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Philadelphia
Spends $63 Million to Build 'School of the Future' |
Posted:
11.27.06
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A new experimental high school in Philadelphia, referred to as
"the school of the future," is using state-of-the art
technologies to train tomorrow's scientists, mathematicians and
problem-solvers.
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The "school of the future" opened this year in west
Philadelphia in a neighborhood with a high crime rate.
Built with technologies created by Microsoft Corp., the school
looks and functions very differently from the traditional American
high school.
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Individual
laptops, unique learning tools |
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Instead of notebooks and textbooks, students are given laptops
with high-speed Internet access in the classroom and at home.
 Instead
of a library filled with stacks of books, students use the Interactive
Learning Center to access a wealth of information in addition
to streaming media content created by experts.
"[The laptop is] actually the lifeline, I think, to learning,"
Principal or "Chief Learner" Shirley Grover told the
NewsHour.
Each student also carries a smart card that, among other things,
gives them access to digital lockers so there are no combinations
to remember, or to forget.
"You can do everything faster. And if you do everything
faster, that means you get more assignments. And the more assignments
you do, the better your grade comes out," said 9th grader
Littleton Hurst.
The card even tracks the calories students consume during lunch.
Breakfast and dinner are served, too, before and after school,
9:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
The classrooms don't have blackboards but electronic displays
for Internet access, videos, and for connecting with other classrooms
around the world.
Class schedule and locations change every day -- the information
is posted online. And rooms are designed with mobile desks to
foster teamwork and project-based learning.
 Teachers
view the technologies as tools to engage learners.
"The software is marvelous. It makes my job easier. But
I think, if I were to put on a scale of 1 to 10, I think I might
make it like a 4 for me, personally, because for me it's the human
interaction with the students, and it does allow me to open up
doors that most teachers don't get the opportunity to do,"
said teacher Kathy Lee.
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Students
help build a culture of success |
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Thousands of students wanted
to go to the school, so the district set up a lottery.
Only students who live in the west Philadelphia area were eligible
to sign up. This year, 170 students were chosen from over 1,500
applications.
"I think everybody here is excited about it, everybody.
And the students that have been offered the opportunity to go
there has been excited, as well," said parent Eleanor Shockley.
 Eighty-five
percent of the Class of 2010, the school's first graduation class,
came from low-income families and 12 percent have special needs.
Students say they can feel a difference in the school culture,
which focuses on success.
"They want you to succeed, so they're like just, 'Go ahead.
You can do it. You can do it.' ... They're determined for us to
take another step higher," said first-year student Ryan Wheeler.
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The school
of the future is not cheap |
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Instead of writing a check, though, Microsoft donated millions
of dollars in human capital -- people who shared their ideas and
expertise with the school system.
"At the end of the day, the human resources is what we're
seeking, and sometimes money can't buy high-quality human resources,"
said Paul Vallas, the head of the Philadelphia school district.
 However,
with all the fanfare there are some who don't think one new school
for 750 students is the best use of resources for a school district
of 200,000 kids.
"It's unlikely they can afford to do that with the other
40 or 50 schools that are in the school district," said Diane
Jass Ketelhut, who teaches science education at Temple University
in Philadelphia.
"What could we have done to raise the level for all students
somewhat, as opposed to a lot for a small group of students?"
Vallas says the system plans to create 3,500 classrooms of the
future over the next 18 months, eventually providing every public
school student access to the same technology that kids in the
school of the future enjoy, even if it's not in a new building.
--
Compiled by Adela Maskova for NewsHour Extra
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