The English Department at Manual Arts High School has decided to go digital this year. All students have a Chromebook that they use on a daily basis to access the material and content they are studying. The purpose of the laptops in an English class is to help students with typing, research, organization, and other digital literacy skills.

Laptops can have positive effects in class but they can also be a big distraction for students. A study conducted by the University of Michigan Center for Research on Learning and Teaching found that students who used laptops and digital lecture tools reported higher levels of engagement. However, with the world wide web at their fingertips, students can wonder off and not complete the work they are assigned. Many teachers have found that the laptops are an asset in the classroom but can be distracting for some students at times. “If it is helping students learn, then yes, laptops should be allowed in class, but if it is distracting students more than it is helping them learn then no, they are not needed,” said English teacher Jin Suh Jirn.

Many schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District and in the country have implemented applications and firewalls that block students from accessing certain websites on their laptops. This has helped address some of the problems. Additionally, many schools are moving to allow students to have a personal device that they can take home. There are a lot of students who don’t have access to a laptop. “I sometimes don’t finish my assignment in class so being able to take my lap top home would be helpful,” said freshman Milly Pascual.

Others don’t feel as though students are responsible enough to take care of the technology. “I don’t think students should be allowed to take laptops home because they might be stolen or they will come back damaged,” said senior Malachi Taylor.

For now, students at Manual will continue to use the lap tops in class to complete their assignments.