Here is a great video explaining how the iPad is used in education!
Using the iPad in Education
This blog was created for my information technology research paper.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
The iPad's Influence Upon Edcuation
Introduction
The Apple iPad is a touch-screen tablet that has helped
to transform the future of the education. This form of technology has given students
the ability to use a smaller, more efficient device in day-to-day affairs,
without the need of a laptop. The iPad has not only started to revolutionize
the future of the classroom by allowing students to buy cheaper copies of their
texts books for the iPad, but it also provides information at our finger tips.
The device has become one of the most popular products on the market, giving
way to breakthroughs in special needs education as well as providing solutions
to ‘green initiatives’ in the classroom and workplace. It will continue to revolutionize
the classroom setting by transferring textbooks to eBooks and lectures into
videos. There are still concerns that arise about the versatility needed for
note taking on course work, as well as, the semi-limited availability of
certain eBooks on the iPad. Although there have been some technical issues and security
concerns that have arisen since the product was released, there are also many benefits
to using the iPad in the classroom and the workplace.
Background
The iPad is a touch-screen Apple tablet device that has been on
the market since January 2010. It was a highly anticipated technology that
Apple positioned as according to Sanford (2012) the “first device in an
entirely new market segment, making the claim that it would be better at many
tasks than either the smartphones or traditional laptops.” It was designed to
be the main competitor to the Amazon, Kindle offering less expensive versions
of the eBook’s available through Amazon.
Because the iPad’s eBook applications are 30% cheaper than the
Amazon Kindle’s eBooks (Sanford, 2012), many classrooms across America
including secondary education, higher education, even MBA programs have chosen
to transition their textbooks and classwork to the iPad due to it’s universal
appeal and overall efficient operation system. Giving students and working
professionals the option of having everything they need within a small
touch-screen tablet has made way for new ways of teaching and conducting
business.
Potential Benefits
Due to the convenience and mass appeal of the iPad, it
makes the product easily marketable to the whole world. As it’s popularity
spreads, the more universal and easily accessible information and applications
for eBooks and other educationally beneficial features on the iPad will become.
The future of education and the workforce has been moving toward a paperless
and fully electronic way of operating a classroom. Recently, efforts to reduce
paper consumption have been stressed in most universities and workplaces. Apple
has capitalized upon this fact by offering an easy paper free solution with the
iPad.
Not only has the iPad helped green initiatives, it has made it
easier for students to carry and organize their school supplies by just having
an iPad instead. Georgia University’s Robinson College of Business for example
has aggressively pursed using iPad’s as a replacement to textbooks. “This fall,
students in the college’s Executive MBA program were given iPads as a
replacement for textbooks. The 1.5-pound iPad will replace the 20 pounds of
textbooks that students typically are required to buy for class (Damast, 2010).
The Apple iPad is moving into classrooms
quickly while Apple promises to “eventually have textbooks for almost every subject
at every grade level.” Apple executives argue that, “today's textbooks weren't
adequate teaching tools as technology had raced ahead. Instead, textbooks
should be portable, searchable and easy to update, they said, demonstrating the
ability to load, close and manipulate diagrams and video content by pinching
your fingers” (Vascellaro, 2012).
The iPad’s versatility helps teachers also to engage with the
students and to bring the classroom to students who may not be able to attend
an on-campus lecture. A potential benefit would be, “the use of new approaches
such as video-recorded lectures to communicate directly and individually with
all students has been the preserve of technology-savvy educators” (Manuguerra
& Petocz, 2011). Due to the fact that students come from a full spectrum of
studies and usually have busy schedules, using video-lectures with online
courses on an iPad is a great alternative. “In these recordings, the slides,
with audio commentary by the lecturer, are dynamically annotated as notes,
graphs and formulae are written on the screen of the iPad. This is a revolution
for students who are not comfortable in studying exclusively using books or
notes but cannot enroll as internal students” (Manuguerra & Petocz, 2011).
