Farrah Mechael

Professor Fowler
Honors PS 1010
20 March 2016
Policy Paper
The ConnectED Library Challenge

It is hard to ignore the the unfortunate fact that one of the greatest cities in the United
States of America is unable to provide adequate education for its children. Students in Detroit lag
behind most of the rest of the nation in reading, mathematics, and science. Decades of
government corruption, under funding and discrimination has resulted in an anemic K-12
education, and the children are suffering for it. Arguably, the problem may not be unique to
Detroit as American students in general lag behind those from industrialized nations in the
subject about. However, Detroit Schools rank at the bottom of the list of twenty major cities
around the nation. It is indisputable that inadequate education and higher school dropout rates
contribute to continuous property across the board. Those who drop out of school cannot find
employment, and if they do, it is limited to lower paying jobs with very limited chances of
advancement. The national high schools dropout rate is 7%. In the state of Michigan it is 7.86%,
which is slightly above the national average. High school dropout rate in Detroit is a shocking
16.1%, twice the Michigan rate and significantly more than twice the national rate
(https://www.mischooldata.org/DistrictSchoolProfiles/StudentInformation/GraduationDropoutRa
te2.aspx). Children of underprivileged poor families in Detroit receive the worst education
possible in the industrialized world and suffer from an endless cycle of joblessness and poverty.

President Barack Obama's connectED initiative aims at providing every student from K to
12 and every American school with internet connectivity through computerized classrooms
(https://www.imls.gov/issues/national-initiatives/connected-library-challenge). The goal is that
99% of American students have access to next-generation broadband connectivity by 2018 which
will help arm the students with the skills needed to get well paying jobs and compete with the
students in other nations. This initiative will make Technology based learning available to all,
regardless of income, race, or gender. The well planned initiative appears to be a great solution to
Detroit's educational gap. It is made up of four components: upgrading connectivity, training
teachers, encouraging private-sector innovation, and involvement of local communities
(https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/education/k-12/connected).
The president made it clear that the federal government make better use of existing funds
towards accomplishing this feat (https://www.imls.gov/news-events/news-releases/presidentobama-announces-open-ebooks-and-connected-library-challenge). He also called on the private
sector to contribute the technological elements that are necessary for accomplishing the task.
Companies like Adobe, Apple, AT&T, Microsoft, O'Reilly Media, Safari Media Online, and
many others have been heavily involved. A special program called Enhancing Education
Through Technology has been creative and is aimed at providing more school districts the
means to support teachers with the education and digital tools needed to ensure personalized
learning and increase engagement with their communities and families
(http://www2.ed.gov/programs/edtech/index.html). The initiative also requires involvement by
authorities at multiple levels. It starts with the highest office in the land. It requires that
involvement of Congress in allocating the funds needed (obviously making the best use of
taxpayers money) to fund the program. Cities and school districts are provided with the

equipment, technology, and necessary knowledge. Private companies have also contributed
hardware, software, internet connectivity, and low-cost data access.
The initiative also insures the involvement of members of the community and parents in an
ingenious way. Each child receives a library card and has access to both the school library and
the local libraries. The access is for online material and books directed towards educational
curricula and related topics. The parents may may have access to their children's library card
information so they may be able to help monitor or tutor their kids with school work. School
librarians as well as librarians in community are also slated to get the necessary education and
training in the use of technology and internet content related to school subjects and children's
education. This is also where private contributions to local libraries come into play. Many
community philanthropists have been reportedly excited for the program and have increased the
financial support to the venture. This is an optimal example of cooperation at the highest level
amongst government in its various branches, the ' 'haves' of society at large, and the general
public to benefit local communities including the 'have nots
(http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/06/obama-connected_n_3392817.html).
As the program moves forward, some of Detroit's schools have already implemented the
program and are reaping some of its benefits. These are mostly charter schools that are usually
actively involved with public libraries, the community at large, as well as the parents of
students. These schools already enjoy smaller class sizes and smaller teacher to student ratios.
Therefore, their students have historically scored higher on standardized tests than their general
public school counterparts. Computerizing education has helped them further advance the
standardized test results of their students against the national averages. By providing more

