Kindergarten kids: A pencil, eraser and an iPad

This from ZDNet:

K-12 learners studying at the Burris Laboratory School have been using iPads as a learning tool this year.

Thanks to a grant of $200,000 by the Indiana Department of Education, the school’s kindergarten through to fifth grade students and their teachers have been equipped with their own iPads.

Stefanie Onieal, first-grade teacher at Burris, considers it a wonderful experience. However, the teachers make sure iPad use does not dominate classroom learning.

At most, the Apple devices are used for 40 minutes per day. School curriculum content takes priority, and according to Onieal: “We are just trying to come up with new ways that enhance that curriculum with technology.”

The teachers at the Burris Laboratory School also make use of Twitter; posting photos and status updates on a regular basis...

The Apple products have been used to promote interactivity in conjunction with technology use in the classroom. From using their tablets to take pictures in scavenger hunts to producing public safety announcements, students are able to upload their projects to a classroom blog.

The blog can be accessed publicly, and parents are able to receive email notifications when new items are posted...

iPads Showing Up in Schools

My little sister loves her iPad.

To hear her tell it, the iPad is what every fashionable fashion executive in New York carries into meetings. They all travel with them and make their presentations from them, she says, but after that, the list of things she loves about her iPad are less about creating work.

For example, Kim has 150 e-books loaded up right along with all of her music. She can always find the nearest Starbucks and track her stock portfolio. She is able to play games and download applications from anywhere via her wireless phone network. The iPad has some limitations when it comes to working with spreadsheets, another staple of the fashion industry.

The more she talks about it the more I think I am right about the iPad. It's a little honkin' consumer device designed to sell the buyer more stuff. Many of the applications are cool, but in a classroom setting, I'm not sure how student creativity is engaged much at all and that ought to be a concern to educators. Are iPads really superior to laptops in any significant way?

A quick review of Gizmodo's Essential iPad apps reveals more and more consumer items including Netflicks (movies), ABC Player (TV shows), Marvel Comics, iBooks, NBA Game Time Courtside, and a whole host of games, entertainment and music outlets.

I'm just not sure how much or how successfully iPads will be used in the classroom.

As a technology lover, I enjoy all of the flashy things the iPad can bring. But in the end, technology is simply a tool. It's a better book, or a better telephone, or a better pencil, or a better abacus....but will the iPad prompt the kinds of real creative work our students need?

This from the Charlotte News & Observer:

The high school students in Tim Hall's AP World History class at Franklin Academy whirled through the Middle Ages this month on their 1.5-pound, $500 iPads.

After reading through a digital textbook, students got a fast-paced visual tour of Gothic architecture, the feudal system and the Crusades. All on their trendy tablet computers.

"You just have to get used to it," student Jordan Dunne said, "and you have to check your battery life."

The Wake Forest charter school began its experiment with iPads this fall, when it bought 10 for the AP class. Leaders have been so happy with the results, they recently made plans to order 20 more.

IPads, notebook computers and mobile devices are destined for the classroom on a much bigger scale. But questions remain about how successful they will be in widespread use...

This from Rick Hess at Straight Up:

When "Digital Natives" Discover the Encyclopedia

I'm sure my friends at the Department of Education were thrilled to read in the Raleigh-based News & Observer that North Carolina school districts are using their Race to the Top funds to advance structural reform by... purchasing iPads. Durham, N.C. is spending $3.5 million in RTT funds to "put Apple iPads in the hands of students and teachers at two low-performing schools." Durham Public Schools Superintendent Eric Becoats said, "Our kids are telling us, 'This is how we
learn. This is what we want.'"

Ah-ha, yes, this is the change we've been waiting for. Look, I own an iPad. I like the iPad. But I'll tell you, when I've been to schools that feature one-to-one computing, personal computers, and iPads, they seem to get mostly used in one of two ways. Neither impresses me. The first involves students working on graphics, clip art, powerpoints, or adding sound and visual effects to video shorts. The second is students Googling their way to Wikipedia for material to cut-and-paste into powerpoints or word files.

