Reflection #8 - Ahhhhh, the iPad

What?:

The iPad. Made by Mac (amen) and blessed by the words of Dr. Kowalski. I was so stoked to hear Dr. Kowalski talk about his iPad and bring it into class - he is a man of many technologies and I knew that he'd be able to impress me. And he did. :)

I love how easy it is to upload files and store documents. It's fast and accessible. As a teacher, fast and accessible creates flexibility; flexibility is absolutely essential. I was intimidated by the amount of information and the variation in Apps - only because I wanted to be able to take it all in and remember everything, but that just wasn't possible.

So What?:

In the classroom, I can see the iPad's use and aid. I can see students taking notes on it - the teacher can see the screen but the students can still write on it like a computer or a notebook. A teacher can use it to pull up information, assignments, videos, etc., and have it plugged into a projector. I can see how incredibly useful it would be for the teacher to have just one of these within a low-income school/classroom. That classroom might not have a projector or a computer or a SMARTBoard, etc, but if the teacher can bring in an iPad, the class's attention will be wrapped around that 9.5"x7.5" chunk of technological genius in a matter of seconds. Imagine the excitement for a low SES student to be able to work with, come in contact with, and learn from an iPad.

Anyways, that was a tangent. Regardless, I think the use and capabilities of the iPad would make it completely helpful in the classroom - perhaps not for every student in the classroom to have one, but definitely for the teacher.

Now What?:

Now, when I graduate, I'm going to create Digital Wish account and get me one of these for my classroom. Yes, that's right. I'm going to do it. :)

Also, I think it's important for educators to take a look at a new piece of technology like this - analyze and evaluate it, see if it can help improve the classroom. After all, what's the use of the technology if isn't not going to better a student's education.

Until next time.