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Lyon's 1:1 Laptop Program Aims To 'Level the Playing Field' for Students
6/26/2008
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This fall Lyon College, a four-year liberal arts school in Arkansas, will join the elite ranks of post-secondary institutions offering laptops to all incoming freshmen. The program is part of a larger initiative, called "The Lyon Experience," which aims to bring "additional value to the education" the school provides.
Extending The Lyon Experience
To date, The Lyon Experience has included the creation of a fully wireless campus (at a time when few others had done so); an institution-supported study-abroad program; and a program the college describes as an "experiential transcript," which documents student achievements outside the classroom and is aimed at helping students with job placement after graduation.
Add to that now the state's first college 1:1 laptop program, which includes Lenovo ThinkPad R61 laptops "fully loaded" with software for instruction and extracurricular activities. The stated aim of the program is to provide "a student-centered, experience-rich liberal arts education for the 21st century."
"The program builds upon a decade of continuous investment in technology in general, and our network in particular, and is part of our regular efforts to add additional value to the education that we provide," said Lyon College President Walter Roettger. "We know that computing and information technology play increasingly important roles in student success both while they are in college as well as later on in their careers."
The 1:1 Initiative
To backtrack a little, 1:1 laptop programs (i.e., programs in which institutions provide a laptop for each student) have been one of the major trends in K-12 education for several years now, with varying degrees of success. The idea has been to provide technology to students who might not otherwise have access, to establish common hardware and software standards for students at home and in school, and effectively to extend the school day by ensuring students have the tools they need for electronic/distance learning. To these ends, districts have rolled out laptops in some cases to tens of thousands of students all at once, while some have taken more modest approaches.
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