originally uploaded by m.p.3.
According to this StarTribune article, all 680 students at a West St. Paul middle school received iPads to allow “for everything from online research to games that build reading and math skills.” While the kids, administration and staff are happy about the grant funded iPads landing in the hands of these students, some wonder if it’s worth it.
One StarTribune commenter notes:
There had better be some metrics that show whether “gadgets” improve learning and test scores. My bet is this is a big bust. I want to know how many are broken, lost and stolen after the first 90 days. Then School year. The PC didn’t improve test scores or academics; the iPad won’t either. Now, if they could load all of their text books onto the iPad, and the teacher could query the iPad to see if the student actually opened the books or completed assignments, then maybe this would be worthwhile…
posted by CabelaKip on Apr. 27, 11 at 4:12 PM
However, according to this CNN article from September 1998, the use of computers improved test scores for those students who had access to them and are being taught by teachers who, “have the technological skills to use computers and the proper programs to enhance a students education.”
So while CabelaKip makes an excellent point regarding teachers being able to track reading and assignments from a central point, the rest of the statement may not be entirely true. However, the important point to note is that the teachers need tech know-how and they need the proper tools on the devices as well. What this article doesn’t provide are any details regarding the backgrounds of the teachers and/or the programs being utilized by the school for the iPads.
Do you think that the devices will be properly utilized in the classrooms or will they be abused (physically or otherwise)? Do you think that use of the iPads in the classroom will actually improve learning or will it be like computers were (and likely still are)–mainly a gimmicky distraction? How about your tax dollars? Do you think that 680 iPads for middle school students was a good use of grant funding? Whatever you have to say about this one go ahead and comment on as I’d love to hear your thoughts.
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April 28th, 2011 at 7:47 am
This was actually part of a $1M grant from the Feds. I can tell you that they have thought out how the iPads will be used – my sister in law is actually managing the whole project for them. They can’t take them home for now. There are strict restrictions on what they can add to the machines or how they can be used. There is GPS on them in case they are stolen so they can be recovered. That said, I totally disagree that it’s the place of government (who is awash in debt) to be funding this. Part of the plan is to eventually let the kids take them home and, because so many don’t have wifi at home, to help fund getting wifi available to the kids’ homes. It isn’t just the 1 time cost of buying them but there are a whole host of ongoing costs to this thing that make me frustrated as a taxpayer.
April 28th, 2011 at 8:32 am
BW, who should be funding it then?
One point I’d like to make is that technology in classrooms is not all about test scores raising. If we want students to be successful outside of school, they need to have technological skills. The keyboarding skills of seventh graders are atrocious, it take 2-3 class periods to type a three page paper.
Only time will tell if iPads themselves are worth the cost.
April 28th, 2011 at 8:37 am
The kids will spend more time trying to figure out how to hack/jailbreak the iPad than they will “learning” on it. Their biggest achievement will be getting Angry Birds loaded onto the “secure” iPad.
Maybe the government can borrow another hundred billion from our bestest buddies, the Chinese, to “invest” in another “visionary” idea, say…..free Xbox consoles to help “develop fine motor skills” in our youth.
Un-frickin’-real.
April 28th, 2011 at 9:03 am
By the fortune of my spouse’s job, we have 3 iPads lying around the house. 2 won in work sales contests and one that is expected to be utilized by her doing her job.
I can’t speak for how these particular kids are going to be directed to use their products, but I can speak for my kid who is a Junior in high school. When it is homework time, the first thing she does is gets an iPad out. She uses a translator program (app) to assist with her language class, she does tons of internet research for papers and has even considered downloading an ebook needed for English class (which I declined since she had the paper book for free already). Point being is that it makes it easier for her to get her work done and it is better work as well. Now, the government didn’t pay for that, which is a different part of this discussion.
