[K12OSN] Help design a new elementary school!

[Joseph Morelock]

Prof,

Sorry for my earlier (very) wordy response. Our district standard for 
wiring is 8 drops per classroom, as we use at least one at either end 
of the room for classroom phones. We will move to VoIP sometime in the 
future so they will still be useful then, too. Properly distributed, 
they allow the teacher some input on where the best placement of 
classroom computers would be. Architects are notorious for not 
understanding data needs, and will under-budget and under-wire (IMHO).

We hope to put 3 or 4 terminals in each classroom, so that students and 
teachers always have quick access to the Internet or their home folders 
when they need it. The thin client model works great for this, as all 
you need is a network connection and you can add/subtract machines as 
needed. Labs are good for some things, but many times, the teacher 
would prefer to work out of their own classroom, and have kids work in 
groups, or rotate through the computers when needed. Being so stable, 
the thin clients make GREAT classroom machines that are easy to manage.


Joe


On Mar 10, 2005, at 7:36 PM, The Prof wrote:

> Hello,
>
> Thanks to everyone who has replied so far - I've taken notes for some
> good points.  In terms of specific questions people have been asking,
> we are building an entirely new structure, not renovating an old one.
> And the design is a typical school - 3 floors, fixed-size classrooms
> (average 800 sq feet) for each grade, art, library, etc.
>
> To summarize the points so far:
> 1) lots of conduits for pulling cables now and in the future!
> 2) wiring for ceiling projectors in each classroom
> 3) planning for wireless (what does this mean anyway? thinner walls?)
>
> (The other options, such as smart boards, etc, are a bit beyond our
> budget, but I doubt they affect anything in the design phase.)
>
> There was some discussion about the IDFs - I'm not sure what that
> stands for, but I'm assuming that it refers to where all the servers
> are.  We currently don't have anything like that in our school. We
> just have the tower for the lab sitting in a corner of the lab room.
> Is that the best approach? I thought a server room was mainly for
> rack-mounted servers.
>
> Along those lines, are there any comments or suggestions about how to
> distribute the thin-clients around the school? Our location doesn't
> have a specific curriculum for computers, so it is up to us to decide.
> What are the pros vs. cons of a 'computer lab' where all the machines
> are situated, vs. spreading them out in all the classrooms?  As well,
> during how first wiring phase, how many drops should be going to each
> classroom? I've heard numbers as high as 4 or 5.
>
> Thanks,
> Joseph
>
> On Thu, 10 Mar 2005 13:13:27 -0700, Ben Nickell
> <twinprism at athena.physics.isu.edu> wrote:
>> Sharon Betts wrote:
>>
>>> Hi Joseph,
>>>       We just opened a new K-3 school with interactive white boards 
>>> in each
>>> classroom, enhanced audio in each room, wireless throughout.  It is a
>>> combination of thin clients and full teacher workstations.  I would 
>>> love
>>> to expound on our planning and results either privately or onlist -- 
>>> just
>>> let me know.
>>> Sharon
>>>
>>>
>>
>> Sharon,
>>
>>     I am also helping design the wiring for a new facility.  I for one
>> would love the hear about your planning and results.
>>
>> Be Nickell
>>
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>
Joseph Morelock
Director of Network & Information Services
Canby School District
morelocj at canby.k12.or.us
503.266.7861

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