Computers can help kids learn in exciting new ways . Or merely offer an electronic version of the same old routines. Then an 8th grader at James McCosh Elementary School in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood, Jeremiah doubled as a computer aide for school librarian Shernita Mays. He turned on the computers and checked the paper in the printers. Then, while Mays worked with a small special education group in a corner of the library, Jeremiah kept tabs on 7th graders using the 18 new Compaq computers with Internet hookups.
Students have to fill out a form explaining what they're studying and what they hope to find.
One spring morning, as students prepared for the Chicago Metro History Fair by looking for information on the late Chicago Mayor Harold Washington and other African-American leaders, Jeremiah wandered among them offering tips on searching and linking among sites. Computers are fun, but they are just a starting point for soft-spoken Jeremiah. Watkins is a leader in getting computers into classrooms, but that's not what she set out to be. We didn't start with technology. Chicago's standards-based curriculum leaves it up to individual schools to figure out how to achieve the standards.