To the editor:

As voters consider the school bond issues, there is a detail that should be addressed. Because of the No Child Left Behind act, all students grades three through eight will be tested in reading and math starting next year — every student in the district and state. That’s a lot of kids.

The State Department of Education is now making these tests available online. There are currently no rules over how many tests need to be taken via computer, but the trend is certainly headed toward universal online testing. The general consensus is that all tests will be taken online eventually. Therefore, all districts, Lawrence included, are going to need a lot of computers to administer the state assessments that the government is requiring.

We should not think of technology as a nice thing to have, or a luxury, but as a requirement to adhere to law. There really is no choice but to provide the technology needed to fulfill educational requirements.

Try to imagine the number of computers needed to get, say, 60 third-graders through four separate testing sessions while also administering the same four-part test to the fourth- through sixth-graders in the same school within the one-month testing window. Now, double that for the math assessments. The scheduling boggles the mind, but that’s what’s coming.

Step up, voters, and give Lawrence students and teachers what they need to fulfill the rule of law. Waiting won’t change anything, and ignoring it won’t either.

Chris Anderson,

Lawrence