My students need one reliable laptop with adapter and program, great back-up system, and protection plan so we can take our presentations on the road to educate others!
FULLY FUNDED! Ms. B.'s classroom raised $2,646
This project is fully funded
My Students
"Aaah!" comes the collective scream from the "Upstanders Over Bystanders" Peer Educators group as the laptop freezes and shuts down, taking with it the "scenario" video they're editing for their upcoming workshop. You've probably had this experience. Now imagine it happening three times in a month!
At a comprehensive, urban public high school, I run a peer helping program made up of elective classes and extra-curricular activities.
I teach students to become effective mentors, tutors, and/or educators to other students in our community - both at our school and at the neighboring elementary, middle, and high schools.
My program brings together students identified as leaders in the school AND students who have great potential but are struggling - some of my star students are not seen as "model students" in the rest of the school, but through this program all students gain self-confidence and extensive leadership skills which they then use to help our diverse community.
Once students learn communication and public speaking skills, they select health and social issues of concern to today's youth, conduct research, and create and lead in-depth projects to address solutions. They then use their endless energy to spread their knowledge creatively, getting other youth on board.
My Project
As creative, persevering, and patient as we all try to be, our technology gap is finally limiting us. Because we are not part of a Department, on the rare occasions that technology is able to be upgraded at our school, our program often remains untouched. Consequently, we have been using a donated PC the past two years (and my personal computer) to make multimedia materials for our health and social justice workshops. The last few months, however, the PC has been unreliable, randomly shutting itself down for a couple days at a time. Last month the tech wizards declared it KAPUT, right as my students started taking their workshops to other classrooms at our school, the neighboring schools, and conferences!
My students have no end of great ideas for creating workshops with materials that engage their audience and help them to wrestle with difficult topics in a meaningful manner. We just need one reliable laptop to charge ahead these next years!
We always save the materials that past groups have created.
I often use them as teaching aids; students pay great attention to work of youth they know! We also build off them to enhance the workshops the current groups create. With just one powerful laptop (with a cover and a protection plan) that they could use to create, store, and transport their multimedia materials to other classrooms, along with a projector cord and a powerful external backup hard-drive, they would accomplish even more!
This project will directly impact historically underfunded classrooms.
More than three‑quarters of students from low‑income households
Data about students' economic need comes from the National Center for Education Statistics, via our partners at MDR Education. Learn more
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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 Ms. B. and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.