Students within the classroom also enjoy engaging in the lectures
with the iPad, because of the usually quick access to the internet and
recording functions of the device. “With the adoption of the iPad, the
presentation and communication during lectures can change. Instead of static
slides, lively and spontaneous presentations can be created. Slides can be
annotated on the iPad itself in real time, the use of the whiteboard can be
dismissed, and every note, graph or formula written during the lecture can now
be recorded” (Manuguerra & Petocz, 2011). It is an easy way for students to
engage with the material both inside and outside of the classroom.
Another unique way iPad’s have made their way into classrooms is
for children with special needs. In Melbourne, Australia, there have been schools
for children with intellectual disabilities that have integrated iPad’s into
their curriculum. The iPad is much more intuitive for students who have special
needs due to the touch-screen technology, making it easier when students
struggle with dexterity, mobility and especially communication. The
application, “Proloquo2Go, meaning ‘speak out loud' in Latin, is an alternative
communication tool for people who have difficulty speaking, and the app is
proving to be a effective way for some students at Warringa Park, School for
Children with Intellectual Disabilities, to communicate” (Ellis & Shoni,
2011). Using applications like these are very helpful for teachers to engage
students while teaching them how to communicate using the iPad. Dawn explains.
'Children that have never communicated a sentence before are starting to make
requests and make choices using the iPad. You can't put a price on that” (Ellis
& Shoni, 2011). The iPad has helped special needs children learn how to
communicate with their teachers and parents sometimes for the first time.
Potential Problems with E-Learning
Although there are many ideal aspects of the iPad, there are still
concerns about the transition from textbooks to eBooks, as well as, digitizing
all course work. Many people using the iPad in the classroom are satisfied with
the touch-screen tablet, but there are also many who struggle with engagement
on a tablet device versus taking notes by hand. When students are typing on a
touch screen keyboard, it is much slower and harder to keep up with the
professor. They have recently started to offer keyboards for the iPad, but
without one it is not conducive to rapid note taking (Wieder, 2011).
According to Wieder (2011), iPad’s can easily hinder teaching
because of the limited access that it gives to certain university applications.
“Paul Steinhaus, chief information officer at Chatham University, discussed
getting iPads for incoming students, soon realized that the iPad, with the slow
finger-typing it requires, actually makes written course work more difficult.”
He explains that although the iPad is great for viewing media and easily
accessing the course reading, students are also expressing that it is more
stressful using the iPad when taking tests or quizzes because of the
possibility of losing their work before it is saved or the potential of having
faulty internet connection (Wieder, 2011).
Many more options for eBooks and applications have been created,
which has slowly bridged the gap between the number of eBooks offered on the
Kindle versus the iPad, but the iPad is still behind. This is making it
difficult for students who are trying to switch over to a tablet instead of
textbooks but can only get certain books on their iPad (Wieder, 2011). Despite
the lack of eBook’s in comparison to other PC tablets, the popularity of the
iPad is much higher than that of its competitors.
Security Concerns
There have been a few concerns about the iPad that have
arisen since its release in January 2010.
A security expert stated that strong encryption and an access control
feature are missing from Apple's new iPad tablet device. Weak encryption is
also a problem of the iPhone, making the security encryption easy to bypass if
lost or stolen. People’s information is easily accessed especially if the
person’s device is not set up with a security code. There have been concerns
that have been addressed by Apple, but continue to be an issue (Mills, 2010).
Another issue is the insecurity of the Wi-Fi network on
the iPad. “SMobile is developing a tool to protect against such attacks, in
which someone is able to intercept Internet traffic mobile devices send over
Wi-Fi networks and inject new messages while masquerading as a legitimate party
in the communication” (Mills, 2010). Because people do a variety of security
sensitive activities on their tablets, it makes them a target for hackers. Apple
has attempted to remedy these security concerns over the course of the past two
years.
Further Required Research
Further Required Research
One could look deeper into the different potential uses
of the iPad in the classroom and how the educational systems are going about
implementing these changes. There have been many schools, universities, and
businesses that have transitioned their practices and lessons into electronic
systems, but not much information is given about the process in which we must
go through to revolutionize all of our educational practices in the future.
