Teacher Net: A Multipurpose Computer Networking System for the Classroom

While most educators commonly think of computer networking as a costly arrangement in a computer lab, low-cost networking is available for today's classroom. Teacher Net is a newly conceived system that requires a central microcomputer, an interface box, and as many as 16 keypads or keyboards. Its cost is one-fifth that of traditional networking configurations. Teacher Net can be used for independent practice, thus saving teachers stacks of papers to grade and providing them with an immediate analysis of performance. A complementary use of the system is assessment which allows quick and precise placement in a curriculum. Group instruction, another possible use, permits the teacher to ask questions during lecture and guided practice portions of a class and receive an instant gauge of understanding. If many students don't know the answer, the teacher can quickly review appropriate material and then continue on with the lecture. Finally, Teacher Net facilitates data management. Input from the keyboards—daily work, quizzes, tests, etc.—can be entered into a data base for further analysis. The teacher can use the data base to assign grades, generate progress reports, and retrieve accurate information to be entered into IEPs. Teacher Net is a comprehensive system that simplifies a number of time-consuming, low-level tasks for teachers.