WHY iPads in the Classroom?!

I choose this topic for my personal interest project because I understand that I am going to be a twenty-first century teacher. I feel as though it is important to stimulate students in school the same way they are stimulated at home, and technology is one way of doing that.

After completing this project, I found many resources that were in favor of using iPads in the classroom, and I found many models and examples to support that hypothesis. My hope as a future educator is to have an educational rich classroom both through me as the teacher and me as the facilitator.

Managing iPads in the Classroom

Gentile, M. (2012). The Importance of Managing iPads in the Classroom. The Education Digest, 78, 11-13. Retrieved November 25, 2012, from the ProQuest Central  database.

This source was interesting because it discussed a school districts decision to purchase tablets, like the iPad, and it addressed their concerns. Their main concerns were the tablets meeting the districts requirement for enforcing security, managing content, and monitoring and controlling access. The school district recognized that technology was changing and growing, and they needed to do the same.

The questions and concerns above were heavily considered when purchasing a tablet, and it also was also discussed that teachers needed to be able to manage their classrooms. With anything, I feel as though it is important as a classroom teacher to be able to manage a classroom, and teachers may just need to adjust their expectations of their students. Ultimately, I think if school districts have faith in the advances in technology, they will do justice to their students.

iPad Wordle

http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&sa=X&tbo=d&biw=1280&bih=709&tbm=isch&tbnid=b6jl70EKgcBLjM:&imgrefurl=http://globalclassroom.us/blog/bid/129862/Engage-Students-in-the-Classroom-Incorporate-iPads&docid=JJtmJfhxcajKZM&imgurl=http://globalclassroom.us/Portals/108225/images/ipad_course_wordle.png&w=988&h=711&ei=zamyUPL8Lcay0QGpyIHwCA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=974&vpy=306&dur=8011&hovh=190&hovw=265&tx=128&ty=122&sig=115922143916315873902&page=1&tbnh=152&tbnw=212&start=0&ndsp=22&ved=1t:429,r:10,s:0,i:118

iPads in the Classroom 

One Transformed Classroom

One Transformed Classroom - YouTube. (n.d.). YouTube. Retrieved November 25, 2012, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYLirypK_Yo

This source is a great example of how iPads are fully used in a classroom. This was a source that was a scheduled reading for educational technology, but it is a prime example as to the benefits of iPads, and how the role of the teacher is transformed to only being a facilitator. The students start their day by receiving their assignments via their teacher's blog, and then they go to work on the iPad. Students will either use apps or PDFs to complete their tasks. Since there are only fifteen iPads, students will work in pairs, and the few students that are excelling academically will be able to use their own iPad for the day.

This model of utilizing iPads in the classroom is great for many reasons. First, the teacher ultimately becomes the facilitator, meaning, the teacher can monitor students' progress and really focus on areas that students may be struggling. This is beneficial for students and their progress because they can work at their own pace, and subject they may be struggling with can be addressed immediately and one on one with the teacher. Second, students showed that in down time they gravitated more towards educational apps, rather than games that do not enhance their education. Many parents began to buy their students iPads for the home because of the strides they made in the classroom. Lastly, the classroom was run so well and so coherently that all students had the ability to be engaged, but were still being challenged.

The model shown in this source is why I would fight for the use of iPads to be implemented in my classroom. I feel as though all the students in this video were engaged, and enjoyed learning. I think it was great to see how easy students could submit their work for grading to their teacher, which makes the turn over time quicker and students can move more quickly on their assigned tasks.

1980s vs. Twenty First Century

Kids of Today vs 1980's Technology (HD) - YouTube. (n.d.). YouTube. Retrieved November 25, 2012, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7v75QpvISUs&feature=related

This source is a YouTube video that does not touch on iPads in the classroom, but it does focus on the advances of technology from the 1980s until now, and students inabilities to not be able to operate technology from twenty years earlier. After watching this video I did not think it was going to be useful in my argument about iPads being used in the classroom; however, it does illustrate how technology has advanced, the benefits of using technology, but most importantly, the video focuses on how children today use technology in most parts of their life.

This video is a great argument for why iPads should be incorporated into the classroom - the biggest reason being the ability to stimulate students which something familiar, while enhancing their education at the same time.

iPads in the Classroom - Chicago Public Schools

iPads In The Classroom - YouTube. (n.d.). YouTube. Retrieved November 25, 2012, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EV8M6P9st9Q

This source was a video that came from YouTube, and discussed the use of iPads in the classroom. After viewing this source, it became clear that the use of iPads in an elementary school classroom can be extremely beneficial, and in the case of Chicago Public Schools, test scores have improved because teachers have the ability to alter their teaching to improve their students education.

As an elementary education major, I found this source beneficial because it shows how students of the twenty-first century can be stimulated, while learning at the same time. I also made the observation that the teachers classrooms were still visually rich even though students were utilizing iPads on a regular basis. As a future educator, and still in undergrad classes, I think it is important to remember the more rich the classroom environment is, the higher opportunity students have to feel comfortable and then ultimately successful.

Another benefit iPads had in the Chicago Public Schools are their benefits for students in special education. The example was students that had a school trip to the local grocery store, and were able to hear what items were needed, and say thank you to staff at the store via an app.

This source was beneficial because it argued for iPads in the classroom, but did so by showing how they can make a difference. It is projected that the Chicago Public Schools will have more iPads in the future.

iPads in the Classroom - The Boston Globe

Fletcher, R. (2012, October 7). iPads in the Classroom . The Boston Globe. Retrieved November 25, 2012, from http://www.bostonglobe.com/magazine/2012/10/06/ipads-classroom/O5X2E0Wl5ZK8kQedsG6KlJ/story.html

This source was great because it discussed some of the downsides to having iPads in the classroom. The Boston College High School made it mandatory for all students entering the school to come with an iPad, which allowed the school to get rid of textbooks. The article focused on a freshman classroom, where the teacher acknowledges some of the quick benefits to utilizing iPads in the classroom, but discussing his concerns, along with the concerns of upper classroom who were not required to come equip with an iPad.

One major argument presented in this article was how easily students could potentially get distracted from their work, and with the tap of a finger could not longer be focused on academics, but could be creating a new high score in their angry birds app. As a future educator, one can have the appreciation of the worry that students may become easily distracted, and therefore, their education may suffer. I can see this issue occurring with students who may be diagnosed with ADHD, or students find school challenging, and will therefore use their iPads for other activities that may not pertain to what is being taught.

Upper class men expressed their concerns about the new mandatory iPads in the classroom. The students feel as though students are loosing out socially, and many students agreed that they prefer to have books where they turn the pages. The high school discussed the noticeable changes socially, and said that due to the mandatory no electronic use at lunch, students maintain some of their social skills.

This source provided an argument about iPads in the classroom that I had not considered before; however, I do feel as though if students care enough about their education and realize how lucky they are, they can emerge themselves into the benefits that the iPad present.