It also seems like more research should be done on the social
repercussions of moving further into the world run by technology. There are not
many scholarly studies done about how the new generation will be interacting with
one another, mainly in an electronic capacity. It is interesting to see what
will happen to human interaction when we are no longer forced to engage with
others face to face nearly as much as we had to 20 years ago. It is important
to learn more about how eBooks and eLearning will affect the future of
education.
Conclusion
The iPad since it’s first debut has continued to modernize
the way that technology plays a role in our educational system. Due to the vast
array of applications and uses, the iPad has become one of the most popular
forms of technology in the world. The transition from paper textbooks to eBooks
has allowed students a way to save their money and their shoulders, ridding
them of the heavy and expensive textbooks that have been apart of education for
generations.
Because of the ongoing technological revolution in our society
today, it is important that one keeps up with the trends. The new era of
eBooks, video lectures, and touch-screen technology has become the forefront of
our new developments as a society and a world. Allowing students and working
professionals to have easily accessible information through internet and eBooks,
as well as, a way to keep their social events, entertainment, and personal
information all in one small tablet, is truly revolutionary. The iPad has given
great improvements in the areas of special needs education as well as in higher
education. As the iPad transitions into the classroom, it has helped many
students and professionals individualize their learning as well as maximize
their knowledge. The iPad has given us the ability to share information easier
than ever before, and continued to revolutionize the future of education.
References
Damast, A. (2010, November). Apple iPad
Enters the MBA Classroom. Business Week. Retrieved February
27, 2012, from ProQuest ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 2197390951).
This
source discusses the movement of iPad’s into the classroom in Georgia
University’s MBA program. It gives information about the process the university
went through to transition their students into eBooks, as well as, give
information about how the eBook’s are received by students.
Ellis, S. (2011). Teaching the Future. Screen
Education, (63), 60-64. Retrieved February 27, 2012, from EBSCOhost
Academic Search Complete. (Document ID: 65158354).
This source discusses the way that the iPad has revolutionized special
needs education in Australia. It also discusses the different ways that it
helps special needs children to communicate better with adults through using
different applications.
Manuguerra, M., & Petocz, P.. (2011).
Promoting Student Engagement by Integrating New Technology into Tertiary
Education: The Role of the iPad. Asian Social Science, 7(11), 61-65.
Retrieved February 27, 2012, from ProQuest Asian Business and Reference.
(Document ID: 2521401331). http://mutex.gmu.edu:2048/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com.mutex.gmu.edu/pqdweb?did=2521401331&sid=1&Fmt=3&clientId=31810&RQT=309&VName=PQD
This source provided information about the benefits
of using the iPad in the classroom. The author discussed the benefits of using
the iPad for students who are inside and outside the classroom as well as the
new technology of video lectures.
Mills, E. (2010,
January 28). Expert Sees Security Issues with the iPad. CNET News. Retrieved
February 27, 2012 from:
This source discusses the security issues with the
iPad, specifically the security encryption that is not sufficiently secure. The
article also talks about the lack of security that the iPad has if one does not
create a security access code.
Sanford, G. (2012). Apple-History/iPad.
Apple-History.
Retrieved February 27,
2012 from: http://apple-history.com/ipad
This source tells a brief history of the iPad and
other facts that are needed for the background of the paper.
Vascellaro, J., Tibken, S., & Trachtenberg,
J. (2012, January 20). Apple Jumps Into Textbooks --- With More
iPads in Classrooms, Education Push Would Help Fend Off Android-Device
Competition. Wall Street Journal (Eastern
Edition), p. B.8. Retrieved February 27, 2012, from ProQuest ABI/INFORM
Global. (Document ID: 2565055481).
This source discusses
the marketing strategy of the Apple corporation. It gives information about
what the iPad offers and the appeal that the iPad has in the classroom.
Wieder, B. (2011). iPads Could Hinder Teaching, Professors
Say. Chronicle Of Higher Education, 57(28), A22-A23.
Retrieved February 27, 2012, from EBSCOhost Academic Search Complete. (Document
ID: 59673375)
This source discusses the ways that
iPad’s are troublesome in the classroom. The author
talks about the ways that iPad’s are
more difficult to use in the classroom than laptops.
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