Will the iPad change anything about education?
Back in June, I started reading articles about how the iPad will forever change education. I was a new iPad owner.
I have had an iPad for three months and I have been making notes in a draft of this post since June. I wasn't one of the earliest adopters and I have avoided writing anything about it until now because I didn't want to join the many people posting about it in that crazy rush/gush that accompanies many Apple new products.
Also, I got my iPad as a gift, and I know that has colored my opinions. My first impression of the iPad was that it was a cool toy. It wasn't a computer. It couldn't replace my computer. In fact, the first thing you do when you take it out of the box and power up is connect it to a computer. You need the computer to sync your content (songs, podcasts, and eventually your apps). And you immediately need an Apple iTunes store account to use the device.
If you ask me "Will the iPad change anything about education?" I would have to give at least two answers.
Short answers: 1. It depends on what grade level you mean - primary, elementary, secondary, higher ed. And that's because of availability and cost. 2. Yes, it will change things. But it won't be the actual Apple device that ultimately changes things. It will be the concept of the device, its uses and the way we interact with content when we are using it.
I still tell people that ask me about my iPad that it's a toy. It hasn't made me abandon my laptop. Since I have the Wi-Fi only model (without an additional data plan that you pay for - I can't afford yet another fee on top of my phone, cable, and Internet bills), it's only useful when I'm in an area that has free Wi-Fi. That's fine at home and at my college, but the iPad is pretty much useless in other places.
I have some of the same gripes with the iPad as others. No Flash hurts and it's not just because I want to watch videos. Many websites use Flash for their menus. I can't edit this blog or any of my others in the "rich text editor" mode on an iPad or use parts of Netflix or my Gmail and many others because it just doesn't work.
I don't like Safari as a browser at all - and the version on the iPad is worse than the regular version.
The iPad is even newer in the educational setting, but commentators are correct that they are not the same thing. I suppose that teachers have been playing with them over the summer and maybe this fall we'll see more use in schools. They are a pricey tool - at least $500 to start off. Many teachers would take 2 Netbooks over 1 iPad, though not all, as this post: Why I’d Rather Have a ‘Limited’ iPod/iPad in My Classroom Than a Netbook.
Looking at some of the educator posts, I do agree with some observations.
Students can easily/automatically have updated information and applications.
Textbooks can be easily stored and used along with the "computer" apps (as opposed to having a Kindle and) There are also a good number of free books and even textbooks being made available for the iPad and other devices.
iPads are more active and engaging than other e-readers like the Amazon Kindle.
When learning apps (perhaps even ones designed by teachers and students themselves) are more prominent in the marketplace, we may see a new learning platform that's not quite face-to-face, online or hybrid emerge. All the big players in this space are already working in mobile. Apps from Blackboard
and other education content organizers, will push that new learning space.
Here's where Apple's tight control over apps might be limiting - in development - and yet, the idea of a closed/walled/protected environment will also have immediate appeal to educational administrators, especially in K-12.
Cost is both a plus and minus. Cheaper than full blown desktop computers or laptops, but not cheap. More economical tablets will be available in the next six months, but will they have the cachet of the Apple product? No one ever caught up with the iPod in mp3 players despite there being a number of fine alternatives. If you think of a model where students keep the same iPad for several years, it's cheaper than purchasing sets of textbooks for each child. Start moving to open textbooks and the cost is even lower.
There's the old saying in tech "It's not a flaw, it's a feature." That might be true of the iPad's current lack of multitasking which I find to be a real disadvantage. Other than listening to my iPod music while doing other things, it's one thing at a time. Close what you're typing to look at the web page. Still, some will like that students can't be playing a game and accessing content.
iPads aren't phones but they are mobile. Lightweight and easy to carry class to class and home. Minus textbooks, that backpack is pretty light.
