Reuters – Sharon Bernstein
“Los Angeles schools chief Ramon Cortines on Friday signaled he is ready to abandon a troubled plan to provide a computer to every student in the second-largest U.S. public school district, a reversal of a policy championed by his predecessor. Cortines said the district could not afford the program, which aimed to provide iPads and computers to the district’s 640,000 students, along with teachers and many administrators. “We are committed to providing technology to our children -whether it be desktop computer labs, laptops or tablets – to help prepare them for the 21st century,” Cortines said. “However, as we are reviewing our lessons learned, there must be a balanced approach to spending bond dollars to buy technology when there are so many brick and mortar and other critical facility needs that must be met.” Cortines made his remarks amid tense labor negotiations between the Los Angeles Unified School District and its teachers union, United Teachers of Los Angeles. Earlier this week, both sides said they were deadlocked in negotiations over raises, class size and other issues.”(more)