John teaches physical and earth science at Kingsview Middle, a school of roughly 1,400 students. He first used computers in his teaching in the early eighties (right after he graduated from college), teaching his students basic tasks like word processing and simple programming using the language Logo. "My first real big step was probably in my fifth or sixth year of teaching," he says. "My middle school bought me a Mac, which I used almost all the time. I was learning how to use spreadsheets, to create my own worksheets, and to use spreadsheets for my grades."

John's smallest class this year has 30 students, so access has been a big issue for him. He uses two computers attached to a TV in his classroom, but getting his students individual access is tricky. "When my school opened, we had a state-of-the-art computer lab," he explains. "Right now, half of the computers work, and half don't. You can't just go out and buy a new set of computers every two or three years."

Nevertheless, he finds technology to be an effective tool to help his students grasp complicated concepts in a concrete way. "When I teach mitosis and meiosis, it's hard to get kids to understand what I'm talking about," he says. "I used a two-minute minute segment of a video that showed cells dividing. They get it then. The kids are still concrete learners: they have to see it or touch it. In that way, technology can bring things to life."

On how to judge the appropriate use of technology in the classroom:
"What I think of is how many kids are going to get involved. Is it good to demonstrate in front of the class? Is it better for them to work individually or in groups? Can the kids access it? Do I know how it works? Was it well-written?"