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from the back of the classroom and integrate them into The setup
the core curriculum.
As one school superintendent says, “Time To Know is Dov Weiss, Chief Pedagogic Officer [CPO] termed the
not separate from the teaching and learning process− it’s Time to Know syllabus “blended learning,” meaning that
completely integrated.” while the use of computers is key to the method, it is
While computers have been used in primary education only part of a larger holistic teaching method that plays
since the early days of the Apple II, Time to Know might to the strength of computers in education but does not
really be bringing about a paradigm shift. That is, if they integrate technology for technology’s sake.
can succeed in convincing the administrators of failing At most, only fifty percent of classroom time will be spent
school districts to invest in the necessary hardware on the computer. This is in part because the computer
infrastructure necessary to run their product. However, is only part of the core curriculum formulated by Weiss
with atom processor powered Netbook computers and in part to prevent vision problems stemming from
becoming more and more popular and affordable, it prolonged staring at a screen.
seems that within a few short years, even the hardware
will not prove a barrier to adoption. With such a setup, there is always the risk that students
As Ben-Dov says, with a smirk on his face, “Three will prowl the web for non-educational purposes.
hundred dollars for a computer is much less than an Anticipating this, Ben-Dov and Weiss formulated the
average middle class parent spends on his child’s mobile software in such a way that students are not able to
phone plan in America.” access a task manager or leave the software environment
Earlier this year, when one school in Tel-Aviv trial- without permission from their teacher acting as the
testing the platform, claimed budgetary restraints for system administrator.
axing the new program, teachers, parents and students
alike raised such a fuss that the school was forced to
backtrack and reinstitute the use of Ben-Dov’s system. Academic support
“You can teach any kid if they’re engaged, because they
are ready to learn, and that’s the difference between a With an advisory board that includes winners of
regular classroom and a Time To Know classroom,” raves the prestigious Israel Prize and academics from both
Phylia Stewart, a teacher at the Lancaster elementary Harvard and Berkeley, offices in California, Texas and
school in Texas. Israel and pilot programs being run on two continents,
The project was initially envisioned as a philanthropic the management of Time to Know have every reason to
enterprise and as such has been dependent on grants. As sound confident when speaking of their product.
of yet, it has not become profitable. Billionaire Shmuel
Meital provided much of the seed funding in the form Funding may soon become a problem, and there are still
of a charitable grant. issues with the upfront costs of setting up this system,
Ben-Dov has not divulged how much money has been even for Israeli schools that receive the software and
spent so far in developing the interactive teaching suite, backend support for free, but if these hurdles can be
but he was willing to say that it has run into the tens of overcome, then Time to Know has a great chance to
millions of dollars. change the antiquated structure of both the American
The composition of Ben-Dov’s staff reflects this and Israeli classroom.
dedication to education. As he is quick to point out, not
many companies employ a CPO, or chief pedagogical
officer. Moreover, out of three hundred and fifty people
on staff at Time to Know, one hundred and twenty have
a background in education. ///