Contributors: JADE STOLER, CHARLOTTE LEIGH, EMILY LADDY, JULIA PENCHUK, LINDSAY LANDSBERG and RACHEL SCHREIBSTEIN
Over the summer, Jericho High School’s Technology Department purchased brand new Dell Latitude 3198 laptops in order to enhance students’ learning experiences.
Ms. Alesi, head of the technology apartment, chose these laptops for Jericho because they stood out compared to other options. Ms. Alesi explained how five models were piloted, but the Dell was chosen due to its cost and reliability. For example, she likes the fact that the Dell laptops are water resistant and are made with Gorilla Glass, which makes the laptop heavier, yet it prevents breakage. “Durability is the key to a perfect school laptop,” she said.
In addition, English teacher Ms. Valenza finds the laptops to be very helpful for classroom use even more so than Chromebooks. She said, “I think a Chromebook is just a little bit limited in the kind of heavier work that we’re doing.” The laptops have the ability to install software that Ms. Valenza needs for her classes such as “Hindenburg” and “Movie Magic Screenwriter 6.” Another aspect that she likes is that the laptops can maintain a charge throughout the day which the older laptops could not.
Freshman Lindsay L. enjoys the different ways that these laptops can be utilized. She said, “My favorite feature on these new laptops is the tablet mode,” which is basically where the laptop screen can be flipped over and used as an iPad. Senior Katie L. agrees. “They have a lot of cool features on them. If you want to use it as a computer you can, if you want to use it as a tablet you can,” she said.
As for the future of laptop use, Ms. Alesi said that need will determine decisions. “Departments will tell us what the needs are, and we will respond accordingly,” she said.
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