The social aspects of using an iPad and all the opportunities for social interaction are also either a plus or minus. An article from the University of Texas’ Continuing and Innovative Education blog says that "as ideas or questions occur to a student while reading an online textbook, he or she can immediately share them with other students through a class’s social networking group page." For every teacher who sees that as exciting, there will be five who will see it as high-powered eCheating.
Additionally, students have instant access to reference tools and multimedia support to help them understand what they’re reading, even if they’re away from their laptops.
Apple itself hasn't done as much for the education side of iPads as I might have expected since they have always had a strong presence in schools. (see http://www.apple.com/education/ipad/ )
Do some searching online and you'll find lots of people are recommending apps for educators. Since I haven't done anything with using iPads in a classroom yet, I am following what others are trying. As usual, I find a lot more innovation in K-12 than in higher ed.
I found a site using LiveBinders called iPads in Schools that has collected lots of material on its early use.
Another site to watch is the Fraser Speirs' iPad Project.
AppAdvice
a site that started with the iPhone but includes apps that work on the
iPad too and ones that are made specifically made for the iPad. Their AppGuides group apps together and you can find ones for educators - for example, a guide to mind-mapping apps both free and for sale.
The use of the far simpler e-readers on college campuses has been largely disappointing. The Kindle lacked good highlighting of text and slow refresh rates. Princeton and George Washington universities thought there were iPad network problems. Most e-readers cannot accommodate disabled students. And, despite their digital proficiencies, it seems that many students still prefer regular textbooks.
I could pull out articles from 10 years ago about using electronic books (maybe on DVDs) as a way to do many of the same things that are being attached to iPads and their imitators. Most of those efforts failed.
Where the iPad will change things may more likely be in having us expect to touch a screen to make something happen, or swipe a page for it to "turn" or download what we used to call a program in a few seconds and have updates for all our apps waiting in a store for a one click refresh.
Remember the first wave of tablets at the turn of this century? That was a pretty resounding flop. Will these new tablets (maybe we need a new generic name - pads? binders? folios?) have us expecting that we can have our notebooks, pens, textbooks and all our educational tools in that one lightweight object?
I have had an iPad for three months and I have been making notes in a draft of this post since June. I wasn't one of the earliest adopters and I have avoided writing anything about it until now because I didn't want to join the many people posting about it in that crazy rush/gush that accompanies many Apple new products.
Also, I got my iPad as a gift, and I know that has colored my opinions. My first impression of the iPad was that it was a cool toy. It wasn't a computer. It couldn't replace my computer. In fact, the first thing you do when you take it out of the box and power up is connect it to a computer. You need the computer to sync your content (songs, podcasts, and eventually your apps). And you immediately need an Apple iTunes store account to use the device.
If you ask me "Will the iPad change anything about education?" I would have to give at least two answers.Short answers: 1. It depends on what grade level you mean - primary, elementary, secondary, higher ed. And that's because of availability and cost. 2. Yes, it will change things. But it won't be the actual Apple device that ultimately changes things. It will be the concept of the device, its uses and the way we interact with content when we are using it.
I still tell people that ask me about my iPad that it's a toy. It hasn't made me abandon my laptop. Since I have the Wi-Fi only model (without an additional data plan that you pay for - I can't afford yet another fee on top of my phone, cable, and Internet bills), it's only useful when I'm in an area that has free Wi-Fi. That's fine at home and at my college, but the iPad is pretty much useless in other places.
I have some of the same gripes with the iPad as others. No Flash hurts and it's not just because I want to watch videos. Many websites use Flash for their menus. I can't edit this blog or any of my others in the "rich text editor" mode on an iPad or use parts of Netflix or my Gmail and many others because it just doesn't work.
I don't like Safari as a browser at all - and the version on the iPad is worse than the regular version.
The iPad is even newer in the educational setting, but commentators are correct that they are not the same thing. I suppose that teachers have been playing with them over the summer and maybe this fall we'll see more use in schools. They are a pricey tool - at least $500 to start off. Many teachers would take 2 Netbooks over 1 iPad, though not all, as this post: Why I’d Rather Have a ‘Limited’ iPod/iPad in My Classroom Than a Netbook.
