Dear Bernie,

Prior to attending the curriculum meeting Tuesday night, I had given considerable thought to the merits of the laptop program. Based on the information that I had, I did not see a compelling rationale for implementing this program and saw several negative aspects. In my view, the laptops would be a distraction and precious class time would be consumed in the logistics of their operation. The added weight and their expense are also important. These concerns were echoed by all other parents present at the Lakeside brunch that we hosted earlier in the week. The piece of the puzzle that we were missing was the specific benefit expected from the program. We are a technologically savvy group of parents with a high level of enthusiasm for innovation in our children’s education. We are willing to commit resources to efforts that will improve curriculum and expand educational opportunities. It was not clear to us how the laptop program would do this.

I attended the curriculum night expecting to hear a clear articulation of the expected benefits of this program that I had missed up to that point. Instead, I heard vague comments about how important computer technology is and how our children would be ill prepared to face life after Lakeside unless they all purchased laptops to use in class next year. Allusions were made to exciting changes in curriculum but no specific examples were cited. References were made to the success of the pilot program, but no one was able to cite the criteria used to evaluate this program and what specific objectives had been achieved that resulted in it being considered a success. It was not clear whose opinions were considered in deeming the program a success. The discussion of how laptops in the 11th grade would be used to enhance curriculum was equally vague. There was no discussion of how the merits of improving computer technology within the class room, library and student study areas versus requiring each student to carry their own laptop to each class were weighed. It was very disturbing to hear that the methods that would be used to evaluate success of this program "had not been developed yet". I whole-heartedly agree with the parent who noted that it was not wise to launch a program until specific objectives had been defined and a clear criteria for evaluating whether the objectives had been met was in place. In light of these concerns, I consider a decision about the laptop program premature.

While I came away from the meeting on Tuesday with heightened concerns about the laptop program, I was much more disturbed by the nature of the forum itself. No one on the panel was able to answer repeated requests by parents for specifics on why the program was worthwhile and what goals would be achieved that outweighed the negative aspects. No one provided data on the views of the student body or the faculty. One important use of a computer is to facilitate data collection and presentation – we heard only highly selected anecdotal arguments in support of this program. The administration was perceived by many as inflexible and arrogant because of the lack of effort to justify or explain this important decision in substantive terms. I sincerely hope that this perception is incorrect. The administration has an opportunity to address this important issue which, in my view, is far more important than the laptop program.

Sincerely,

name withheld