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OPINION, INTERVIEWS & FEATURES
options for teachers. She explained that the College is in ‘no rush to roll this out’, and added that it is unlikely that by September 2022, every student will be on a device. Responding to a follow-up question, she explained that the teacher, of course, will never be replaced with any sort of AI, but stated that while the College is considering ‘whether we can integrate laptops into your learning journeys and academic success, the pastoral side is something that we’re also concentrating on, with a lot of research and a lot of consideration. I asked whether it would be a problematic issue if, assuming exams will continue to be handwritten, students were becoming more used to typing, to which she responded that ‘there will always be a place for penmanship’. She also explained that whilst the introduction of laptops into lessons requires careful consideration, it is a responsibility to prepare students for the changing world, and the trend towards more developed and more frequently used technology can’t be ignored. She emphasised that ‘we don’t want students staring at a screen for 12 hours a day’, and added that this is a ‘fine balance which we need to get right’. I also spoke to two pupils in 9T, a form whose members, at the time of writing, have been experimentally using laptops during the majority of their lessons. Most of the class have been given a Go 3 device, which is a touch- screen, 10.5-inch Windows device (like a hybrid between a laptop and iPad). I spoke to Oscar Fiddy, a student in 9T, who explained that each teacher decides how and when the device is used in their classroom. He said that some teachers are completely fine with allowing students to use them as they wish, whilst some only allow the devices to be used if the students have the screen flat on the table, which, Oscar added, some students find frustrating. There
It is a responsibility to prepare students for the changing world “
is supposedly a type of software that teachers can access to view and monitor students’ activity on the devices, but Oscar said that teachers tend not to use that software. He also explained that when it came to revision, it could be difficult ‘bouncing back and forth’ between books and devices. Feedback from other 9T students included positive comments, with the device seen as being small, portable and efficient. In contrast, some students completely rejected the devices. Additionally, Oscar explained, there have been many minor issues experienced by some students, including lack of functionality for left-handed pupils, which is apparently a well-known problem, and other flaws related to the physical device, as well as the larger issues regarding the implementation of the devices within the lesson setting. However, overall, this experiment appears to have garnered positive feedback, and some students feel it is a shame that this has been a short-lived experiment and not a permanent change.
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