I mention that I have 3 only to bring up the point that there are days when all four of us in my family are home that the one without an iPad is the one feeling left out. It really is a bit of a game changer regarding how we do a lot of things, including the iTunes sharing that allows the iPad to access our entire music collection via wireless network to play anywhere in the house on a dock, or to our home stereo.
I will be surprised if the iPad does not become as common at the iPod is in most homes right now. Once you have one, it is hard to consider not having one. For this reason, I wonder how many of these will find a home elsewhere of the magnet school come summer.
April 28th, 2011 at 9:05 am
Aside from the taxpayers funding the iPads, I think another big difference is that your daughter is much older and more mature than the students in the WSP middle school.
April 28th, 2011 at 9:11 am
I have a real hard time with the idea that a computer does not help in the learning process. I would say that computers are absolutely required. That may depend on your goals for education.
A tablet is a computer with a different form factor (and OS in this case). I don’t see it as some drastic change. It could be a less expensive piece of hardware than is traditionally purchased. The durability is obviously in question. I think it is a good experiment.
April 28th, 2011 at 9:25 am
What matters is not the technology, but how it is used. An overhead projector or VCR can add a lot of quality material to the class that is otherwise difficult to present. OR, they can be misused and turn a lesson into a snooze-fest.
A well-designed and thoughtful program will produce great results, and there is no shortage of examples of how these 1:1 programs have been transformative. On the other hand, if teachers don’t adapt and adjust methods to take advantage of these devices in innovative and effective ways, it won’t work.
I just spent a day a school in south central MN that has done a similar program and the teachers, students, and parents all give it a thumbs up. And none have been stolen either. :)
April 28th, 2011 at 9:25 am
Agreed. I won’t offer that I think middle school kids are the right market for this. I saw a news snippet about this and it seemed like some of the kids were ready to do cartwheels over getting the machines. I hardly think those smiles were because it was going to help with math class.
I will self admit that when Mom’s first iPad showed up, we had a similar reaction as those kids, but it was mostly Angry Bird euphoria.
April 28th, 2011 at 9:36 am
Agreed.
Granted, I’ve only put about 2 minutes of thought into reacting to this and reading the comments. But, right off the bat, I would be interested in seeing a cost-benefit analysis of furnishing iPads/converting and loading textbooks on them vs. the continued use of paper textbooks.
April 28th, 2011 at 9:41 am
MSPD,
I use e-books for my classes and I despise them for a variety of reasons:
1. Cost. They’re not that much more inexpensive for most (for me, they’re free as part of my program whereas the physical books would be quite expensive). We’re talking about 30% discount.
2. Book printing options are limited by book! Some of my e-books allow me to print the entire book, some allow printing of one chapter, some allow some random page length (usually something annoying like 2 pages), and some don’t allow printing at all. While using the iPad is great, I wonder if having the piece of paper wouldn’t be great too.
3. DRM on these e-books could disable their use after a single school year. Paper books, while possibly outdated, don’t have the same restriction and for many subjects/courses they really don’t need to be updated all that often.
April 28th, 2011 at 9:45 am
I’m quite dismayed by the knee-jerk reaction of Sean L, who clearly has a very jaundiced view of youth today. I’m guessing he doesn’t have a child in middle school. I do, and while she doesn’t have an iPad, she does have access to a PC at home, and a Mac at school. My frustration with using PCs and Macs in education is that the software is in its infancy. PCs/Macs are great for testing, not so great for teaching — but that’s not the fault of the delivery mechanism (the PC/Mac). It’s the fault of the content.
Computers are great for data collection, which is what test-taking is from a grading perspective. The problem is that teaching is really content-delivery, and we haven’t figured out how to deliver content via computers in any truly ground-breaking new way. The very best content delivery system on the internet is still Youtube, which is just videos. We had that 40 years ago — the innovation now is that we can put a screen in front of each kid, instead of one screen at the front of the room.
