I'm aware of different grant opportunities that exist, I just thought it was worth inquiring here for a potentially faster solution at acquiring them new hardware.
Thank you for listening.
https://fortune.com/2026/02/21/laptops-tablets-schools-gen-z...
But I get it OP, you work with what you're given. I'm sorry I don't have any good suggestions.
Your point about tactility is solid too. flipping through pages is very different from swiping. With educational textbooks, you'd have to look at multiple pages at the same time (flipping back and forth quickly) to connect and understand a topic by referencing another topic. Same with being able to easily lay out multiple physical books in front of you.
I think I realize the problem after reading many of the posts. What's slowing these devices down is the management software running over them. GoGuardian and whatever else IT has on them.
We also aren't allowed to use an ad blocker anymore. I used to have Ublock installed on all the devices before GoGuardian prevented it. It's a really depressing situation that I imagine will only get worse with time.
As to a few replies asking why students in this age group would need laptops, I'll explain. I start teaching Python in 6th grade. Grades 3-5 use Scratch. Grade 2 uses code.org. K-1 Scratch Jr on Ipads.
We have expensive mac desktops in the computer lab but they drive the students completely insane for two reasons. The keyboard is and mouse are terrible to use. Anti-ergonomic. The second reason is the amount of notifications and questions the students are bombarded with when they turn the macs on. I'm talking like 15 different pop ups or windows opening asking them to agree to this or that. I should probably have a lesson on just closing windows. I could say more but I don't know about social media anymore. I just wanted some suggestions and I appreciate the ones I received.
1. Find older Intel Core Based Windows Laptops (at least 6GB of RAM) 2. Put ChromeOS Flex on them 3. Students will be sad it is still ChromeOS, but they will be happy it is like 3x faster.
I had an old Windows laptop laying around and I did this for my 80 yr old parents and they were super happy.
PCs for People is a non-profit organization whose mission is to bridge the digital divide (e.g. through sales of low-cost refurbished computers, internet access, and digital skills training).
They refurbish and sell computers to eligible organizations, including schools and offer bulk orders (6+ units) via email at "partner [at] pcsforpeople [dot] org".
If the order is 5 units and below, you use their publicly available online store link at pcsrefurbished.com/sales/salesHome.aspx
A lot of us resisted this at first, but then just kindof came to accept it, and it made it so we have a lot more capable machines to do development on than the laptops that we would have to recycle every couple years.
I know there have probably been a lot of "thin client" products/services in the education space in the past, but I think it might be time to try again.
Like another poster here, I think it's "sad" that kids are using laptops. Laptops have small screens and poor ergonomics.
A thin client setup with a good keyboard, mouse and monitor could be better and more affordable / future proof.
If anything is making them slow its the javascript bloat of modern webapps that could be doing more serverside.
This is a huge gripe of me and my wife. Growing up we all had desktops in the computer lab at school (elementary+) and you had decent size screens. Now kids pull up their little 12" chromebook in their classroom. Kids have eye strains, myopia etc...
They were an upgrade from the Mac LC II. I don't recall those having very big screens either.
15" and 4:3 was about as big as it got in high school. A computer on a table and we sat on a normal plastic school chair.
Everything old is new again, back to the days of using a single shared server for software development in timesharing setup.
Instead of Novell Netware, UNIX, VMS, AS/400,..., it is the cloud.
Curious if there's a way random people can test it.
I am currently using a refurb for personal use right now and I've been using it without any issues since 2023, not because I'm wanting for money but because you don't replace what hasn't broken yet.
That's really the attractiveness of Chromebooks. Students don't need more than a web browser for most things day to day. Heck, I don't need much more than a web browser day to day.
The real problem is that chromebooks are designed to run web applications which you rely on and which have become more bloated over time.
The real question is what are the students supposed to learn on those laptops? Is it how to type? Use Google Docs? How to program?
A Chromebook has sufficient hardware to do all that. Heck, a 20 year old laptop is sufficient for doing that.
I'm 37, and remember learning how to type on wildly out-of-date Apple II machines in the mid 90s.
I used to do a deep dive on settings and browser extensions until IT locked the devices down further. The kids can't even access settings. But I give them credit for finding work arounds, ways to get past restrictions.
The absolute best programmers today got started on command line. You can linux command line on a literal potato. There are vape pens that have more computing power than what I grew up learning on in the late 90s.
You're students need less distractions not more. Even the most powerful AI applications like Claude Code run in CLI.
You can absolutely learn how to program on a $17 raspberry pi zero w connected to an old monitor and keyboard nowadays. Its not about the hardware, it's about what you do with it.
Maybe someone knows but you could try to upcycle to nixbooks.
1) kids k-5 are using laptops 2) websites are so bloated today that browsing on a Chromebook is causing agitation
Otherwise I don't have anything topical for this post, but good luck OP
(EDIT: Actually, probably not better than paper. I remember a study that note-taking by hand produced significantly better scores than typing; moreover, drawing is easier on paper, and some assignments are better drawn. But laptops can still be useful, and some assignments (like coding) are better digital. So ultimately, I think laptops should be incorporated alongside pen-and-paper.)
For 2) I agree with the general idea (“static” websites should never be slow), but the aforementioned digital media includes some that can run on low specs. Worst case, you can give students PDFs of physical assignments (with form elements to put answers); but I’m sure there are some minimal websites with K-5 material.
Maybe for computer science classes, but even there I'd prefer to use shared desktop computers.
There is a lot of research that shows that the depth of understanding the material directly depends on the amount of effort you put in. Or that actually writing down things by hand increases the amount of recall.
And to add to this, it looks like fine motor skills also directly influence brain development and may improve the IQ. The association of higher IQ with better fine motor skills is now well-established, but it also might work in reverse.
