ANDOVER — Many of the laptop computers used by students at High Plain Elementary and Wood Hill Middle schools are as old as the buildings themselves.
"They're ancient," School Technology Director Raymond Tode said at a recent School Committee meeting. "They're actually eight years old now."
Both High Plain and Wood Hill opened in the fall of 2002.
So when the School Committee voted down a request to replace the laptop computers with 180 new ones earlier this fall, many parents and teachers were not pleased.
The committee reversed its decision Nov. 24, after members Deb Silberstein and David Birnbach visited the schools and spoke with High Plain Principal Pamela Lathrop and Wood Hill Principal Patrick Bucco.
"This was just a basic need," said Silberstein.
Capital technology requests are under additional scrutiny by the committee this year after funding for them was cut to help balance the School Department's operating budget.
Officials also are now developing a long-term strategic plan that will outline how technology will be used across the school district in the future.
"Everything's being looked at closer," said Silberstein, referring to the School Department's budget crunch. "And that's another reason why we're engaged in this strategic planning process."
At the meeting last week, several parents said they did not want a long-term plan preventing immediate needs in the classroom from being met.
Lathrop echoed that sentiment in an interview earlier this week.
"The long-range plan is a wonderful plan and absolutely needed," she said. "We also need the tools to be able to deliver the instruction to the students."
Added School Committee member Annie Gilbert: "I think we're all very excited about what we can do with technology in the next few years. I also think we need to strike a balance between planning and serving the students in the classroom right now."
The initial School Committee vote had Birnbach, Dennis Forgue and Dick Collins voting against the purchase of six new mobile computer labs or laptop carts, which consist of 30 laptop computers each. Voting in favor were Silberstein and Gilbert.
On Nov. 24, Silberstein, Gilbert and Collins voted in favor of the purchase, with Birnbach voting against it and Forgue abstaining.
The six mobile labs will be split between High Plain and Wood Hill. Lathrop said the labs allow for more flexibility than a traditional computer lab and can be used in small group instruction when teachers request to use them in their classrooms.
The labs will cost the School Department $37,000 each year for the next three years. The School Committee also approved $17,000 in computer network improvements at the two schools.
