Last week, there was a report summarizing the school levies proposal for Bellingham; and just yesterday I voted on it.

While reading the article, I could not help but connect something I had just learned in class to what was on my ballot. Proposition No. 2 asked for a levy for new classroom equipment and associated costs, making me think of a paper I had recently read called "The Shock Doctrine Comes to Your Neighborhood Classroom" by David Sirota, which questioned if technology was a way for companies to profit off the education cuts.

I find it strange that levies like this are proposed when there is little proof supporting how all new technology will benefit a student's learning, and teachers are being laid off, and classes grow larger, all while making other aspects of school more expensive.

I believe there is more evidence supporting that individualized help from a teacher while writing on a blackboard will help a struggling student more than showing students how a teacher can use a smart board that kids will never have themselves. I may be wrong, but I think it is something important to think about.

Laura Gayarud

Bellingham