Online learning is a big part of high school learning this school year meaning thousands of laptops are needed for students in Anglophone South school district.
Superintendent Zoe Watson said the Department of Education informed parents this summer about the need for their child in high school to have a laptop, the specifications required and the chance of apply for financial assistance.
Watson said they are trying to determine who has the technology and what the challenges may be adding there are a few scenarios they are looking at.
“They have a laptop and [are] ready to go, are they waiting for laptops ordered from the provincial site, are they awaiting an order from another company and have they not been able to order a laptop,” Watson said.
In the meantime, technicians from the district will be distributing loaner laptops to students.
District officials are also trying to determine the level of connectivity for the families of high school students.
Watson said they know some families have strong connectivity while others struggle to find a good connection.
“We have those students who live in an area where there is not wifi so, we are looking at other ways we can support those families,” Watson said.
Watson said preliminary discussions have started with the provincial department of education about using other nearby locations where students might be able to access wifi.
While she hasn’t travelled to Fredericton for a meeting since March, there have been countless virtual ones.
“It’s amazing how much we have all learned about the technology and we have had to continue to meet. In our district, certainly the technicians have been invaluable,” Watson said.
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