When I was in high school, computers played a daily role in shaping my education: typing, researching and designing websites were daily activities I took for granted. At the school I teach, students are lucky to use a computer that works, with Internet, a few times a month. Let's change that!
My students are mostly low-income English Language Learners.
Some were born in the U.S., some immigrated with their families as recently as two months ago. They are hungry for knowledge, but don't always know how to access it or what they'll need to succeed in life. Some have Internet access and/or a computer at home, but even so they are not fluent in the research/critical thinking side of the Internet. It's time to show them the the true power the Internet has to liberate.
My Project
Imagine a classroom working like a well-oiled machine: as some students finish their hand-written drafts, they can easily check out a laptop and begin typing their final draft. When done, they can easily share their completed Google Doc with me for in-document comments and feedback. Students can peer-edit each other's work, again in a trackable format completely online. As student's finish their final paper, they can begin blogging it onto the class website, all while in my classroom (and not in our outdated computer lab). This gives everyone an advantage: students still writing their drafts get more time to work and attention from me. Students already typing can work in the work zone in my class- away from the distractions of the multi-purpose computer lab. All of this from five laptops!
Many of my students are far behind their higher-income peers, particularly in critical thinking skills.
This donation empowers my students to learn, to expand their horizons an to explore! Plus, in the writing cycle, students are much more likely to work diligently on their rough draft if it means getting the first opportunity to use the laptops! :)
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mr. Mishleau and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.
