE can’t live up to its promise for Essential Program and Services (EPS) funding to each school district and when the state is constantly looking for places to cut funding or places to add taxes to offset a massive budget deficit, does it make sense for the state to dole out this program now?
School districts statewide are struggling to come up with a way to offset state subsidy losses since many did not comply with school consolidation. Locally, towns are doing everything they can to keep from having to close schools. SAD 68 in Dover-Foxcroft voted to close Monson Elementary School to cut down on expenses, while SAD 4 in Guilford is toying with the idea of closing McKusick Elementary in Parkman and moving those students into Guilford Primary School.
SAD 46 in Dexter is already in the works of closing all neighboring elementary schools and moving them into the new centralized campus on the Fern Road in Dexter by 2010, but wants to consolidate with Harmony as soon as possible to avoid the state’s non-conformity penalty.
The fact that the governor also feels the laptop program can help connect families to “our state’s CareerCenters” makes me wonder if he’s seen how kids and computers work. As he said in his address, “Every night when students in seventh through 12th-grade bring those computers home, they’ll connect the whole family to new opportunities and new resources.”
You mean to tell me that the kid is going to willingly give up the laptop to their parents so they can use the state’s career resources on a nightly basis? Kids are going to be too busy updating their status on Facebook, downloading songs in iTunes and checking their e-mail, as well as doing their homework, to be letting their parents utilize the career resources that the Department of Labor will add to each laptop.
I agree with DOE Commissioner Susan Gendron that laptops are a great addition to the classroom, but I’m against the timing of this plan. You can’t tell me that a state that has as much trouble making ends meet at a time like this should be out purchasing MacBooks for the kids. It sends the wrong message — a message of fiscal irresponsibility — at a time when the state should be looking for ways to save money. If the state really has money burning a hole in its pocket and wants to help schools, maybe it should trying funding EPS as promised.