I wait around for an eternity as a line whirls around in a circle on the Mac before a box pops up. It reads: “Network profile unavailable” next to a red dot. Oh, that’s right, I have to use the library account, not my own. I login with the library account, wait another eternity, until I’m finally greeted by the desktop.
Waiting around for the computers to fix themselves was not a problem I’ve encountered during my first three years at PHS before Chromebooks.
When the district spent upwards of a million dollars to improve the technological infrastructure of the school, the promise would be better functionality, but all the changes I’ve seen are negative ones. Last year, I was able to use library computers with my own account, fast speeds, and a guaranteed ability to print papers. Last year, I was actually able to use the school Wi-Fi.
The tortuous wait times and unreliability of the library computers as well as the removal of students from the school Wi-Fi are justified as temporary side-effects as the school is trying to push out Chromebooks for juniors and freshmen. However, the administration overlooks the other half of the student body who are not receiving anything.
As the Chromebooks are being integrated with the rest of the school, students without Chromebooks should be guaranteed functional computers in the library, as well as a priority in terms of usage. Overall, the administration’s recent technology upgrades so far have been a small step forward, but not great enough of a leap. Getting more support for the school’s technology is what the school needs to fully use the resources it has.
Just like how the Macs in the library went from part-time working to full-time, the technology coordinators also need to move from part-time to full-time. Having spent around $150,000 trying to push out more than 400 Chromebooks, wouldn’t it seem reasonable to have more than just two part-time high school technology coordinators? Maybe then, with more time or people to manage such a large workload, the wealth of technological resources could be spread a bit more equitably among students.
