All K-12 students in one Florida county will receive a free Chromebook computer for the year, district says
LAKE COUNTY, Fla. - Lake County Schools announced on Wednesday that every student that goes to a district-operated school will receive a Chromebook computer during the first quarter of the 2020-21 school year.
They said that this will help support the district’s common instructional vision and give support for its instructional continuity plan in the event of evolving conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So, students can take the device home and if an unanticipated closure occurs, each student can continue their instruction at home.
In previous years, high school students reportedly had to pay a $32 technology fee for the use of a device for the year. However, with distance learning required because of the COVID-19 closures, a fee will not be assessed for the 2020-21 school year.
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Chromebooks give students access to the Google Apps for Education, including Classroom, Docs, Slides, and other applications that can be used for online learning, the district said.
Lake County public schools will reopen on August 24th. Families were presented with four choices for how their student will attend school in the fall:
- Traditional: School buildings will open five days a week, offering a traditional instructional plan to students who choose that option. Middle and high schools will operate on a modified block schedule, lowering class sizes and requiring fewer class transitions for students in an effort to minimize their risk of potential exposure to the virus.
- Full-time online (new option): Daily instruction from teachers at the students' home school or a school in their geographic region, when possible. Students would not be required to withdraw from their brick-and-mortar school to pursue this option
- Lake County Virtual School: Lake Virtual is a Lake County School with teachers, counselors, and administrators that have one goal in mind: the success of all LCS students! Students that select this option will be taking all of their courses online
- Modified Day: The Modified Day will include instruction for Language Arts and Math in a traditional setting, with all other courses (such as Social Studies, Science, Electives, etc.) being held virtually. Students will be assigned either a morning or afternoon session for the traditional instruction. Mid-day transportation (coming to school or leaving) will be the responsibility of the parent.
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