Is There Still a Need for Computer Labs in Schools Today?

Computer labs, those arrangements of multiple devices in one location, have transitioned through their brief history, much as all technology itself has and continues to do so. Originally a converted classroom, computer labs were where the first set of Apple II+ or Compaq or IBM desktops were organized around the room with the only requirement besides enough desk space was running the extension cords and power strips to plug them in.

Additional technology such as projectors and screens, Smartboards and writing pads were added so that the teacher could better share information. And then came the Internet. The desktop computers now needed an Ethernet cable, and that computer lab now needed enough wall ports so the spider web of blue cables could match the three power cords already there. WiFi became more reliable and computer labs adapted again – both with devices being relieved of the blue cord and the ability to easily be rearranged, reorganized and accept devices brought by the students and teachers.

However, WiFi has made the now critical access to the Internet available everywhere, and computers became less expensive and more commonplace among students, slowly migrating from the select few who could own one in high school to being in every middle school backpack. Schools, initially seeing an economic disparity between the haves and have-nots, started one-to-one programs where every student was provided a school-owned device. That program, initially at the high school level and working its way down to upper elementary, made sure every student had access to the same software and the same instructions, and it allowed the school to control updates, printer access and virus protection.

As a result, the computer lab became more and more obsolete. Like so many aspects of technology, those rooms full of computers had a very short lifespan.

So, will there be reincarnation for computer labs? For many schools, the answer is yes. That rebirth has already begun as schools continue to find ways to connect with students’ needs and interests, adjusting their course offerings to match. Those courses often require vertical market software, task-specific accessories, special format printers, and the assurance to the teacher that every student is seeing the same screen that they are using.

Only a computer lab, with the devices needed to support that teaching, will do in so many of the classes now being offered nationwide in our public and private high schools, middle schools and even elementary schools. They look considerably different than their predecessors with smaller devices but bigger screens (often a second one for each device), more flexible seating and one of a variety of ways to share the teacher’s computer screen. More often wireless than wired, they can also include an Ethernet backbone for devices that function better when connected.

With Mac OS and Windows 11 vying to be the multipurpose operating system, the choice of the actual hardware becomes more one of cost and expandability over computer type. The software required for courses such as computer programming, graphic design, filmmaking, photography, accounting and business, music theory, music composition, audio recording, architecture and others, all now taught in our schools, will run on either operating system.

This computer lab reincarnation may lead to some schools setting up multiple ones to meet the needs of their students. Technology has made doing so much easier including the use of cloud storage of teacher instructions and student work, dock stations to allow the easy movement of laptops from one set of accessories to another, secure logins to allow for easy and safe sharing of the same hardware, and various wired and wireless ways for any connected screen to be the one displayed for all to see.

So welcome back, computer lab! Your demise was prematurely reported, and your resurrection has already begun, but you look so very different. Your hardware is smaller, but faster; simpler to operate, but more capable; more flexible but still needs to be connected in some way. You run programs that are very specialized to meet the needs of our newest generation of artists, designers, engineers and programmers, but still work in a coordinated manner so that all can learn and grow. Your devices can now communicate better with each other, with others all over the world, and with the printer down the hall. You are back, better, stronger and more able to support education – your role from the very beginning.