TECH Assignment on Compartive Uses of Technology in the Classroom

OK, this is me...waving the white flag. There seems to be a debate (at least in our class assignments) about iPads vs. Android vs. Windows based technology in classrooms. I am sure it’s a great debate but for the sake of this entry, we are going to assume we live in a one-choice only word where Apple is king and Taco Bell is the only restaurant available.

So this begs the question, how will iPads be used in classrooms and what will it replace or how will it scope the future classroom of the 21st century?

First, lets be clear, iPads or technology in general is not going away. For too long, the education system has fought the use of technology as an unnecessary evil that fights for the attention and time of its students who need to be in front of pen and paper. Technology is sticking around and as we have seen through our class studies, the education system is embracing it and attempting to shape how it is used in the classrooms. You can bet that any state you visit in the United States today has at least one iPad pilot program going on in one of their schools. New Zealand is about to become the first county to have an iPad in all students hands. Apple has even developed mass configuration apps which allow educators the ability to configure apps in several iPads at once through the Apple Configurator.

In a blog dated back to March 23, 2012 by a NPR news station titled Here and Now, their focus was on a Boston Area high school called Burlington High School. This school decided to move away from the purchase of textbooks and started a iPad program. The program was funded with money normally set aside for textbooks and construction and upkeep of computer labs. Interviews with the students found that the applications of such a change made a wider impact than simply replacing textbooks. Students commented on the note taking applications for classroom lecture, the ability to have sheet music sent for band music in upcoming musicals and having the internet right at your fingers for instant research into difficult subjects or topics. Where teachers worried about the distraction, the use of technology appeared to put a spark back in the learning process as students became more hands on.

Another study of students with technology was posted in a blog by Sam Gliksman on Jan 24, 2011. This survey also was of high school students and its focus was more on the ease of iPads in the classroom. Where this study found a weakness was in the preference of laptops over iPads. iPads were found to be very difficult to use with word processing software. Laptops with keyboards were more preferred by 74% of students who took the survey.  Also, the school that the survey was completed had a iPad program that required many students sharing each iPad. This was found to be difficult as a lot of personal data is saved in each tablet without the ability to have several separate user accounts. Apps saved data from previous users not allowing for accurate tracking or personalization of the tablet for maximum benefits. It would appear through that struggle that when looking at developing a iPad program, individualized tablets for each student would be beneficial.

As mentioned before, the use of iPads in the education system boasts an economic advantage over the traditional textbook format. No longer would education systems have to purchase 4 to 8 textbooks per student each time they upgraded to the newest edition. Online textbooks have been found to be up to 50% cheaper or more. Another advantage to iPads is the ability to develop and have at your fingertips an elaborate instructional infrastructure. The use of apps and ability of multimedia creativity allow teachers to bring to life lessons and put to practice lessons with more than just pencil to paper learning.  

Another application that has probably not been tapped into very in depth within the education system is the ability to use technology within special needs realms. One iPad app called Verbally has been attempting to use technology for specific purposes. It is a speech assisted app that allows students to speak through the app that have significant promise. Textbook learning with paper, pencil and reading are long a thing in the past as students can become immersed in 3D worlds, interactive movement, color, video and audio stimulus to create an educational process that is tailored to all types of students.

So in conclusion, technology is here to stay. Not only that but it has been found to be advantageous over several “old-school” methods. The days of 400 pound backpacks loaded with textbooks and notepads can be replaced with one light-weight tablet. Educational interaction can replace one dimensional paper lessons as students can be become both consumers and producers of the educational process. Schools are learning from one another as success stories and failures are learned from and improved. It is time to embrace it.