Daily Lessons from Life 19 March 2013 - Time to take a load off their backs?

"Time to take a load off their backs? - The NEWPapwer 19 March 2013

SINGAPORE - When he was first told that his daughter would be using an iPad in class, he was impressed.

Mr Lee Kek Chin had thought that these "paperless" classrooms meant that most of the teaching material would be contained in the sleek iPad.

But that was not the case. His daughter, who is in Secondary 1 this year, has to carry textbooks on top of the iPad she is required to bring to school.

We are not naming any of the children in this story at their parents' request.

"Her bag can weigh up to 8kg!" exclaims Mr Lee, whose 13-year-old daughter is from River Valley High School (RVHS) and weighs 40kg."

Surprise surprise! I thought this issue has been debated to death and that it is NO LONGER a news worth topic. BUT yet!!!

Lessons for me are:

1. what's wrong with our 'problems solving' skills? This is a very very old issue that many parents had discussed and many suggestions had been provided to resolve it. So, why is it still been reported today?;

2. classroom of the future has been touted for at least 10 years now and yet we are NO closer to realizing it when Singapore is so so advance in deploying IT in our educational system? WHY?;

3. my suggestions:
a. make sure NO student is made to feel 'inferior' as he or she could not afford an iPAD or whatever mobile device the school or the MOE decided to put the lessons on e-basis. We need more level playing field instead of creating more obstacles to achieving it!;

b. more 'storage' space in school IF the paper load really cannot be reduced so that the kids do not have to lug the paper materials to and from school each day!;

c. with everyone being issued with a MOE mobile devices, they DO NOT need paper materials anymore.

d. MOE to envision and achieve 'A truly paperless classroom for the students'.

Let's go ...