Editorial: iPad enthusiasm is encouraging

Talk about it

There has been some skepticism over the past few months about the Farmington School District’s plan to provide iPads to all students. Residents have raised questions about whether the district is spending its money in the right place. Board members have asked whether it is really possible to get the devices out to students quickly as the current plan calls for.

They are good questions, and it is good they are being asked. This is a big change, and it should be reviewed thoroughly as the district moves through the process.

But there also appears to be plenty of enthusiasm behind the change. A group has been working hard behind the scenes to map out this change. And when the call went out for teachers willing to be early adopters next fall -- to be the district’s iPad guinea pigs, in a way -- there was a huge response. In all, 190 teachers from around the district put in applications.

That is important, too. Because it is clear at this point that the district is moving forward with its plan. Whether it all happens by the end of the 2012-13 school year is still up for debate, but the iPads are coming.

If this change is to be successful, teachers will have to embrace it. This initial enthusiasm is encouraging first because it assures the district has support among the people who will have to use the iPads on a daily basis. But it is also important because these early adopters are the ones who will bring the iPad plan to the rest of the district, to teachers who are on the fence and teachers who are outright opposed. That enthusiasm will be important as the district moves through the process.

There is still a long way to go, but the process is off to a good start.

Tags: opinion, editorials, farmington