You might want to Super Size this article.
Where do you tell poor kids to go when they don’t have WiFi or internet access at home? For the Christina School District, they recommend sending the kids to the local McDonalds! Once again, I wish I was making this up. But no, this seems to be the special sauce the district wants.
In September, the district (not the board) began examining the implementation of 1:1 devices for all the students in the district. A board member submitted several questions about how this would work (the full q and a can be seen below). I get public libraries being a viable “hot spot” for students. But McDonalds? I have a huge beef with this (yes, I went there).
The nutritional factors alone from eating at McDonalds on a consistent basis are not good for any human being’s health. But the district is perfectly okay with kids getting overweight while they Super Size their Big Mac, greasy fries, and chocolate shake. As long as they can log in so the data directors in the district can get their info flowing through!
According to an article from SF Gate, the consequences for teenagers eating at fast-food restaurants can lead to undesirable health issues:
Weight gain is often a consequence when teens reach too often for the high-calorie offerings of fast food. Along with changes in appearance that can greatly affect the self-confidence and self-esteem of teens, excess weight can also lead to some very adult-like medical conditions, including:
- Type 2 diabetes
- Elevated cholesterol
- High blood pressure
But the more important aspect is the loitering issue. McDonalds will frequently kick people out if they just sit around all day. Where do the kids go then? Back on the streets? What if they can’t afford McDonalds but they go there to do homework? Is this another Starbucks debacle in the making for Christina’s Wilmington students? Is Christina going to start paying McRent to McDonalds? How can the district pay for this? According to the district, Title I funds will cover the entire plan, 100%. I don’t mean to play the role of the Hamburglar here, but can they actually do that?
This is my issue with ed tech invading public education. If you don’t have access in the same manner as your peers, you are already behind the eight ball. You are already disadvantaged. When entire curricula are based on digital technology and some students don’t have the same access, you are creating a new form of digital discrimination.
The best part of all this? The district is doing this without approval from their Board of Education! That’s right. No vote on it or even an agenda item. The district is just doing it. The claim that this was part of a plan going back to 2015 is about as slimy as the lettuce on a quarter pounder and makes me sicker than romaine lettuce from California. Especially when the district is utilizing Title I funding to the tune of over $700,000.00. When Red Clay armed their students with 1:1 devices, they went out for a referendum (and won). But Christina is planning a referendum for both capital and operation costs. Guess they can’t use the Title I funding for what it should be going towards so they have to get more from the taxpayers of the district. As long as they follow the Rodel/Vision Coalition roadmap for education, it’s all good! But I digress…
Before we get to the q and a, we would like to present a very special message for the poor students of Christina…
The fun begins on Page 8 below:
The Season Of Myths 
This rollout, done without the input of the local elected board, could be deemed irresponsible, but there’s likely a more damning label…
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