From the Dark Side--Technology Director Ousting Macs in Suburban Chicago School District

As you well know, there are people in the computer technology field in K-12 education who think they know better than anyone else and dictate what tool educators must use despite the programmatic and fiscal consequences. Armed with such irrelevant tripe as "most people use Microsoft Windows in the real world," they decide to eliminate Apple's Macintosh computers in favor of Windows systems with no real factual studies of educational program requirements, educational effectiveness of computing platforms or the actual total cost of ownership. Most do not appear to have the slightest understanding of computing systems as educational tools or instruments nor any real technical computing knowledge beyond the Windows world. They run roughshod over experienced educators who do have intimate knowledge about the effectiveness of their teaching tools by branding them in a derogatory manner as emotional fanatics either directly or by implication.

From a CourierNewsOnline article it appears that this very process may be playing out in a suburban Chicago school district with a 2:1 Mac vs. Windows ratio among its computing systems. We hope not. But according to the article the new technology director has ordered a study of how to phase out most Macs rather than a study of which computing platform is best for the school district's primary business--education--or which system has the lowest REAL total cost of ownership. And, yes, education IS the part of real world. In our opinion, the technology director should conduct the appropriate studies before embarking on a program of ous ting Macs. [Bill Fox & Dana Baggett]