I’ve now received enthusiastic support from administrators and other staff to try this experiment. To ensure that I have time for the other classes I want to teach during the regular school-day, I’ve decided to teach the laptop class during what we call “zero-period” – one hour prior to the official beginning of school. I’ll be doing it with a Social Studies subject. I announced the laptop class one day last week (making it clear that I wasn’t sure what the subject of the class would be), including the early starting time, and received fifty sign-ups within a few hours. Obviously, I won’t be able to take that many, and the fact that it will be in zero-period might skew the results a bit, since it’s likely the most motivated students will be in that class. But I’m not planning on this being a super-academic research project, anyway.

As a sort of “run-through” to explore ways to integrate technology more into my day-to-day teaching, I’m converting one period of my double-block Intermediate English class in January to a Government class. We’ll be in the computer lab three or four days each week. This will give me an opportunity to experiment prior to the fall.

I’m very committed to the overall goals of the Government class as I’ve taught it before. These include using it to help students not only learn about how it works theoretically and in reality, but how they can develop their own capacity, and the capacity of their communities, to make it work more effectively for them. Keeping those goals in mind, I have a number of questions I’ll be asking myself as I plan for the spring. These include – How can students use technology to help…

1. deepen the relationships they have with their peers in the class?
2. increase their understanding of the nuts and bolts of our local, state, and federal government?
3. learn more about governments in other countries, and how our government is perceived around the world and why?
4. gain a greater sense of understanding of how government affects their local communities?
5. (since many of the students will be recent immigrants) prepare themselves to pass the U.S. Citizenship test, and also learn what it means to be an active citizen in a democracy?
6. connect with their peers throughout the schools, and with their families and neighbors, to learn more what concerns they have about their lives?
7. prepare for and carry-out community improvement projects?
8. strengthen their ability to read, write, speak and listen in English?

I’ve got a number of potential answers that I’m mulling over, and which I’ll share in my next post. Does anyone else have additional questions, or ideas for answers to the ones I’ve listed?