Samo's Technical Difficulties

Nowadays, homework and in-class work often requires the use of the internet but many students do not have the cellular data to support the voluminous amount of research and downloading that is needed. Many teachers have also begun to take a liking to apps and websites like Edmodo or Remind 101. These apps are a platform for teachers to connect directly with the students, as they have multiple functions, both updating them on the latest notes or changes in schedule and uploading documents for download. Turnitin, a website used to collect homework such as essays and Power Points and check for plagiarism, is popular with English and History Departments.These services all require WiFi and while most classes have at least six computers, there are few opportunities in which every student in a class has access to a functional laptop and students are not permitted to use WiFi on their personal devices. While Computers on Wheels (COWs) full of HP laptops has increased student internet accessibility thanks to measures such as ES, the computers tend to be unreliable and problematic.Though teachers are required to provide laptops for students to use, due to the shortage of technology, the school cannot provide for the large amount of computers needed for class work. For example, to many students in foreign language classes, Kahoot–a quick and entertaining game that tests students’ knowledge on vocabulary and grammar–is a familiar name, but this educational game requires that all students have a functioning computer or phone with data in order to connect with the server.Other times, teachers recommend online videos to students that they found helpful or related to the curriculum in order to help students better understand the lesson but often times the barriers attached to the networks block these websites.Likewise, even if a student is able to connect with one of the SMMUSD WiFi networks, they are blocked from many sites and applications, such as Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram. Though these restrictions are deemed as helpful, forcing students to pay attention in class, electronics are already forbidden in classes anyways and the breaking of this rule often leads to severe consequences that most students try to avoid. Also, socializing is an important portion of everyday school-life and is one of the most important experiences in high school. These apps and websites are used widely and due to the reliance teens now have on them, and it may be hard to communicate with peers on relevant topics without a social media account.According to a report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, 95 percent of teens ages 12-17 use the Internet, and 81 percent of them use social networks. Through these new and innovative way of communication, many may be inspired to develop new technologies that may impact our future generation like Google and Facebook has done for us. Samo staff could also take advantage of this platform to post reminders or updates on the latest news of Samo like our principal, Antonio Shelton’s twitter, or like the Delians Facebook page that spreads the word of volunteering opportunities for students to give back to the community. Amy Bouse, an art teacher at Samo, also has an Instagram page dedicated to sharing art pieces that she finds interesting or inspirational, sometimes even posting pictures of artwork by students. These accounts are well received by both parents and students who find it a more convenient way of acquiring the information on the Samo school life.The internet has its pros and cons and different people may look at it with different perspectives. Some may view it as dangerous or distracting because of the risk of exposing students to inappropriate websites and disturbing their studies but nowadays, in our society, technology is progressing rapidly, and it benefits us more than harms. Samo should take this into account and provide WiFi and other necessary technology to each individual student.