I won’t try to lie and say that I am sold on the Chromebook nor do I think I could use it as my only machine. That being said the only way to know its strengths and weaknesses is to jump in all the way.
First let me share a little background on me and my intentions for this project.
- Hardware: Samsung $249 Chrombook with $30 Management Software
- Immerse myself in the world of Chrome to see if this is a viable option for student use
- Research educational uses for the Chromebook and parallel what we are already doing in the classroom
- Model the use of the device to teachers and staff and answer questions they may have
How will I do this?
- Leave my Macbook Air at home so I cannot fall off of the Chromebook bandwagon
- My use of any other device besides the Chromebook has to be the same access as a student would be given (labs, teacher computers, etc.)
- I give myself the option to abort this mission if for some reason I cannot perform essential functions of my job and document them here.
Day 1 Progress
From un-boxing to ready to use took about 3 minutes. Before I logged in for the first time I setup a few things in the management console in my Google Apps domain and those settings were setup instantly (Homepage, Apps, Extenstions). I installed all of the apps that I normally use such as Tweetdeck, Evernote, and Dropbox. Everything was auto-magically setup. So far so good. Setting up macbooks and labs in the summer takes the bulk of my time. Its going to be so nice when I do not have to worry about that anymore!
Are you using Chromebooks in your district? If so are you 1:1? How has your experience been so far?
