Crossing the Digital Divide
Apple 1 to 1 Learning
As a Title I school, with 65 percent of all students qualifying for free and reduced-price lunches, Nicolas Junior High School has its share of challenges. Historically, students’ performance on standardized tests has been below the state average. So when Fullerton School District Superintendent Dr. Cameron McCune approached Nicolas Principal Allan Waterman with the suggestion to explore 1 to 1 learning, Waterman was intrigued.
“Right away, we saw that the iBooks really helped the students to be more focused on what they’re doing. Also, we saw reductions in the number of discipline referrals.”
— Allan Waterman, Principal, Nicolas Junior High School
McCune worked closely with Waterman to overcome the school’s main hurdle: ensuring adequate funding for iBook notebooks for all seventh and eighth graders. With a combination of Title I monies, school-based coordinated funds, supplemental grants, and a multiyear leasing program through Apple Financial Services (AFS) Education Finance, Waterman was able to provide a wireless iBook for each student.
As soon as the notebooks were distributed, Waterman and his staff saw encouraging evidence of improvements in students’ attitudes and performance in the classroom. “Right away, we saw that the iBooks really helped the students to be more focused on what they’re doing,” confirms Waterman. “Also, we saw reductions in the number of discipline referrals. And while we didn’t expect adult behavior from 12- and 13-year-olds, by and large the kids were — and still are — very good, in terms of how they handled and took care of the notebooks.”
Waterman says Nicolas students who lack access to the web at home are now regular visitors to Fullerton’s “hot spots,” where wireless network access is available. These include the city’s libraries and much of the downtown area. Students also gather with their iBook notebooks at the lunch tables outside the school at night and on weekends, eagerly exploring websites and working on their school projects.
Though Waterman does not anticipate dramatic spikes in test scores at Nicolas right away, he is happy with the progress his students have made thus far. Armed with their iBook notebooks, he believes they are becoming better prepared for life in the 21st century. “The iBook notebooks give students the exposure to the technology tools they’ll need to succeed in the future,” Waterman notes. “In 10 years, this is the way all schools are going to be.”
