The bandwagon often suffers from a preoccupation with wires and equipment. At the same time, a lack of clear purpose leads to network designs which are foolish, inappropriate and wrong-minded along with network and classroom designs which actually undermine the purposes of good teachers, restrict the use of the equipment and frustrate the efforts of technology pioneers. In all too many cases, networks are designed and computers are installed by folks that have never taught a class and know very little about student learning. The results are often lamentable. Achieving the goals of Engaged Learning listed above requires a ratio of one networked computer for every three or four students in the room.
Smart schools provide a combination of low end and high end desktops to extend student access.
While it is popular today to place 1-3 Internet computers in every classroom of a school, these numbers do not provide sufficient resources and access time to support the kind of learning required. It makes no sense to buy 5,000 computers, network them and drop them onto classrooms without providing substantial funding for staff development. You'd be far better off buying 3,500 computers and spending the rest of the money on staff development so that most of the computers will be used most of the school day. The strategy of providing a single desktop unit only makes sense if the computer image can be projected for the whole class to see. This monitor allows the whole class to enjoy virtual field trips, learn search strategies and explore curriculum topics by communicating over the network.