THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, April 24, 1996 TAG: 9604240384
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A8 EDITION: FINAL
SERIES: Decision '96
Part 2: The Issues - Chesapeake
SOURCE: BY DENISE WATSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Long : 130 lines
Mary Harrell's home is Computer Central in her neck of the Camelot neighborhood.
Many weekends and evenings, boys and girls use her two computers to Net surf, type school papers or play computer games.
``I do whatever I can to help the community,'' Harrell said. ``Anytime they want to come over, they know they can.''
She doesn't mind the traffic. But Harrell thinks the schools need to do more to give students consistent, hands-on computer training. School officials counter that they are, indeed, getting the job done.
Harrell, as well as other Chesapeake residents who participated in a roundtable recently sponsored by The Virginian-Pilot, is concerned that the schools aren't equipping students with the technological skills they'll need.
``At school, the kids might get on a computer once a week . . . some of the students are going to go lacking,'' Harrell said. ``Being that this is a technical world, they need the experience. The earlier they receive it, the better they will be.''
Computer literacy and technological preparedness have emerged as key concerns for Chesapeake residents preparing to vote in the May 7 School Board election. Nine candidates are vying for four seats in the city's second school board election. Five seats were filled in December.
Citizens said they live in a city with a ``good'' school system, but believed it is lacking:
Teachers, some said, aren't trained to use the technology.
``I'm blessed because I've had a computer in my home since I was in the third grade,'' said Stephanie Stevenson, a Deep Creek High School senior.
``We have computers at school but you wouldn't know because no one directs us to use them.''
The school system isn't working enough with local businesses and community resources to get financial help.
``Norfolk has the right idea,'' said Bill Pickens, a Chesapeake resident who works as a video technology instructor at Norfolk's Ruffner Middle School, which has been dubbed one of two ``model technology'' schools in the country.
Ruffner recently received a donation of 400 computers through a collaborative effort between the city, school system, military and businesses.
``Sure, Chesapeake could do that.''
But school officials say integrating technology into the classroom is more complex than buying more computers.
There is never enough money to buy all the computers the district wants. Facilities need to be rewired. The district could set a technology goal, but the ever-changing technologies would soon make that goal obsolete, school administrators say.
``This is something that will never be fixed,'' said Ida Hill, division chief for technology for the Virginia Department of Education in Richmond.
``We're just trying to keep up, but technology just changes so fast. Schools have fixed budgets and can think, `This seems to be what we need to purchase,' then something else comes along that serves more, is more efficient.''
Many parents are not aware that the district is taking steps to increase technology. Linda Scott, principal at the Chesapeake Center for Science and Technology, said the school system seems at a disadvantage because it has failed to promote its successes.
``We haven't done a good job at promoting ourselves. Parents probably don't have a good idea of what we're currently doing with technology.''
She also said more explanation is needed on what technology encompasses - television, radio, laser discs.
And, a group at the Science and Technology Center recently won a regional award for making an electric car. Students gutted the engine of a 1979 Volkswagen Scirocco and created a vehicle that runs 55-miles-an-hour on marine batteries.
``We've seen the stories about the future of electric cars and not only will these students know the gasoline engine, they know the electric. ``These are the kids the businesses will be after when they graduate.''
The district's latest technology plan requires graduates to be ``computer literate'' in accordance with state-mandated academic standards.
``By the fifth-grade, students are required to know basic keyboarding, word-processing,'' said Kate Pitchford, coordinator of information technology for Chesapeake schools. ``By the eighth-grade, students are expected to create a home page.''
The 34,980-student district has nearly 3,000 computers in its 42 schools. All high schools and middle-schools have computer labs and the district plans to lower the computer-student ratio in the elementary schools from 13-to-1, to 10-1 next year.
The 1996-97 proposed school budget, which will go before City Council next month, includes about $2.3 million for classroom technology.
Some individual schools have more sophisticated programs than others, prompting criticism that Chesapeake's effort is helter-skelter. For example, the Science and Technology Center teaches students how to create computer software. Oscar Smith has a sophisticated Lab 2000, a high-tech version of the old shop class.
``Parents ask, `Why doesn't my school have this,' and the answer is that the money comes from different funding sources,'' Pitchford said.
``We try to be equitable; we won't go overboard and put something in one school that we won't be able to do at another school.''
Scott is also working with a community-based task force started by the school division to explore better ways of integrating technology in the schools.
Dan Mulligan, a Great Bridge High School math instructor who leads the group, said there's more to making students ``technologically literate'' than more keyboards and monitors.
``This isn't just hardware and what type to get; we have to look at training for teachers and what type of training,'' said Mulligan, who echoed the sentiments of parents.
Mulligan said the plan will make teacher training a priority. The system offers a variety of programs, including two seminars this week, one on learning the parts of the computer and another on accessing the Internet.
``I've been in a school district where we had a computer in each classroom,'' said Mulligan, who taught in New York before coming to Chesapeake four years ago. ``Which means nothing without staff development . . . This task force is looking at how to approach technology and not go at it willy-nilly. I think this is a good way to handle it.'' MEMO: Main article is on page A1; related article is on page A8.
ILLUSTRATION: L. TODD SPENCER
Linda Scott, principal at the Chesapeake Center for Science and
Technology, said the school system has failed to promote its
successes.
KEYWORDS: CANDIDATE CHESAPEAKE CITY COUNCIL RACE CHESAPEAKE SCHOOL
BOARD RACE PUBLIC JOURNALISM CHESAPEAKE SCHOOLS
TECHNOLOGY by CNB