Looking at some of the educator posts, I do agree with some observations.
Students can easily/automatically have updated information and applications.
Textbooks can be easily stored and used along with the "computer" apps (as opposed to having a Kindle and) There are also a good number of free books and even textbooks being made available for the iPad and other devices.
iPads are more active and engaging than other e-readers like the Amazon Kindle.
When learning apps (perhaps even ones designed by teachers and students themselves) are more prominent in the marketplace, we may see a new learning platform that's not quite face-to-face, online or hybrid emerge. All the big players in this space are already working in mobile. Apps from Blackboard
and other education content organizers, will push that new learning space.
Here's where Apple's tight control over apps might be limiting - in development - and yet, the idea of a closed/walled/protected environment will also have immediate appeal to educational administrators, especially in K-12.
Cost is both a plus and minus. Cheaper than full blown desktop computers or laptops, but not cheap. More economical tablets will be available in the next six months, but will they have the cachet of the Apple product? No one ever caught up with the iPod in mp3 players despite there being a number of fine alternatives. If you think of a model where students keep the same iPad for several years, it's cheaper than purchasing sets of textbooks for each child. Start moving to open textbooks and the cost is even lower.
There's the old saying in tech "It's not a flaw, it's a feature." That might be true of the iPad's current lack of multitasking which I find to be a real disadvantage. Other than listening to my iPod music while doing other things, it's one thing at a time. Close what you're typing to look at the web page. Still, some will like that students can't be playing a game and accessing content.
iPads aren't phones but they are mobile. Lightweight and easy to carry class to class and home. Minus textbooks, that backpack is pretty light.
The social aspects of using an iPad and all the opportunities for social interaction are also either a plus or minus. An article from the University of Texas’ Continuing and Innovative Education blog says that "as ideas or questions occur to a student while reading an online textbook, he or she can immediately share them with other students through a class’s social networking group page." For every teacher who sees that as exciting, there will be five who will see it as high-powered eCheating.
Additionally, students have instant access to reference tools and multimedia support to help them understand what they’re reading, even if they’re away from their laptops.
Apple itself hasn't done as much for the education side of iPads as I might have expected since they have always had a strong presence in schools. (see http://www.apple.com/education/ipad/ )
Do some searching online and you'll find lots of people are recommending apps for educators. Since I haven't done anything with using iPads in a classroom yet, I am following what others are trying. As usual, I find a lot more innovation in K-12 than in higher ed.
I found a site using LiveBinders called iPads in Schools that has collected lots of material on its early use.
Another site to watch is the Fraser Speirs' iPad Project.
AppAdvice
a site that started with the iPhone but includes apps that work on the
iPad too and ones that are made specifically made for the iPad. Their AppGuides group apps together and you can find ones for educators - for example, a guide to mind-mapping apps both free and for sale.
The use of the far simpler e-readers on college campuses has been largely disappointing. The Kindle lacked good highlighting of text and slow refresh rates. Princeton and George Washington universities thought there were iPad network problems. Most e-readers cannot accommodate disabled students. And, despite their digital proficiencies, it seems that many students still prefer regular textbooks.
I could pull out articles from 10 years ago about using electronic books (maybe on DVDs) as a way to do many of the same things that are being attached to iPads and their imitators. Most of those efforts failed.
Where the iPad will change things may more likely be in having us expect to touch a screen to make something happen, or swipe a page for it to "turn" or download what we used to call a program in a few seconds and have updates for all our apps waiting in a store for a one click refresh.
Remember the first wave of tablets at the turn of this century? That was a pretty resounding flop. Will these new tablets (maybe we need a new generic name - pads? binders? folios?) have us expecting that we can have our notebooks, pens, textbooks and all our educational tools in that one lightweight object?
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