Philly to buy laptops for needy students for virtual classes during shutdown

The unprecedented effort involves giving out devices currently used only in schools, as well as working with corporations and others to procure more as needed.

• Avi Wolfman-Arent/Keystone Crossroads
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  Avi Wolfman-Arent joined WHYY in December 2014. Prior to that he covered nonprofits for the Chronicle of Philanthropy and education technology for the Chronicle of Higher Education. Avi first took a shine to radio at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. He earned his undergraduate degree at Haverford College and grew up in the D.C. area. Despite the latter he’s a lifelong Philadelphia sports fan, devoting an unhealthy portion of his conscious thought to the Sixers, Phillies, and Eagles. He lives in South Philadelphia.

 Emma Lee / WHYY

FILE PHOTO: Philadelphia School District headquarters at Broad and Spring Garden streets.

(Philadlephia) — Based on guidance from the federal government, the School District of Philadelphia is proceeding with a plan to offer more rigorous virtual instruction during the coronavirus shutdown —  a reversal from last week when it said equity concerns hampered its ability to provide mandated, graded learning.

The new plan can only go into place by providing laptops and broadband access to all students as the district prepares for longterm school closures, Superintendent William Hite said during a conference call on Tuesday.

The unprecedented effort involves giving out devices currently used only in schools, as well as working with corporations and others to procure more as needed.

This could amount to tens of thousands of devices at an undetermined cost. Based on a survey that had 83,000 student responses, Hite said more than half of the district’s students have access to technology at home. The survey did not include smartphones.

“We are looking into acquisition and distribution over the next couple of weeks,” Hite said. While the task may seem impossible, the New York City Department of Education distributed 175,000 laptops, Chromebooks, and iPads over the last few weeks and began online learning Monday.

Hite said that officials will provide more details on cost at a school board meeting on Thursday.

While Hite mostly said “devices,” at one point he referenced Chromebooks, which are manufactured by Google. Most district schools use Google classroom.

WHYY is the leading public media station serving the Philadelphia region, including Delaware, South Jersey and Pennsylvania. This story originally appeared on WHYY.org.

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