Students turn to digital optionswith cancellation of printing
Ana Arredondo, Sydney Washburn and Kennedy Wyles work on Macbooks in Room 1247 during second period. Due to new rules that went into effect this year, though, these students will not be printing their assignments to turn into their instructors due to new rules that prohibit students from printing throughout the school building. “Why are we having students print unless it is absolutely necessary?” principal John Burdett asked in an email sent to faculty members. “We have unlimited storage accessible to any device with an internet connection. Save trees, and make the Lorax happy.”
September 6, 2018
The high school library no longer prints student work. With Google Classroom and other online programs installed at the school, this adjustment will stay in place for the incoming students as well.
“The library is no longer printing student work, because Google Drive makes it possible for school work to be turned in digitally,” librarian Dianna Weber said.
There are alternatives for students who need to print for a class, but they just may not be able to do it in class.
“The alternative is for students to turn in work digitally,” Weber said. “If printing is necessary, students can print at home or at the Prosper Community Library.”
According to Android Central, 25 million students across America use Chromebooks in school, and 30 million use Google Classroom.
“I feel like it (Google Classroom) is much easier for students and teachers because they don’t have to keep up with so much work,” sophomore Nikki Hansen said. “For me personally, I feel like keeping up with so many papers, even though I have an organized system, can become overwhelming.”
According to AZCentral, 68 percent of districts nationwide use Google Classroom, and 90 percent of those districts plan to purchase more Chromebooks in the next two years.
“I don’t really use the printer that much unless I need to use it, like if there is something I need to print out for a class,” Hansen said. “Most of the time if it’s other work, I just print it at home.”
EdTech Magazine said 74 percent of educators say that technology helps reinforce content in the classroom.
“Say if somebody forgot their name on a paper, that teacher would have to go sifting through all the names, trying to find out who didn’t put their name on their paper,” Hansen said. “But on Google Classroom, it’s already attached to that assignment, and I feel like it’s less stress.
In an email to the staff, principal John Burdett said it is important to use the technology already in the school, including Google Classroom.
“Why are we having students print unless it is absolutely necessary?” Burdett said. “We have unlimited storage accessible to any device with an internet connection. Save trees, and make the Lorax happy.”
