I don't know everything

I remember when the first students starting coming to class with computers. It was not yet required, but some families were pioneers of sorts, opting to buy laptops for their daughters. A couple of times a question would come up and girls would jump onto the internet and proudly raise their hands eager to share newly-found information. I had a glimmer of the potential of a 1:1 program.

But sometimes I forget. Today we discussed abortion and capital punishment, and I could not answer all of the questions. I don't know all of the current laws and they vary by state.I admitted that I didn't know all the answers, but I spoke of what I knew. Then I remembered a blog post I'd read recently, and I looked at a circle of students, a circle of twenty-five or so laptops connected to the knowledge of the world. "See what you can find out," I said, and off they went, bringing forth answers within seconds.

I'm lost without you

Dear  laptop,

I have been without you since fourth hour today. I had to wait to get home to check e-mails from the afternoon. When you are sick and in need of the TLC of the tech guys, it is then that I realize how much I depend on you. E-mails, grading, blogging, reading blogs, attendance, my department presentation, Moodle assignments, meeting notes...  At lunch I had to find a paper copy of the NCR to read, and later I scanned my "to-do" list, searching for things I could accomplish without you.Not too much, it turns out, and though I managed to get through my last classes, there were a couple of times when it would have been handy to have you there.

I'm glad you are all re-imaged and will be ready to go tomorrow.

The little problem, only bigger

Well, it was a Monday. 5th hour Prayer class, many seniors, comes to class with no apparent recollection that they were supposed to have their laptops. Half the class, maybe. Meh.

A little problem

The Prayer class has a lot of seniors with tired laptops that don't work much of the time (batteries, for one thing), that they don't use all the time and that they would much rather not carry around. So, even though I announced at our last 7th hour class that they needed to be sure to bring laptops today (I do not use them every day in that class), a quarter of the class or more did not have a functioning computer.

And I didn't get back all the paper Bibles I lent out, either.

It has gone a little better with my junior-heavy Catholic Theology class, where I use computers more often.