Chalk, blackboard disappear

In Room 23 of the Martin Luther King Jr. Technology Academy, a math teacher gives a lesson on absolute values with an animated PowerPoint presentation and a computerized writing tablet.

In Room 25, students wearing headphones plugged into their computers take an online quiz -- its cartoonlike format has kids compare prices of cell phone plans and instantly shows them their results.

In Room 26, students work on vocabulary for U.S. history. They've created charts on their computers that show the words and their definitions; now they're inserting clip art to illustrate the terms.

A history of low achievement on this sprawling North Sacramento campus has sparked huge changes this fall. The school that for decades was called Martin Luther King Jr. Junior High has a new name to reflect the new ways students learn.

"It's different because you're getting more hands-on experience," said 14-year-old Jovita Galvan as she used her mouse to drag an image into her chart, illustrating the word "enlightenment."

Computers have become common in schools, even on campuses, like this one, in poor neighborhoods.

But the extent of the technology -- and its varied uses -- at Martin Luther King Jr. Technology Academy set this school apart from most. Through a combination of Measure G bond funds and federal grants, the Grant Joint Union High School District has poured $1.2 million in technology into the school.

Those who study the use of technology in education say that gadgets alone won't make kids learn more. But creative use of those gadgets can have profound effects, said Tobin White, a professor of education at University of California, Davis.

"Everything hinges on what you do with the new technology," he said.

"There's no guarantee that the kids in this school are going to do better because this new technology is in place. ... It's entirely about the kinds of interactions and experiences (they) orchestrate for the kids in that environment."

By the end of the year, there will be a computer for every Martin Luther King Jr. student to use in every class, school authorities say. They're close: all but five classrooms now have a computer for each kid.

These aren't ordinary computers, either. They're neither desktops nor laptops, but "thin client" computers that are built into the school's new furniture. With the push of a button, the desks' tabletops flip up to reveal a flat-screen monitor, keyboard and mouse.

"I like the computers, they're tight -- especially when they lift out of the desk," said Delaneo Heckard, 14. He said he'd "never seen anything like that."

So-called "thin client" computers, which don't have hard drives, run off a central brain in the district's IT department. Grant officials said that technology makes it easier to control what kids can access, and there is nothing for them to hack into. There's also less that can break and very little worth stealing.

"We did not want kids with $2,000 laptops in their backpacks," said Sarah DiRuscio, the district's technology coordinator. "It could endanger them."

Even with the minimal computers, glitches do occur. In a recent English class, one girl could not get her computer to work. Clark Geurts, the school's computer technician, crawled under her desk and reattached some cables.

Most school districts have one tech support person for every four or five schools, Guerts said. Because of all the new equipment at MLK, he is working at the school full time.

In addition to the computers, all classrooms have cordless microphones and speakers, screens and LCD projectors, a document camera that projects items on the screen, and "InterWrite pads" that allow teachers and students to write with a stylus on an electronic tablet -- much the way we now sign for credit card purchases in a store -- and see their notes appear on the overhead screen.

Last week, math teacher Martin Lara wrote this problem on an InterWrite pad as he strolled the aisles of his classroom: 3|x|+2=11. As he wrote, the equation appeared on an overhead screen.

About the writer:

• The Bee's Laurel Rosenhall can be reached at (916) 321-1083 or lrosenhall@sacbee.com.