10
May
May
I have been following with interest and amusement lots of recent tweets and blogs about the use of ipads in the education world lately. I have had several people email me directly for my opinion on whether or not they should or shouldn’t purchase one. I certainly don’t want the responsibility of that decision but I can give you my humble opinion:
In a nutshell I will use this as an analogy: An iPad is like a very fancy Airstream or Winnebago camper. Could you live in it? Sure but you might not want that to be your only residence. Does it have all the basic features to meet your domestic needs? Sure but it’s main feature is portability so to capitalize on that feature you might not have full function of some of the others. A laptop, on the other hand is like an apartment. It is smaller and less “permanent” but still has everything you would need to live there for long periods of time – but it isn’t a house. A desktop is like a house. It is not portable but sure can have lots of luxury and features you can’t find elsewhere.
If I were to continue this analogy, I guess I would say an ipod touch would be a hardshell camper as well, and a mobile phone device maybe could be likened to a tent.
I think everyone should certainly decide for themselves what their needs are first and then purchase. I think schools and school districts should also evaluate the needs first and then decide on the appropriate purchase for their budgets. I hate to see teachers or schools buy something just because they have heard it is the latest, greatest “flavor of the month” gadget. I have seen too many classrooms with document cameras, ipods, interactive whiteboards, etc. that sit idle after they were purchased just because they were the latest thing that was being promoted. All of these things are AWESOME but you have to use them! Technology should be a tool. The most humorous, but sad thing I saw was a picture taken of a high school classroom in our district with a brand new expensive interactive whiteboard and it was being used as the “screen” for a teacher to project an old acetate overhead onto the board. Really? Did they not know what they were purchasing? Was it something being pushed that they weren’t ready for? Was it a piece of equipment that the teacher couldn’t see the possibilities for ? Who knows, but I don’t think that would have happened if the school/teacher would have looked at: What do I want to teach? How can I teach it better? What can I use to teach it better?
I will admit to being a tech geek also, but I still don’t believe in purchasing something that I haven’t even seen the use for yet. Do I want only a “camper” and not a house or at least an apartment? No, but on the other hand if I am homeless that could be an adequate place to live for a while. Would I want only an iPad and not a computer? No, but if that was all I could afford for the time being, I could manage to make it work.
It’s about the learning – not the technology.
One Response
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I like the analogy. You said it! “It’s about the learning — not the technology.” What is your purpose?!
May 23, 2010 at 5:06 pm