What my kids have benefited from the most WITHIN THE CLASSROOM is smartboards – the computer connected whiteboards that allow interactivity. The kids love them, and the content can be made so much more interesting to a 12 year old than some dusty old teacher standing at a blackboard doing long division.
So to get back to the original question – no, I don’t think this was a good use of Federal funds, for a couple of reasons: (1) there isn’t enough dedicated high-quality content for iPads in education YET, and (2) iPads are not as rugged a product as you likely need for middle-schoolers. Kids at that age are rough on things, and also just plain clumsy — their bodies are changing, and their coordination sometimes can’t keep up. I would rather see the money spent on developing interactive content for future use than just handing out iPads. That is where you can change education in a revolutionary way.
April 28th, 2011 at 10:00 am
Pretending that this test proves that kids with iPads get smarter faster than kids who don’t have them.
What is the line of acceptable resources that parents should provide and the school should provide?
When my kids took certain math classes, it was $120 TI calculator. We pay for notebooks, pencils, glue, rulers, etc. through grade school and high school. Nobody subsidizes me on that. What if the iPad was required to be furnished by the family with the knowledge that it is going to help the child learn? It is only 380 dollars more than that calculator accumulating dust on in a closet right now.
I don’t have a side to this really, just throwing it out there along the same lines that I needed to get the other kid a Mac Book when she started her freshman year as laptops are not optional in college.
April 28th, 2011 at 10:26 am
fkaJames,
While I dont really disagree with you overall, I would disagree about the delivery mechanism. Fortune 500 companies around the country have drastically reduced training staff and moved to electronic delivery of training. Schools deliver electronic content to people from 4 years old all the way to non traditional students getting masters degrees.
While I dont think it is a 100% great replacement of a live teacher, eLearning is fairly well developed and tested. It goes far beyond Youtube. Anyone who has sat with a young child (mine is 3, going on 4) and watched them play an educational game on a computer can tell you there value, and actual learning, going on.
As to our tax dollars paying for this particular idea? I dont know. I am not happy or unhappy with it. I am sure Apple is happy with it, and by extension China, who lent our govt the money to buy the laptops, and who then recouped the money by manufacturing the Ipads.
April 28th, 2011 at 10:39 am
FYI – Angry Birds was one of the apps included.
April 28th, 2011 at 10:42 am
BW, I didn’t know they taught physics in middle school.
April 28th, 2011 at 11:22 am
A friend of mine wrote a blog post on iPads in schools that I completely agree with:
http://abstractfactory.blogspot.com/2011/02/why-ipads-role-in-education-should-be.html
April 28th, 2011 at 11:34 am
As an educator in a district that will be using some capital funds/technology dedicated funds to introduce iPads into classrooms (roughly 16 per elementary school, with an additional 16 purchased through PTO raised funds) I think the most important part of this or any “new” technology is professional development for the teachers. The goal of any technology is to improve and enhance learning and for this to occur, the teachers must have a working understanding of the technology as well as best practices on the use of the technology within the classroom.
April 28th, 2011 at 11:45 am
Here is an interesting post from a leader in educational technology:
http://bigthink.com/ideas/30699
April 28th, 2011 at 2:34 pm
Physics is 8th grade science in my district, physical science anyway, which is the beginning of physics, motion and such.
April 28th, 2011 at 8:57 pm
sigh… I dunno, I guess if they can find a way to use them to improve education, they should. I don’t know enough about the education resources market to know if there is value there or not.
The value should be weighed against any other needs within the school system. i.e. if parents are being asked to bring in reams of paper, and after school fees are being raised, then no, I don’t think it was a good idea. But if the value can be shown (lower net costs for obsolete materials) then there is value.
I can’t go against technology just because it’s new. I just think it is important that there is a net value benefit over other traditional means. Overall, our education still needs to have some significant improvement in a majority of regions.
