Five Ways the iPad Will Improve Teaching

By Steve Goldenberg (Interfolio) – Apr 22, 2010

As an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown's McDonough School of Business and the CEO of Interfolio, I know that there’s nothing worse than teaching a class or presenting an initiative than looking out to see not one set of eyes looking back at you; everyone is staring blankly at their laptop screen. As if this wasn't annoying enough, Apple recently introduced a new product that is destined to end up in the hands of many students: the iPad.

If you're afraid that this new product is going to make a bad situation even worse, I'd like to offer some comfort. I believe it will be a boon to student learning and engagement and it will even help us all teach better. Here are five ways that the iPad is going to improve teaching:

It's active, not passive. Unlike a laptop, where you passively scroll through content, the iPad forces you into an active modality that feels much more engaging. For example, when browsing a web page, most people scroll with a mouse wheel to move down the page – a simple, single-finger movement. With the iPad, you "pinch", "flick", and "tap" your way to consume the information and connect more interactively with the content. Try it and you'll see what I mean.

It's a lot like paper. The new technology of the iPad was designed with an old technology in mind; paper. The screen has a ratio of 4:3, almost exactly like regular paper (US Letter size, anyway). This means that the content looks very much like it's on the printed page.

It's full of sensors. The iPad is filled with wonderful electronic sensors that will power some fascinating learning tools as developers build them. The tilt sensor would let a student "pour" chemicals in a chemistry class, for example. Some developes re-created Lewis Carrol's Alice in Wonderland for the iPad in a way that truly underlines the value of the device for younger learners as well. It really is breathtaking and this video shows why.

It's single minded. On the iPad, any application you run takes over the full screen. So, when you launch your note-taking app for class it's the ONLY thing you see. It improves focus and makes it more difficult for our easily-distractable students and employees to browse away to Facebook.

The angle is better. Because of its design, the best way to use an iPad is flat on a table or tilted up at a slight angle, similarly to how you might prop up a book. This eliminates the physical and visual barrier that most laptops create between the students and teacher.

So, once your classroom or conference room is full of iPads, you will have a new challenge to overcome – eyes staring blankly at you instead of at the screen. Regardless of what we manage to come up with, I believe the iPad will provide an exciting new way to learn.

iPad tuleb ja õppimine võib hakata lastele meeldima!

Heidit Kaio (EE) – 22. oktoober 2010

Riigi raha eest koolilaste õpikute asendamine tahvelarvutitega muudaks õppimise lastele huvitavaks ja koolikotid kergeks.

Teisipäeva hommikul kaalus mu neljanda klassi tüdruku õpikute ja töövihikute pakk 1,8 kilo. Mulle meeldib mõte, et ta oleks oma kotti pannud hoopis 600 grammi kaaluva tahvelarvuti. Koolis avaneksid sellest talle vajalikud raamatud.

Kujutan ette tulevast keemiaõpikut ja seal Mendelejevi tabelit. Näpupuudutusega avaneb ekraanil pilt voolavast elavhõbedast, kõrval arvandmed. Liigutades näppu ekraanil nagu dirigent keppi, saab kullakamakat uurida eest ja tagant. Juttu võib kuulata kõrvaklappides või ise lugeda, olulisemaid kohti arvutis alla kriipsutada ning lisada märkmeid. Tekstile lisatud videoklipilt saab vaadata keemiakatseid. Sealsamas on ka ülesanded, mis tuleb lahendada otse tahvelarvutis. Siin on raamat ja töövihik üheskoos, vajalik on vaid ühendus internetiga.

See jutt pole ulme, vaid tänane päev – sellised tahvelarvutid on poes müügil 10 000 krooni eest, raamatud on veel ingliskeelsed. Esialgu on tahvelarvutid kallid, kooliõpikutena võiksid nad olla mõeldavad 2000- või 3000kroonistena. Siis pole ka hirmu, et vargad lapsi vidina pärast ründaksid.

Loe lähemalt.

Emma Loves Pink: The first Estonian e-book for children

Many of us probably haven't heard, but the first Estonian e-book for children has already been published. That happened soon after iPad came out in April 2010. The i-version of the book from the award-winning Estonian artist Piret Raud was published in cooperation with WingedChariot Press on 25 May 2010. The lovely app of a little hare is available for iPhone, iPod and iPad in Estonian, English and Japanese.

WingedChariot is a young British publisher of picturebooks and a pioneer in digital development of stories and pictures on various touchscreen handheld devices.

A charming story with stickers to play with

Welcome to Emma's fantasy world of pink. Join the adorable little hare as she takes you through an imaginative and comic catalogue of her favourite colour.



First review

I have twin girls who are almost four. The book is utterly charming and the young narrator is adorable and lovely. Keep up the good work.

Survey: Children like e-books, parents not so much

By Hillel Italie (AP) – Sep 28, 2010

NEW YORK – Children are ready to try e-books, with some thinking that a bigger selection of electronic texts would make reading for fun even more fun, according to a new study. But a solid majority of parents aren't planning to join the digital revolution.

