Georgia School District To Issue 8,000 Dell Notebooks For Teachers

Georgia School District To Issue 8,000 Dell Notebooks For Teachers

Cobb County School District in Georgia has teamed with Dell to roll out 5,600 DellTM notebook computers to its teachers and will hand out another 2,400 by the end of July. As part of a contract valued at more than $10 million, Dell has begun training teachers on how to use the new technology and integrate it into their instruction. Upon completing an initial two-hour training course, teachers can use the Dell LatitudeTM D620 notebooks as a classroom teaching tool and as a productivity tool after school and at home.

“Our teachers are deserving of the best teaching tools that we can provide them,”" said Fred Sanderson, Cobb County Public Schools superintendent. “Thanks to the leadership of the Cobb County Board of Education, these computers have placed a world of information in our teachers’ hands. Most exciting is that our students will benefit because the technology will open new avenues of learning in our classrooms.”"

Karen Bruett, vice president of Dell’s K-12 business, said Cobb County’s leadership in education technology punctuates a trend she is seeing in schools around the country. In the Dell-sponsored 2005 NetDay Speak Up survey of more than 200,000 students and teachers, nearly 60 percent of teacher respondents said they’d like more professional development and training on integrating technology into the curriculum.

“It’s essential that educators have access to and training on technology so they are better equipped to incorporate it into instruction,” Bruett said. “Cobb County has taken a leadership role in bridging the technology gap between teachers and students. That’s an important step in helping students develop the 21st century skills they need it to be competitive in today’s economy.” Cobb County, near Atlanta, has the second-largest school system in Georgia, serving a diverse population of more than 104,000 students in 110 schools.

Read the complete Press Release