Florida Catholic | Laptop Initiative

Catholic High School begins laptop initiative

Beginning with the 2008–2009 school year, incoming freshman at Pensacola Catholic High School will be equipped with Apple® laptop computers.

AMY FERRARA SMITH | FLORIDA CATHOLIC STAFF

Published: 02.01.08

Pensacola Catholic High School Junior Kaylee Avery checks out one of the Apple® MacBook laptops that will be on everyone’s supply list beginning in the fall of 2008 at the school.
AMY FERRARA SMITH | FC

PENSACOLA | In an effort to connect students digitally to academics, Pensacola Catholic High School has become the first school in northwest Florida to acquire laptops for all incoming freshmen.

Apostle of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Sister Kierstin Martin, principal, spoke Jan. 16 about the “1:1 laptop initiative” to a room full of parents of potential incoming freshmen for the 2008-09 academic year.

“My son is excited,” said Martha Tripp, mother of an incoming freshman and a current Catholic High 10th-grader. “I hope it will help with homework. … It’s a good education tool.”

The program is designed to utilize Apple MacBook® laptops as learning devices that will help the now-wireless campus to become a “laptop school.” This environment allows students and teachers to have access 24 hours a day and seven days a week to modern-day classroom resources.

“We’re part of the digital world now,” said Craig Miller, whose daughter plans to start her freshman year at the school in the fall. “To study and stay organized is a challenge,” he added. “(The laptops) will help them in that way.”

For the 48 months of their four-year high school careers, the class of 2012 will rent the laptops from Catholic High. At the end of their senior year, they will have the option to purchase the laptops for $1.

Sister Martin told parents that students will “receive instruction on how to use it as an invaluable learning tool throughout their freshman year and throughout all four years.”

The technology team, she added, will keep the laptops updated and working properly. The team is comprised of three enthusiastic computer “wizards”: one full-time information technology professional and two Apple Distinguished Educators who teach computer classes. The department will teach both students and teachers how to use the built-in iSight camera, iLife multimedia programs and iWork features. According to the department, each of these programs will have an educational advantage for students and will allow them to create interactive class projects and provide them access to a built-in graphing calculator.

Since the computers are intended for educational purposes, technicians will scan the computers for non-educational games.

“If it’s not education-related,” explained Jonathan Burrill of the technology department, “we’ll take it off.”

Even though teachers have been equipped with laptops for the past two years, they will still be required to take four two-hour workshops and a one-week summer workshop to learn how to best utilize the computers.

“It’s a tool that will allow teachers to try different things,” said Michelle Bourgeois, who is one of the three technology gurus at the school. “We want to change the dynamics of the classroom.”

Still speaking to parents, Sister Martin assured, “We can truly say, ‘We are ready for this next step.’”

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Catholic High School begins laptop initiative

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