The 2010 Kids and Family Reading Report, released Wednesday and commissioned by Scholastic Inc., offers a mixed portrait of e-books and families. Around six out of 10 of those between ages 9 and 17 say they're interested in reading on an electronic device such as the Kindle or the iPad. Around one out of three from the same age group say they'd read more "for fun" if more books were available on a digital reader.

Among the books that can't be downloaded: the "Harry Potter" series, published in the U.S. by Scholastic. J.K. Rowling has said she prefers her work to be read on paper.

The e-market has grown rapidly since 2007 and the launch of Amazon.com's Kindle device, from less than 1 percent of overall sales to between 5 to 10 percent, publishers say. But the new report is also the latest to show substantial resistance. Just 6 percent of parents surveyed have an electronic reading device, while 76 percent say they have no plans to buy one. Sixteen percent plan to have one within the following year.

In a recent Harris Poll of adults, 80 percent said they were not likely to get an e-reader.

"I'm not surprised to know that. I think we're still at the beginning of e-books," said Scholastic Book Club president Judy Newman, adding that the expense of digital devices was a likely problem for potential e-book fans.

The 2010 report shows, as other studies have, a decline in reading for fun as children grow older. More than half read for fun between ages 6 and 8, but the percentage drops to around 25 percent by ages 15 through 17 and just 20 percent for boys in that age group. Newman sees technology as both a problem and possible solution.

"We know that around age 8 children start to lose interest in reading," Newman says. "Obviously, digital media is competing for kids' attention. It's very important that we as publishers make sure we're engaging kids in reading for fun. There's an opportunity to use technology to engage kids. We can have great content presented in a digital way."

The Kids and Family report was compiled by the Harrison Group, a marketing and research consulting firm. The survey was conducted in the spring of 2010, with 1,045 children and 1,045 parents interviewed. The margin of error is plus or minus 3.2 percentage points.

The 2010 Kids and Family Reading Report

One in four children has read an eBook...

% of kids who have read a book on each device

Desktop computer 17%
Laptop computer or netbook 13%
Handheld device like an iPod Touch, PSP, cell phone, Nintendo DS, etc 8%
Electronic device made just for reading digital eBooks (like a Kindle, Nook, or Sony Reader) 7%
Apple iPad 3%

...and many more are interested in doing so.

% of kids (age 9–17) who are interested in reading a book on each device

Electronic device made just for reading digital eBooks (like a Kindle, Nook, or Sony Reader) 38%
Apple iPad 36%
Handheld device like an iPod Touch, PSP, cell phone, Nintendo DS, etc 34%
Laptop computer or netbook 32%
Desktop computer 30%

Highlighting unique and innovative educational uses of Apple's iPad

Browsing the web, I came across a WordPress site iPad in Schools. Michael Kaufman set up a blog to profile and highlight the use of Apple's iPad in schools. He plans on writing reviews of applications, showing the iPad in use, and feature unique and innovative educational experiences using the iPad.

One Laptop per Child (OLPC)

Last week I heard about the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) program which aims "to create educational opportunities for the world's poorest children by providing each child with a rugged, low-cost, low-power, connected laptop with content and software designed for collaborative, joyful, self-empowered learning." Unless you already know about it, here's a short overview of the non-profit project led by Nicholas Negroponte, a Greek-American architect.

The OLPC laptops, known as the "$100 Laptop" or "Children's Machine", are sold to governments, to be distributed through the ministries of education with the goal of distributing "one laptop per child". The laptops are given to students, similar to school uniforms, and ultimately remain the property of the child. The operating system and software is localized to the languages of the participating countries.

When the laptop started mass production in November 2007, the unit price was estimated to be $188 when bought by thousand units. At the same time, the laptop was made available under the "Give 1 Get 1" program at $199 for a single unit, or $399 for 2 units.

In October 2007, Uruguay placed an order for 100,000 laptops. Since then, 200,000 more laptops have been ordered to cover all public school children between 6 and 12 years old. The country reportedly became the first in the world where every primary school child received a free laptop on 13 October 2009 as part of the Plan Ceibal (Education Connect). The South Pacific island nation of Niue also claimed this in August 2008. However, the total number of laptops ordered by now is the biggest in Peru (550,000 laptops, most recently ordered in March 2010).

Other participants in the project include for example Mexico, Haiti, Rwanda, Ghana, Afghanistan and Mongolia. A number of other countries are participting in pilot projects (from a few dozen to a few hundred laptops), including Mozambique, Madagascar, Nicaragua, Nepal, India, and many others.

iHelp for Autism

SF Weekly, the free alternative weekly newspaper in San Francisco, California, recently published an article about 9-year old Leo Rosa, a boy with intense autism, and his positive encounter with an iPad. "With the iPad, Leo electrifies the air around him with independence and daily new skills," said his mother Shannon.

