A teacher's perspective

Guest post from Emily Law, a 4/5 grade teacher at our school
In my first year as a teacher at Flynn, I am excited by the potential I see for success.  Teaching upper grades with such a diverse group of students has really allowed me to get a glimpse of the interests and passions that exist in these young minds.  However, it is difficult as a teacher to be unable to foster the level of learning they deserve because of a lack of technology.  I would love to be able to work with students on research-based projects where as a class we can investigate questions they have in science, social studies, math, and reading and language arts.  One project I would like to be able to do with my students is to have them research using the Internet and create power point presentations to display their findings.  This can be done in any of the subject areas but would be especially powerful for my students in science and language arts.  I also would love to be able to teach math lessons using online resources and visuals that would help students really grasp the material we're learning.  

I have been fortunate enough to student teach and work in a few technology schools where students had access to computers, laptops, LCD projectors, and document cameras - the results were phenomenal!  When you give students technology it allows them to ask and answer questions you would have never imagined they could.  I became an educator to help teach the next generation of innovative thinkers and problem solvers.  My students are the ones who will be asked to solve the problems of tomorrow and it makes me sad to think that I cannot currently give them the tools to meet this challenge.  Technology is a huge part of our world in the 21st century, and if I can't give my kids access to this tool and train them for success, what does that mean for their future?  Having access to technology in the classroom would revolutionize teaching and learning in my room.  My students are amazing and will continue doing amazing work with any resources we have. However, I hope soon to be able to offer them the resources and technology to really take their learning to a whole new level.  These students are some of the best and the brightest, all we have to do is give them the tools for success and they can take on the rest themselves.

Hello World!

Yesterday we went live with this blog, and as of a few minutes ago we have had over 1000 hits, thanks to some very generous retweeting by @timoreilly , @mikeolson , @isaach and others. However you found your way here, please stay, read about our problems, think about whether you can help and come back some time to see what's happening.

We will be updating the blog regularly with stories about our efforts to change the situation at our school, and the results and benefits for the children.

Thank you.

The reality of technology provision in a public school in San Francisco

We live in the age of the iPad, smartphone, and cloud computing. A world where a child's horizons can be expanded through the use of the web, Skype and access to the vast array of educational resources and software online. But that world is not available to everyone. We also live in the world of the digital divide – a divide that is here in San Francisco, home to Twitter and close to Google, Facebook and Oracle, and home to some of the most underfunded public schools in the United States.

Californian public schools struggle daily with budget constraints, fighting to retain staff and pay for basic materials like whiteboard markers and crayons. Investment in new technology comes way down the list of priorities.

• The reality is that San Francisco teachers and parents are posting requests on Freecycle for donated used equipment.
• The reality is that in our elementary school, children practice their keyboard skills on laminated photocopies because there aren't enough real keyboards.
• The reality is that our elementary school has 3 LCD projectors to share between 24 classrooms.
• The reality is that all the computers in our school are donated and used. Most are at least 6 years old. Many are unreliable. Monitors are old, large and unwieldy. 
• The reality is that teachers struggle to share important educational material with their classes because they have one copy of a book and no document camera or projector.

Our school is Leonard R Flynn on the southern edge of the Mission District in San Francisco. Most of the school's 485 students come from low income backgrounds and many are English language learners.

The teachers and parents there are hoping to bring some of the wonderful educational tools now available into the classrooms at Flynn. Our vision is of a school with a 28 seater Mac Lab in our library and every classroom with a minimum of a laptop, LCD projector and ELMO document camera. More importantly it is of a school where technology is used to inspire, engage and help our students to explore their world.

We recognize that new technology is not a panacea but we also know that our children deserve access to the technology that is changing the world they live in and that access to this technology will give them access to a world of free educational software and resources that can stimulate and encourage the curious and inquiring mind.


This blog has been created to share our story, to generate discussion on this important subject and yes, to raise funds, to help our school.