Lyle Evans, assistant superintendent of a Chesterfield, V.A. school district, acknowledges that initiating a one-to-one plan for any device in a district can be a daunting and difficult task. He offers advice to eSchoolNews on how his district saw success with implementing a one-to-one Google Chromebook initiative.

Evans said his district decided to look into a one-to-one device initiative in order to meet its blended learning and educational goals; at the start of developing the initiative, the district only had access to very few computers.

"As a first step in that direction, Evans says school leaders and the district IT team investigated its device and laptop options. After reviewing those options, he says, 'it came down to the Chromebook versus the laptop,'" he said, according to eSchoolNews.

The pilot program was a three-year period for grade levels 6-8 so that the district could ensure the initiative performed well. Before implementation, teachers trained with the devices the summer beforehand.

This training was called "Chromebook Camp," and is described by Evans as one of the most important components to his district's success.

"Evans said the camp worked so well that the district will replicate it this coming summer, when high school teachers will receive similar professional development in anticipation of their upcoming one-to-one Chromebook initiative."

During the camps, teachers were assigned individual technology integrators to help them understand how the devices could transform their lessons in the classroom.

Further, teachers were included in the "shopping and selection" part of the process, allowing for them to be most knowledgeable and also be most informed.

In order to ensure that the one-to-one initiative would be most successful, Evans said his district surveyed parents to determine how much of the district did or did not have access to internet. The results were that more people were equipped than thought.

"Finally, Evans said the district’s commitment to creating a safe internet browsing experience and secure network helped advance the Chromebook implementation in the minds of community members. 'When students take the devices home in the evenings, the Chromebooks immediately run through our [school] network,' Evans explained," according to the article.

This way, students are protected from inappropriate material as well as distractions when using the devices for schoolwork.

Evans says the initiative has thus far been a total success to the point where the Chromebooks have replaced the paper-to-pencil tasks.

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Article by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

06/18/2015