Let's think for a moment and take a short trip through time.

Well from about right around the time from the Korean War and 1982, things in the economy were pretty stagnant. Then the PC entered the scene. Was slow going at first but then it picked up speed. At the same time, the economy started to boom especially in electronics and the products that were being developed through their use.

Companies began to grow rapidly and more and more people were being hired. Things began to slow around the late 90's when companies started to downsize for the PC provided them with the ability to do more with less. Imagine that, more with less.

Here's the focus. More with less. Through the PC, where you had 4 typists, you reduce it to one and that one would do the same work as the four typists in one sixth the time.

Auto factories replaced people with computers and robotics. Where 20 people once stood, you now had one person and 20 robots with one computer performing the same work. Production, quality, consistency and output increased while cost went down sharply.

The World and Industry changed dramatically in the last 30 years just by a little computer that now sat on a desktop.

Now you look at your education system and you see, that even though all this technology has improved life dramatically, we still pursue the method of teaching that was developed over 50 years ago.

In my experience in working with computers, setting up networks and working with businesses and people, some take to the PC (sorry about this), like a duck to water. Others aren't as fortunate and sink like a rock.

However, over time they rise to the surface and low and behold, begin to swim just like the duck.

Some pretty quick and some slower however over time they all achieved. Children are the same way. Some learn fast and some are slower, however over time they all can achieve. Unfortunately, our education system has a difficult time teaching like this and we have to find a steady medium that allows us to teach those who learn slower and those who learn fast. If you go too fast, you lose the slower student. Being a slower student is not a bad thing. It is how the student is. We can't punish them for that, because that is just the way it is. Eventually their day will come where things are much clearer and they will begin to learn quicker. If we go too slow, then the fast student becomes bored and has to slow down making it difficult for them. The medium student is just going along.

Now imagine if we could teach each student at a speed suitable for them to learn. You will still cover all the basics for all students but you let each one do it on their own with an educator supervising and directing.

Just as adults all learn at a different pace, children have the same characteristics.

In a business situation we know all the people learning a new method of production will learn at a different pace. We also know when they all perfect their job the quality of work will improve along with production. The next new project will be even easier to learn and perfection will arrive much sooner.

How do we achieve this in the local schools? There's the question of the day someone out there is trying to answer.

I don't have the answer but I know one way we could start to seek it.

Since businesses have turned to computers, productivity and quality has risen tremendously.

The more people they computerized in the business, the better it was.

If every student had their own computer for their own personal use to learn what the educators are trying to teach, each student would have the ability to learn at their own pace, the teacher would be able to provide more focus to those who struggle and give the fast learners the ability to fly as fast as they can. You wouldn't lose or be running away from the slow learners, and you wouldn't be holding back those who want to fly.

If quality and productivity rose for business then the logic would follow that children learning through computers, their productivity and quality of their education would also rise. I dare say that the results would be probably nothing short of spectacular. Now of course this would only succeed if the teacher follows through. If you teacher is incapable of using a computer fluently, then your success would pretty much be doomed right from the get go.

Some teachers will probably have to be dismissed to make room for those with the computer smarts we will need. I would like to suggest at this point that those of you who are lacking in computer skills start working diligently on them. Burn the midnight oil as we say.

With businesses turning to computers, their expenses went down and productivity rose.

It only makes sense that School Districts turn more to computers to raise a child's performance raise test results and increase the quality of the child's education while at the same time reducing your expense. So why haven't we done this to make sure every student has a computer in his or her hand? We are the greatest and strongest country in the free world, yet we fall behind when it comes to education.

The sole basis to our problem is this. Expenses. Since most schools sit at 80% or more for Salaries and Benefits from Total Revenue received, the likelihood of getting a computer for every student is going to be quite close to impossible.

As long as schools sit at this 80% mark, raising our performance and quality of the end product will be difficult to achieve. School Districts unfortunately will never change the way we teach if we continue to hand over money. It allows them to move changing to the back burner on place on low. Meaning they will make it a low priority.

If you want to stimulate change, you are going to have to put them in a vice. If the money is not there, they will have to change. We can't keep giving them money and let them put off dramatic change to a later date. I personally am tired of waiting for them to give all children the equal opportunity to achieve as much as the next.

Granted it will be a difficult if not nearly impossible mission. However it is a move we have to make and we have to begin doing it now.

It is far easier to learn by visual and interactive methods than it is to just sit and read from a textbook, lecture or instruction manual. You can read all you want but unless you experience it through visual and hands on training, you won't learn it very quickly. Computers provide interactive and visual training for each and every student. It can be a teacher and tutor. It is the greatest assistant a teacher could ever have. One teacher with computer knowledge and skills I believe is worth at least five with little or no knowledge of a PC.

This is why you can increase the class size for each teacher. I believe a teacher could teach a class of thirty students or more quite easily if each student had a computer.

Educators will find it far easier through using computers to instill the desire for a child to want to learn. Each student would be able to pursue the subjects that interest them and learn it at their own pace. The computer will help insure they broaden their interest.
The teacher would be able to provide more personal support to those who struggle.

You may have started out slow with a computer but if you look back from where you were to where you are now, you realize the computer has increased your abilities quite a bit. That is if you took the time to put effort into it.

Many families cannot afford a computer for every child. Most homes only have one computer for all to share. Every child having a computer would give us the ability to reduce the amount of teachers in the district for computers will help the teacher to teach. They will help the teacher with mandated state reports. They will help monitoring a student's progress. They will help the teachers provide that one on one support for the struggling student.

Passing a levy at this time will not only hurt our local economy but extend the time it will take the education system to move into modern times and teach our children for the digital world.

Our method of teaching right now is not working and is very costly. Forcing our district to take a harder look at where we spend money will help us in the long run.

All the children in the district should have the same chance to succeed as the next. Our current method of teaching does not do that.

The world has changed dramatically out there and it is time our method of teaching children does the same. If we had done it sooner, the change that has to come would not have to be so difficult.

Martin Fleming