I remember as a kid getting a number of Apple II computers for our computer lab in school. They were awesome! Not only that, but the 64 KB performed pretty darn well on the green screen as I recall.
Point is, we didn't have a school-wide fundraiser to get them.
These days, schools, districts and states have to make hard decisions. There's no doubt that the budget crisis schools are facing today is making budgeting for technology difficult. Even at the best of times, making technology a priority is a choice. It's something a state, district and school needs to pay particular interest to and be aware of what it truly takes to effectively integrate technology into the classroom.
I know that I am of the minority when I say that as a parent, I would be more than happy to provide an iPhone or iPad or iTouch or a Kindle or laptop or whatever I needed to provide for my kids. I really feel technology is such an empowering tool that it's worth any financial sacrifice I would put forth.
I also know that asking parents to contribute cold hard cash towards these items across the board would be a monumental disaster and it's flat-out not going to happen. Just because I would put that first doesn't mean others will for a number of reasons.
____________________________________
Side Note: Has anyone studied replacing typical school supplies with technology? My kids come home with piles of paper. It's great in it's own way, but, I wonder how close the expenditures in office supplies, paper, printers etc. compares to a paperless classroom? A topic for another time perhaps :)
____________________________________
Can the technology be free?
I think that the computer companies of the world discuss education as a 'market' and not a 'charity' so there's really no indication that technology will be free that I know of. Will Government properly fund it? Based on the computer system in the DMV, I'm guessing no. Will parent's pay? Unfortunately, not likely directly. I know it's a sarcastic little paragraph there but money always has to come from somewhere.
So, how then can fundraising help?
Traditional fundraising has the ability to raise money for a cause. When done right, it extends beyond just parents and the community on the whole can contribute. When folks get behind a cause, there is a strengthening of community and a better sense of a understanding our priorities as a civilization. They generally get tangible rewards in exchange for their money so contributors feel it's a proper exchange.
I believe that when an individual has the realization that they will do something great for a child, without really impacting them negatively, they will respond favorably.
The community will rally behind the need for technology in school if the need is presented in the right way. My job in the fundraising industry puts me in the direct path of the need to figure it out and make things happen. I will commit energy and resources towards accomplishing the goal of better funding for technology.
It's not clear how the future will unfold when it comes to replacing paper with electronics but there's not much disagreement to the fact that it will happen one day soon.
Believe Kids is honored to be funding technology in the classroom today, but we really look forward to funding the bigger technology reforms and integrations we know will come tomorrow!
In the meantime, keep integrating what you can into the classroom and we'll formulate a plan so when the switchover from paper to touchpad comes, we'll all be ready.
_____________________________________
Jay Moneta is the Vice President of Believe Kids Fundraising and blogs here at fundraising-advice.com If you liked the post, please follow or make comments/suggestions.
I can be reached directly on twitter - twitter.com/BelieveKids
No comments:
Post a Comment