This blog is going to document the iPad program at our school. It will be written by three people, Mike Simpson, Upper School English teacher, Dave Kapferer, Upper School Technology Coordinator and Me - Mike Schmelder, Director of Information Services).
My aim is to be the voice of administration as we move through our iPad program. So I thought I’d start at the beginning. When interviewed for the IS Director role, I was asked a lot of questions around 1:1. Did I believe in it? Can it be effective? What type of device would I choose? And my initial responses were the same then as they are now. I do believe in 1:1 and believe that it can be effective if it is implemented correctly (a big if, I know). The third question is tough. We looked at Mac notebooks, PC notebooks, PC tablets, PC netbooks and PC netbook tablets. We spent a lot of time talking about the merits of each. And that discussion is still going on.
When the iPad came along, we got a couple of test machines and tried them out. As we started using them, we asked ourselves whether or not it should be a contender. And the answer was a pretty hearty “yes”. In fact, we were so enthusiastic, that we decided pretty quickly that an iPad pilot program was the right way to go. Here are a few reasons why we came to that conclusion:
iPads are:
There are things that are drawbacks to the iPad of-course, but there were enough compelling reasons to move forward with a pilot program. And that’s where we are now. After discussions with administration, we bought a small number of iPads and distributed them to a cross-section of faculty members to evaluate.
Hopefully, this blog will give you insight into how the pilot program is evolving and perhaps how the entire iPad 1:1 rollout goes, depending on our decisions at the end of our pilot.
When the iPad came along, we got a couple of test machines and tried them out. As we started using them, we asked ourselves whether or not it should be a contender. And the answer was a pretty hearty “yes”. In fact, we were so enthusiastic, that we decided pretty quickly that an iPad pilot program was the right way to go. Here are a few reasons why we came to that conclusion:
iPads are:
- Instant-on
- eBook readers for textbooks
- Easy organizers
- Capable note taking devices with touch screens
- Lightweight and portable
- Excellent cloud devices
- Flat so that students can’t hide
- More in line with how kids use electronic devices
- Excellent cloud devices
- Relatively inexpensive
- Backed by Apple Professional Development
There are things that are drawbacks to the iPad of-course, but there were enough compelling reasons to move forward with a pilot program. And that’s where we are now. After discussions with administration, we bought a small number of iPads and distributed them to a cross-section of faculty members to evaluate.
Hopefully, this blog will give you insight into how the pilot program is evolving and perhaps how the entire iPad 1:1 rollout goes, depending on our decisions at the end of our pilot.
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