Since the iPad's unveiling in April, autism experts and parents have brought it into countless homes and classrooms around the world. Developers have begun pumping out applications specifically designed for users with special needs, and initial studies are already measuring the effectiveness of the iPod Touch and the iPad as learning tools for children with autism. Through the devices, some of these children have been able to communicate their thoughts to adults for the first time. Others have learned life skills that had eluded them for years.

Though there are other computers designed for children with autism, a growing number of experts say that the iPad is better. It's cheaper, faster, more versatile, more user-friendly, more portable, more engaging, and infinitely cooler for young people.

Leo has plenty of toys, including this circular balance beam, but nothing tops the iPad.

View more photographs in the iHelp for Autism slideshow.

The article by Ashley Harrell can be found here.

Ideas worth spreading

Only a fortnight away from the start of the master studies we are meeting once a week to discuss thesis interest and share initial literature reviews. It may be a little bit too early for all of us to know what we want to research, but I've become to like this seminar a lot. The two topics I really enjoyed this week were photogrammetry and data visualization.

Photogrammetry

Photogrammetry, as its name implies, is a 3-dimensional coordinate measuring technique that uses photographs as the fundamental medium for metrology (or measurement). PhotoModeler is one of the leading softwares for photogrammetry.

The beauty of data visualization

David McCandless turns complex data sets (like worldwide military spending, media buzz, Facebook status updates) into beautiful, simple diagrams that tease out unseen patterns and connections. Good design, he suggests, is the best way to navigate information glut - and it may just change the way we see the world.



Thank you, Mehrnoosh and Valeria, for sharing these interesting thoughts!

Master thesis interests

Master Seminar I
Week 2 (September 23)

The future of newspapers

My first idea was to observe the changes Estonian newspapers are going through while moving their content online, and to look into the 3 types of readers: those who continue reading a print version, those who prefer to read the paper online (perhaps downloading a PDF format), and those who quickly settle into reading their favourite newspaper(s) on iPhone/iPad apps (which many of the Estonian publishers are expected to introduce already in the next couple of months). What are the interactive features online and/or iPad/iPhone readers are looking for, how do the editors (many of whom are still used to producing paper content) manage to meet the expectations of these readers? Would Estonians, who have one of the highest Internet penetration rates in the world but who at the same time are used to free Wi-Fi in most of the public places, accept to pay for online content, and how much cheaper should an online version of the newspaper be, in order for the reader to want to buy it and for the publisher to make their desired profit?

Newspaper iPhone apps can bring a leading edge technology to an industry many consider tired and old fashioned, maybe even comatose. What an iPhone app can do is bring the newspaper and its content one step closer to the customers, who are able to personalize and share their favorite news content and read it anywhere they are, even offline. iPhone apps can help newspapers add a social networking feature to their publications and give an advertising sales force something new to talk about with potential advertisers instead of dwelling on declining circulation numbers.

The first area of interest is closely related to my job as a Marketing Specialist for the Estonian weeklies Eesti Ekspress and Maaleht, and therefore quite easily researchable. However, I find it more and more appealing to observe the iPhone/iPad generation, especially as a new and exciting interactive learning device for children.

iPad - a revolution in children's culture

Children are hardwired for touch interfaces, and they have become to love iPhones. Although the iPad was only recently introduced, it has proved to be even more appealing and is believed to spark a revolution in children's culture. Kids will learn to read, write and count on iPads, watch TV, movies and cartoons on iPads, do social networking, play games, and even colour in virtual colouring books. Book publishers and entertainment companies around the world have already found a way to children's heart through iPad apps. What could be the best practices for education providers in using iPad as a teaching/learning device? Will iPad prepare children better for the future than TV has done so far? How can parents use iPad in their childrens' best interest? What are the advantages for themselves? What is an acceptable age for a child to become friends with iPad? How is their reaction going to vary in different age groups? What is the situation going to look like in Estonia where iPhones are already quite popular but iPads are not officially sold as yet? Is iPad going to be the No. 1 most requested holiday and birthday gift anytime soon?

Reading: Why iPad Is the 'Children's Toy of the Year'

Overview

• If the iPhone was natural for children, the iPad will be even more natural, simply because it's larger.
• I think the iPad will spark a revolution in children's culture. I'm convinced that starting this year, and especially next year, iPads will be the No. 1 most requested holiday and birthday gift by everyone under the age of 18, and especially under the age of 12.
• Starting this year, kids will learn to read, write and count on iPads. They'll watch TV, movies and cartoons on iPads. They'll do social networking, play games, and even color in virtual coloring books.
• By the time these kids reach middle school, they will have been using multitouch user interfaces almost every day for eight years or more.
• The iPad platform will prove irresistible to everyone - parents, content providers, and especially the kids themselves.

Mike Elgan writes about technology and global tech culture.
You can follow him on Twitter or his blog, The Raw Feed.

A few videos on the topic