D2: Time, Accountability, and Wheel re-inventing
The primary school I am working at recently bought twenty iPads. As one of the organizers of this addition, I found the following pros and cons.
Pros:
TIME! As an primary teacher it always seems to take forever to get a whole class set up, logged in, files found, website accessed, etc. on traditional computers. With the iPad, you just state the lesson’s objectives and off they go.
APPS! It’s comforting to know that if you are looking for something specific for a lesson, it may not exist now but it probably will soon. New apps are always popping up.
Cons:
So far we have been fortunate enough that no iPads have been damaged yet. When it happens we’re not quite sure how to handle it. It’s never just one person’s fault, is it. We have not had trouble with stationary school computers, but the mobility of the iPads make them a ticking time bomb. Rules and etiquette have worked for now, but whose accountable when one cracks?
While planning for units using the iPads, we found ourselves in uncharted waters. Many people online added lengthy lists of educational apps to use, but we found very few lesson plans or practical reflections using any of these apps. Are hope was to avoid reinventing the wheel, especially when there are thousands of educational apps to filter through, and adapt units from what has already been done. The freedom and exploration is exciting, but some sort of base, foundation, or example would have been helpful in the planning process. I guess this will just take time.
Posted in: Week 09: iPad Apps
Deb Giesbrecht 5:24 am on November 1, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Murray,
Thanks for your post.
Pioneering something new has its challenges – it would be nice if lesson plans came pre-loaded for you that was not only adaptable but suitable for your needs. Its interesting that you mentioned the time it takes to utilize the ipad and get everyone on the same page- had never thought of that aspect before and it certainly is an issue that needs addressing. I imagine with repeated use that it would get easier and faster. Maintenance is always a concern as well – for any appliance that is used in the workforce, and budget talks that centre around maintenance issues are always a challenging conversation. It highlights the need that we need to identify its specific uses and expected outcomes before we invest in any technology.
thaks again for your comments.
murray12 6:05 am on November 6, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hello Deb,
Sorry, I may had been unclear in my post above – I have found using the iPads much faster than traditional computers. With traditional computers, students would always have their hands up asking questions about how to log in, where is a file, and what they’re supposed to do. It can get better with practice, but not always. With the iPads however, I found the students could intuitively get started right away once they know the instructions. The iPads have been a huge time saver.
As for budget concerns and maintenance, so far we have a IT coming by every other month to fiddle with the iPads. Otherwise, I or another teacher wrestle with a spiderweb of cables to update the IOS or add new apps. It hasn’t been too stressful yet, but it’s only early days.