As far as educating teachers so they can work with the technology, I have to agree that this can be a significant issue, and a significant added cost to any technology change. Most people that are accessing this web site and reviewing/comment on this blog are light years beyond in technology knowledge than many people. Expecting someone that isn’t really tech savvy to figure it out on their own is equivalent to tilting at windmills.
April 28th, 2011 at 9:57 pm
I learned more about computers by trying to hack it to do cool stuff then I did in the Introduction to Computer Programming course I took in college.
April 28th, 2011 at 10:00 pm
fehler +1.
April 28th, 2011 at 11:08 pm
Here’s what I would recommend:
http://www.criticalthinking.org/
April 29th, 2011 at 12:06 am
The chemistry and physics homework my 4th grader brings home is almost as advanced as I was getting in high school (in one of the top school systems in the U.S.) The more I think about it, the more I would like to see iPad-style devices in his grade school. Although I would prefer a private funding or partnership.
April 29th, 2011 at 7:57 am
Hey fehler, I’m with you. My first app produced some inappropriate ascii art written in basic in high school. I’m sure I was supposed to be working on something else that was no fun.
April 29th, 2011 at 8:55 pm
A truly good teacher can inspire and teach well with no technology at all.
May 18th, 2011 at 7:18 pm
Now they are going into South St. Paul’s schools too including staff and administrators: http://www.startribune.com/local/south/121892079.html
January 26th, 2012 at 10:54 am
Farmington, who may not keep German in the curriculum is looking to buy iPads for the classroom: http://www.farmingtonindependent.com/event/article/id/19092/
January 26th, 2012 at 2:40 pm
Bill, what does German have to do with the iPads?
January 26th, 2012 at 2:42 pm
dm, they claim they don’t have it in the budget to pay for classes (German was just one example) but they have the money to pay for iPads.
January 26th, 2012 at 2:45 pm
Do we know where the iPad money is coming from? I haven’t read the article.
Very few schools still offer German. Admittedly, I don’t know the purpose of the iPads, but I’d place a higher value on additional technology than a language like German.
January 26th, 2012 at 2:57 pm
As I noted above it was funded by the passage of a technology levy. Yes, I realize that German probably can’t be funded from that, but who knows. They were able to fund all-day K classes in 191 from funding meant for poor students. Why not work some inventive magic here too ;)
January 26th, 2012 at 3:02 pm
You can’t pass a levy to add class subjects. Just like you can’t pass a levy to hire teachers.
If you can prove that German raises the test scores and success of poor students, then you can use that money to pay for German. Good luck doing that, since German is a difficult language and unlikely to aid in tested subjects like a latin-based language would. (Latin-based languages aid students in deciphering latin word roots, which aids in inferencing and vocabulary skills, Greek, oddly would be another language that would likely be able to prove a connection to student success as well)
All-day K has provided results in student gains.
Can’t, sadly, compare the two.
January 26th, 2012 at 3:06 pm
somewhat related, German is a less and less useful language, globally. If Farmington would like to add languages to their curriculum, they should look into becoming a Confucius school district. The Chinese government pays the salary of a native-Mandarin speaking teacher for up to 3 years, gives a seed grant for program facilitation, and additional money for supplies and technology for the program.
Mandarin is likely to be a more useful, though much more difficult-to-learn language in future years than German.
January 26th, 2012 at 5:22 pm
Bill, two different revenue sources.
January 26th, 2012 at 5:25 pm
Sorry. I should have winked. It was a bad joke. :-(
January 26th, 2012 at 5:26 pm
Oh. I did :-)
January 27th, 2012 at 8:01 am
I knew you were joking, Bill, but I didn’t know if some nut would read this site and go “Yeah! Great idea, Bill! Why don’t they do that?!” So I thought I’d head it off.
January 27th, 2012 at 8:04 am
Fair enough! :)
May 7th, 2012 at 7:02 am
[...] to the plan to bring iPads to West St. Paul’s school district, Farmington hopes to do the same. However, according to a recent Letter to the Editor in the [...]