Now Streaming
Hear from the "School Sleuth" about the uses and misuses of technology in schools.
Hear from the "School Sleuth" (John Merrow) about the uses and misuses of technology in America's classrooms. The film noir character does his sleuthing in schools in California, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Oregon, New York, New Jersey and elsewhere.
Now Streaming
Hear from the "School Sleuth" about the uses and misuses of technology in schools.
Hear from the "School Sleuth" (John Merrow) about the uses and misuses of technology in America's classrooms. The film noir character does his sleuthing in schools in California, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Oregon, New York, New Jersey and elsewhere.
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Photos from School Sleuth: The Case of the Wired Classroom
1/10
6th graders prepare their rebuttal during a virtual debate at South Orange Middle School in South Orange, NJ.
Cat McGrath
2/10
School librarian Elissa Malespina helps students and teachers get comfortable using digital technology at South Orange Middle School in South Orange, NJ.
David Wald
3/10
6th graders created their own civilizations using video games and other digital tools at Strayer Middle School in Quakertown, PA.
David Wald
4/10
30-year veteran teacher Barbara Kirby prefers textbooks over laptops at Strayer Middle School in Quakertown, PA.
Jim Sicile
5/10
Students learn how to be computer programmers in the Los Altos School District.
Vanessa Carr
6/10
7th graders learn how to build an LED screen in the Los Altos School District.
John Kabasakalis
7/10
Students spend more than half their school day on computers at Carpe Diem Charter School in Yuma, AZ.
Jim Farrell
8/10
10th grader Sherridan Hackman takes most of her classes on the computer at Carpe Diem Charter School in Yuma, AZ.
Jim Farrell
9/10
Principal Joseph Manko observes students creating digital books at Liberty Elementary School in Baltimore, MD.
Phil Geyelin
10/10
Chris Rush is co-founder of New Classrooms, a non-profit organization that is redesigning the classroom using digital technology.
Sam Henriques
About the Show
Our world is increasingly wired to technology. Our homes, entertainment, cars, hospitals, marketplaces, and even our wallets are now technologically “smart,” but what about our children’s classrooms? Do students have access to today’s best software and latest systems? Are teachers and schools keeping up, or are they overwhelmed by the choices? Can technology and traditional teaching methods co-exist in a new blended learning environment? This looks like a case for the School Sleuth!
In this program, veteran PBS Newshour Education Correspondent John Merrow – AKA the "School Sleuth" – is back, determined to get to the bottom of another classroom caper. The Peabody Award winning character, last seen in 2001’s The Case of an Excellent School, is a hard-boiled detective who investigates schools, searching for the best and exposing the worst. This time he’s hired to find out how technology is used — and misused — in education. To solve the case, the Sleuth goes inside schools around the country to uncover what happens when schools get wired.
During the course of his investigation, the Sleuth interviews Sal Khan, founder of Khan Academy; Susan Patrick, president and CEO of the International Association for K-12 Online Learning; and Richard Culatta, director of the USDOE Office of Educational Technology. He visits “cyber schools,” where over 300,000 kids take all their classes online at home, and he takes viewers inside a school where students spend half their day on the computer. He takes a hard look at Ed-Tech companies looking to strike it rich and examines the grim question of access and the “digital divide.” He joins third graders as they sing songs with children in Uganda over the internet, meets sixth graders who are using video games to design their own civilizations, and talks to seventh graders who are building LED screens and programming computer chips.
However, it’s high school senior California Rios, the first in her family to graduate from high school, who teaches the Sleuth the importance of access: “I need internet to get assignments done, to get projects done, to contact teachers for extra help. It’s a huge part of getting my diploma ... ”
The program exposes the glaring dangers of using technology for the wrong reasons, while showcasing the wondrous things that can happen when teachers find the right blend of learning, teaching and technology.
Producer
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