This was all brought home to me again, just the other week, when I had a chance to spend a couple days visiting acclaimed "technology-infused" high schools. Yet, most of what I saw the technology being used for was either content-lite or amounted to students using Google-cum-Wikipedia as a latter day World Book Encyclopedia. Making powerpoints and video shorts is nice, but it's only us "digital tourists" who think it reflects impressive learning...

This from the San Jose Mercury News:

Are iPads a game changer in education?

Some California districts consider the iPad to be a "game changer" and are launching programs to put them in students' hands. However, some educators question the iPad's usefulness. They say technology distracts students from learning and have largely banned such devices in schools. Others worry that students at disadvantaged schools won't have access to the technology...

Warning, this from FoxNews.com:

How do parents feel about technology in the classroom?

Opinions among parents differ over whether their children should be using technology -- including computers, cell phones and iPads -- in the classroom. Some parents say students should be using technology as educational tools because they will use similar devices in the workplace. However, some worry it can cause health issues such as neck and eye strain or serve as an overall distraction. "The exciting thing is the potential to use these 'time-wasters' or 'over-stimulators' to our advantage in the classroom," one educator said...

This from the Berkeley Independent:

S.C. is testing iPads as learning tools in 2 districts

Fifth-grade students at a Berkeley County, S.C., school are using iPads in the classroom as part of the state Department of Education's Digital Pilot Program operating in two districts. Students recently used the devices to learn about multiplication and fractions, and now are integrating the iPads into lessons about inventors and inventions. "We try to use them every day," one teacher said. "... I don't even think they view it as learning."

And from BlogHer.com:

Children with autism learn, have fun with iPad apps

The writer of this blog post lists 10 apps for iPod Touch or iPad devices that may be fun or educational for children with autism. Some of the suggestions such as "Tappy Tune" and "Splish Splash Inn" help children with pre-reading and pre-math skills, while others such as "My First Tangrams," "Hand Drums" and "Chalkboard" feature puzzles, music and art.

Then, there's this from the Wall Street Journal:

Are students encouraged to be creative in school?

Scores on a standard creativity test showed a steady decline between 1990 and 2008, particularly among students in grades K-6. Researchers attribute the findings to more time on computers and watching television, plus an increased focus on standardized tests and rote learning in schools. Enrichment programs can help encourage creativity in children. Some say parents and teachers can assist by asking more open-ended questions and showing interest in answers.

Thanks Mikey

Device of the Future?

This from the San Angelo Standard-Times :

More than 120 employees of Angelo State University — professors, lecturers, advisers and office staff — are testing the world’s hottest technology device, the iPad.

“Many of the schools in our area have laptop programs (to provide every student with a computer) but I think this probably is the device of the future,” said John Miazga, dean of the College of Education.

He called it a device for the “Post-Information Age” and said the challenge for teachers and students in the future will not be accessing information but managing it as it grows at an increasingly rapid pace....

Introduced in April by U.S.-based Apple Inc., the device is billed as a tablet computer and has the same “touch screen” as Apple’s iPhone cell phone. It uses “apps” — applications written for the iPhone or specifically for the iPad — that enable the device to serve in a rapidly growing number of ways....The starting price for the iPad is $499. Accessories and software applications known as apps are extra...apps cost about $2 to $3 each. The apps are what make the device more than a tablet for recording information....

The iPad connects to the Internet through Wi-Fi, a wireless broadcast from an Internet hub, or through cellular technology like a cell phone. It has no real hard drive as it works through the Internet, drawing down information as needed and storing new data in cyberspace....

Miazga said the interactive aspect of the iPad allows for new possibilities in the classroom, such as creating a “back channel” for students to ask questions or give answers during a lecture. He said this means that a student who might be shy about raising a hand in a classroom can communicate with the lecturer through text message, e-mail or services such as Twitter....