Laptop+Initiative


 * Laptop Initiative** - Kayser Hall 224 [[image:CartoonLaptop.gif align="right"]]

considering wide-spread use of laptops in their district.
 * Facilitators:** Paul Lindgren (Westside) Pam Krambeck (ESU #3)
 * Description:** This session is targeted at professionals who are using laptops extensively OR are


 * Helpful Links:**
 * [|Arnold, Nebraska Laptop Initiative]
 * [|O'Neal, Nebraska 24/7 Laptop Program] & [|O'Neal Program Blog Spot]
 * [|NDE Site on Laptop Programs] across the state
 * [|Nebraska Laptop Community Group]


 * Talking Points & Notes:**

Of the districts represented, many are in the stages of planning and gathering information and only one (Westside) has a student laptop program. Almost all had a teacher laptop program.


 * 3 issues to consider with laptops**
 * Freedom vs control
 * Responsibility—shared risk, what do we cover, what is the individual’s responsibility
 * Keep them engaged, what is the education


 * Notes form Westside:**
 * 8th grade rollout at Westside this year (2009): 2 apple certified techs, image on machines
 * 5 years of laptop 1-2-1 in grades 9-12, student shared drive—have a network home 500 meg or gig per student, intended for backing up school work, not music or pictures
 * 1 gig drive $7 sold at school at bookstore
 * one-touch online back-up to preserve network traffic
 * Only synch documents


 * Lease vs buy**
 * 3-year leases are the most cost effective
 * 4th year of a lease is the most expensive
 * OPS is purchasing machines rather than lease


 * Support:**
 * Middle school has 2 technicians (1-12 month, 1-10 month) techs, 1 building tech support person, machines on carts for seventh graders—they are not involved in the 1-2-1 a this time
 * It is worth have a certified technician to make your own repairs for “easy stuff” and the district is paid for the certified repairs
 * Students use to get a laptops while repair was being made—now they get the same machine back after repairs and they don’t “swap out” the machine. This seems to create an ownership of the machine
 * User reaction to “crash” –they start using the synch and backing up
 * Orientation— for all students
 * Saving a document—save to either the server or the hard drive—most save locally


 * Web Filtering:**
 * At home at school—Deep Nines client to filter in the building, does not incorporate with open directory, filters all traffic http proxy (not https), not fully filtered, looking at other solutions now, goes through filtering even at home
 * Web filtering is something that needs to be considered and addressed before a laptop program is undertaken


 * Cost:**
 * 3 year lease is most popular
 * Freshman—new machine—follows them through high school
 * Senior machine—moves to middle school?
 * Keep same laptop for the 3 year cycle (NOW—learned by doing other things)
 * Everyone checks in—summer school sets are used
 * Machines are reimaged every summer
 * Insurance, cooperative loss program, opt in or out $35—no official insurance policy that gets bought, if they participate ($100 and under they are responsible for), over $100 70% from cooperative, 30% is individual’s responsibility
 * Fee system—some use this and charge a $35/$50 usage fee but concern was voiced over school fees and policies against them
 * First year there were issues with some machines logic boards, since then, the machines have held up fairly well
 * Battery issues when you get past 300 cycles on the batteries –year 3 is the issue


 * Staff Laptop Use:**
 * Westside: all staff, 8-12 students, all staff members machines are fully covered,
 * Millard: All staff, replace battery no charge to user, policy signed, gross negligence (very few), Computrace for when laptop is stolen, $15 per laptop, per year on 2000 machines, can destroy data (user doesn’t log onto internet it is a problem), software piece that is imbedded, car left in car→stolen, insurance policy—if can’t find then $1000 replacement, docs PC’s, macs--no
 * Ralston: all staff have laptops—pay for everything, not more than 3 stolen
 * Elkhorn: all staff have laptops—struggling with damage (on site they are covered), off site they are responsible for first $250, instance where spilled coffee, screen damage (held a fundraiser), Window machines have 3-year accidental coverage, macs don’t have an accidental coverage
 * PLV: All certified staff have HP laptops, new this year
 * Bennington—all but 3 have laptops (teacher choice 3 went with desktop)
 * In place of desktops in the classroom—depends on user
 * OPS—most have laptops (some at elementary do not), elementary—macs, secondary is win
 * Support:**
 * Westside: Two certified techs, Support person in each building
 * Ralston: One covers all elementary and middle school, one takes care of networking at the high school—(more labs)


 * Mini Laptops:**
 * OPS is going with HP mini laptop at MacMillan, in classroom 30 laptops that stay
 * Interest in these—consider keyboard size
 * Many run on Linux—consider another operating system support when adopting
 * Many are now running XP


 * Learning Management Systems:**
 * Learning management systems are a piece to have in place with laptop programs
 * Some are using myelearning, others Moodle, Westside has BlackBoard in place long before the laptop program.


 * Other considerations:**
 * Carts for activities
 * Timelines (double them, consider time to unbox, box storage, tagging, inventory, imaging, etc.)
 * Re-imaging of student machines each summer, staff no—they take home
 * Over plan wireless
 * e-mail for every student—First Class has controls
 * Personal Laptops: some allow, some don’t→ against district policy to put on network
 * Network: open, vs password protected, authenticate with account, security networks
 * Millard—password protected,
 * Westside—keeps things open, etc.