When Will All LT Students Get Laptops?

LA GRANGE, IL — Many schools these days have laptop computers assigned to all students — often called "one-to-one instruction" in the jargon of educators. Lyons Township High School is not there yet, but officials say they are working on it.

In the fall, the school will start a teacher coaching pilot program to train about a dozen South Campus teachers each semester, according to the school's newsletter. They will be trained to understand how to use Chromebook laptops and change the way they deliver lessons, the school said.

A total of 500 Chromebooks have been purchased and are expected to be kept in the classrooms of the pilot program teachers. According to the school, South Campus students will received Chromebooks starting in fall 2021, followed by North Campus in fall 2022.

School officials said while they would like to equip all students with laptops immediately, major infrastructure improvements need to be made. That includes upgrades to wiring, network capacity, internet speed and fiber optics, they said. The costs of the hardware, software and training have been built into budgets, while student rent-to-own costs need to be perfected, the school said.