The tablet is a device that many of us have come to love and have integrated into our daily lives and activities. We use it to surf the web, check our email, or maybe kick back and watch a movie. In recent years tablets have been used increasingly for other applications such as education.
We live in a world dominated by technology. Many children manage to get their hands (and mouths) on their parents phone or tablet before they can fully walk. So incorporating the technology that students have been inundated with all their lives into the classroom environment seems to make sense.
There’s not a lot of conclusive evidence about the benefit or detriment of using iPads for education since the device’s release in 2010. While some are skeptical that iPads are a distraction from learning in the classroom, early studies from small sample groups seem to be positive. Schools where students use iPads in the classroom seem to show an increase in literacy and competency in mathematics.
I recently spoke with Dr. Gary Jung, one of the customers we support through our EDU program. Dr. Jung is the Head of Technology at Berean Christian High School in Walnut Creek, CA, a small school with a little over 400 students.They manage and maintain about 500 iPads for their program. I asked him if he had noticed a change in the way students learn since iPads were integrated into the classroom. His response was not only positive, but offered some additional insight as well.
Yes, I’ve noticed a change in the way students interact in the classroom. I believe it’s been a success for us, we’ve seen an increase in students test scores coinciding with the implementation of iPads. Technology is the way of the future and I believe it’s a good idea to educate them using the technology that they will go on to use throughout their lives.
While not every school or situation is ready for this shift away from traditional modes of learning, iPads and tablets may have a place in the classroom environment. It’s food for thought when considering the future of public, private and home school scenarios. Will we one day see an educational culture where all students are connected this way? It’s something that you wonder about when you think of the future of iPads in the classroom. What difference do you think it could have made for you as a student? What additional things could our kids learn not just from using an iPad but from breaking and fixing one?
