I booted up my eeepc with Chromium OS, started up my work XP laptop, brought out my laptop with Windows 7 installed, dug out a MacBook with OS X and set all of these up beside my desktop with Vista running.  Granted, my wife and kids looked at me like I was a little insane, but I wanted to see the differences.  What I found is that I simply don’t care.  Sure, I like having Windows 7 and the new features that accompany it, but I also like the tried and true nature of XP. OS X has some great features but, as I said, I had to dig out that computer so it’s not one that I use all the time.  Then there’s Chrome OS. As it’s in beta and really hasn’t been released, I’m sure there will be more coming in the future, but right now, I don’t see that as my primary operating system.

As I was looking at all these systems and computers, I started wondering about the operating systems that my kids will use in their futures.  Will they beg me for a Mac in the future or will they just want a computer and an internet connection?  I imagine it will be the later. Thinking about my computing habits, with the exception of some specialized software, almost all of my work is now done online. Sure, I still want to be able to launch Photoshop or do some higher end video editing, but I think that for the most part I could do 90% of what I want to using online tools. Maybe Google is onto something with their OS that’s really just a browser. Regardless, I think it’s time that schools start thinking about their computing needs differently. License fees for software and operating systems may heed way to inexpensive hardware allowing for a more integrated experience. Regardless, the idea that students or teachers NEED to have a Mac or a PC may be on its way out. Instead, they need a computing device and a broadband connection so that they can complete projects and access information at will. That may be a tablet, a phone or an ipod touch, who knows?

I’m running Windows 7 and I like it, but the more I (as an adult and an educator) don’t care about what’s running on my computer, the more I wonder how important it is to students. Mac or PC, I don’t care, just give me the web and I’m all set.

As we were talking after the screening, I began to think about what my children had just gone through and I asked them if they enjoyed it.  The answer from both was a resounding “YES”.  What was it that made it fun?  They were asked to do tasks to assess their abilities and through those tasks, they were assessed on their abilities.  There were no paper bubbles to fill in (granted they’re 5) and it wasn’t a “standardized test”.  They were being assessed by their abilities that could be observed by professionals.  I’ve heard about other tests that are given to 5 year olds as a part of a screening (luckily I don’t know the names of them because I’ve never had the misfortune of seeing my child struggle through one).  As I understand it, the screener will ask a student to complete a task and then, with no expression or feedback, watch as the child completes it.  Either the child does, or does not complete said task and is given a specific amount of points based on how well they do it.

This reminded me of the MAP test (Missouri’s standardized test) that I have proctored for a number of years.  As I was giving the test I was not allowed to give any feedback to my students, provide direction or really even talk to them during the test.  I never thought that this was an effective method of testing but as I watched my own kids being “assessed”, those memories really came back to me.  I guess that’s just one of the things I have to continually look forward to as a parent who is also a teacher.

What would happen if we didn’t take grades as Alfie Kohn suggests?  What would education look like if all the concepts and instruction that our kids endure was instead discovery and project based?  Would my kids be unable to live in our society if they didn’t have to take a standardized test? Would they be prepared for jobs of the future if they had great collaborative and problem solving skills, but had not been through a traditional school environment in which a teacher imparts great amounts of knowledge in their general direction.  I have faith the my kids will find success in their future endeavors.  I also have faith in the school system in our country.  I don’t have faith in standardized tests.  Finally, I don’t have faith in those who don’t understand education because their decisions are based on “when they were in school”.