personalized and individualized learning experiences the initiative has inherently resulted in a
much improved learning environment (http://detroit.k12.mi.us/admin/charter_schools/). The
rest of the public schools in Detroit are just starting to become computerized and it will take
some time to fully reach every teacher, student, and librarian. However the excitement and
enthusiasm of all involved is palpable. The results of the improvement within the charter schools
are giving great hope to teachers, administrators, and parents who are hoping to finally be able to
compete with students from around the nation. The initiative provides at least a partial solution to
the problem of overcrowding in the school system.
Although the ConnectED Initiative does not replace teachers in the classrooms, it does
personalize learning based on each student's capability. The topics provided, the approach to
teaching, and the level of advancement of every topic can be tailored on the spot to each student's
learning capability. In 2015, results of testing have already showed improvement in reading and
mathematics at non-charter public schools in Detroit. Parental involvement in children's
education has increased to some extent. One of the limiting factors is the parents' inability to
navigate technology as well as the kids. There's nothing in the initiative that is directed towards
training or educating the parents on the actual use of technology and internet content. However it
is argued that this is not necessary. Implementing such a plan would take away funding and
resources from educating the kids. The expectation of parental involvement is limited to
supervising their children and making sure that school work is done. The burden of improving
performance in school curricula does not fall on the parents since there are enough people in the
educational system and community libraries to take care of the education part. There are also
online tools that are aimed at tutoring the students who need help with their school work. It has

also been suggested that adequate and frequent communication between parents and their
children's teachers and administrators is the most desired aspect of parental involvement.
Basically, leave teaching to the teachers and parenting to the parents
(https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/connected_fact_sheet.pdf). Such arguments
do hold merit, however any knowledge on the parents' part with the kids' method of education
would be welcome and can only be considered an added bonus. The goal is to allocate as many
resources as possible towards educating the kids, and maybe in the future more parental
involvement may become possible by training the parents so they can better help their children.
As one of the oldest cities in the United States, Detroit has had its ups and downs
throughout history. However the city's decline in the last 40 years has taken a big toll on its
citizens. Many have moved out into the suburbs in search of better lives for themselves and their
children including better school systems. The existence of charter schools may have modestly
slowed down the relocation, but it is the hope of many that by improving the quality of education
with the president's initiative will not only stop the migration out of the city, but also bring
people back to Detroit. President Obama's ConnectED initiative may be the most valuable
achievement of his tenure, more so than his healthcare plan or bringing home America's men and
women in arms. It invests in education at the root levels, gives American children the advantage
needed to catch up educationally to the rest of the world, helps give kids the opportunity to get
better paying jobs with the chance of advancement, helps break the cycle of poverty in most
urban cities (including Detroit) and rural areas, and insures that this country is prepared to
remain globally competitive in the future.

Works Cited
Bullard, Giuliana. President Obamas Announcement Article. https://www.imls.gov/newsevents/news-releases/president-obama-announces-open-ebooks-and-connected-library-challenge
Charter Schools Website. http://detroit.k12.mi.us/admin/charter_schools/

ConnectED to the Digital Age Article.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/connected_fact_sheet.pdf
Drop Out Rates Website.
https://www.mischooldata.org/DistrictSchoolProfiles/StudentInformation/GraduationDropoutRat
e2.aspx
Enhancing Education through Technology Website.
http://www2.ed.gov/programs/edtech/index.html
Institute of Museum and Library Services Website. https://www.imls.gov/issues/nationalinitiatives/connected-library-challenge
Resmovits, Joy. Obama ConnectED Initiative Article.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/06/obama-connected_n_3392817.html
Smith, Megan. Matthew, Dr. Kathryn K. Communities Tackle Barriers Article.
https://www.imls.gov/news-events/upnext-blog/2016/01/60-communities-tackle-barrierslearning-through-presidents-connected
White House Website. https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/education/k-12/connected