25 Pound Backpack

My Back!
Have you picked up one of your kiddos backpacks lately and immediately thought, oh my gosh that seems heavy?  I often compare my backpack that contains a laptop, iPad, and miscellaneous cables to theirs that are full of books, binders, and pencils, and there is no comparison. I literally weighed one of them recently and it weighed 25 pounds, which I thought was crazy heavy. After digging into the backpack, I found the culprits to be a math book and a social studies book. The good news is the school provides two sets of books and the students do not have to transport them back and forth on a daily basis, however it leads us back to the conversation about textbooks and where we are at with them as an educational community.

Timing
I have to be honest, I started this post a few weeks back and it has been sitting quietly waiting to be finished. When I read the recent Center for Digital Education article covering the FCC Commissioner's discussion in San Francisco, the timing seemed appropriate. Jessica Rosenworcel addressed an audience of tech industry professionals, updating them on the recent FCC initiatives, encouraging "digital disruption within the teaching and textbook industry." Rosenworcel pointed out a few things that I feel are worth sharing here.

• “In the rest of the world, we have an infinite array of digital tools to change our civic and commercial lives. Yet somehow we’ve put up some barriers at the school doors, It’s time we started inviting them in and wrestling with them and doing some good things”
• "As a market estimated at $17 billion and with price increases in the last decade at 800 percent, the textbook industry’s services burden educators and students alike — average school districts only able to afford textbook purchases every seven to 10 years"
• “I just think it’s crazy if we keep on doing what we’ve done before because the world and the job opportunities that are out there look remarkably different"

These statements have all been said before in a number of ways by others looking to lighten up backpacks and promote change in a system that has been relatively unchanged for a number of years. I applaud anyone who takes the initiative to start these conversations as a way to reflect on the education we are providing our students. We must provide a relevant experience and not allow a $17 billion industry to give us what we have always had because that is what we have always done. Industry will provide what the educational community wants, so the conversation is important to have at the school, district, and community level. Listen to our teachers and students and allow their ideas, thoughts and needs, drive the industry to develop the disruption that will keep our classrooms moving forward.

Snob
I want to make it clear that I am not a book snob by any means and would never advocate for throwing all classroom texts in a big bonfire. Going to the extreme in any direction is what has kept technology a conversation piece, big shiny object, instead of just an everyday part of our classroom environment. But, providing our students with something other than the same basic textbooks like we have always done, is a conversation that is very necessary for today's classroom.   

E-rate Reality

Modernization

Anyone who is familiar with the E-rate program has hopefully stayed on top of the modernization efforts and countless opinions, informational webinars, and meetings with E-rate consultants concerning the changes. E-rate works in the past, present, and future and during this time of year is when we prepare for the filing of next year's funding requests. Even though I personally have stayed abreast of the changes, the reality of the phase down and elimination of services gives me mixed emotions about some of the modernization efforts.

Phaseout

The E-rate program has been around for the last 17 years and it is true that during this time the program has remained relatively unchanged. With any program, change must be a part of the road map to insure you are keeping up with the ever changing landscape that is necessary to remain relevant. The overall goals of the modernization do make sense and I applaud their acknowledgement, but they do come at the expense of existing areas of the program that school districts for better or worse have come to rely upon. A few of the affected areas for phasing down and elimination for 2015 include; support for voice services, certain phone features, e-mail, web hosting, voicemail and data plans.

Category 2

Priority 2 services, now known as Category 2, will focus on internal connections to provide wi-fi connectivity within your buildings. As a district we have not seen Priority 2 funding for many years due to our eligible rate falling under the percentage awarded, so the per student formula is a bright spot. However much of the controversy surrounding the modernization effort revolves around how funding will be sustainable in this area. At this time, the Category 2 funding plan is based on a 5 year budget and depending on who you speak with, only the first two years of funding is guaranteed. If you have not begun to review your existing network infrastructure or plan to implement wireless, now is the time. 

Reach Out

There are so many things to discuss concerning the modernization plan, both on a political and philosophical level, that could continue on for pages. I feel there is valid argument for the continued funding of a couple of the services being eliminated and the importance of having a long range plan for Category 2. The conversation about phaseouts and elimination is over, but there is still time to ask questions and advocate for a more solid long range plan for infrastructure hardware. At any rate, if you do not work with an E-rate consultant or do not have a strong group of peers that can assist you through the filing process in this time of change, I would suggest reaching out so that your district can best plan your approach for 2015. Good luck!