Isn’t it supposed to be the other way round?
If you read this article – More iPads heading to Holland classrooms you’ll see the Holland board of education just purchased 356 iPads for around the $150,000 mark as part of their pilot technology classrooms…
“Five elementary classrooms and two high school classrooms were equipped with different technologies this year – including projectors, interactive whiteboards and iPads – to see which devices had the greatest affect on learning.”
“The overwhelming feedback from the prototype classroom teachers was that investing the money in more student devices (iPads) had more impact than installing a new projector or whiteboard,” Rex Thelen, the district’s chief officer of technology said. “The iPad is functional tool.”
I’m sure they are correct.
The iPad is a personal device, a functional, self-driven gadget that any student can use in their own time and space. A projector just ain’t like that. And a whiteboard, even those groovy new digital whiteboards with magic write-on-anything pens, even less so. In fact, how can you compare them?
But, from a teacher’s point-of-view, I get it. Anyway, it’s pilot technology so I guess that means sort of an experimental BETA thing.
I think what they’re saying is: “For the learning process, will it be more effective to have a projector (or electronic whiteboard) in a classroom or will an iPad be more suitable?”
It’s a good question to ask…
My humble opinion?
Use iPads (for each student) and a projector. That is, if you can pull their attention away from the iPad for a minute!
What’s your opinion?
