The number of ways that tablets can be used it outstanding. They have features for almost everything you could want to physically have in your hands. Books, newspapers, music, movies, internet, and a vast range of different utility software helps eliminate clutter and improves accessibility. Tablets have many features that add additional functionality to every day life and professional arenas. Their biggest asset is accessibility. Having a device that is portable enough to take with you anywhere you go as well as replace other object that you might normally carry with you is no small feat. The technology that has come around has opened doors to a culture that must learn how to properly multi-task or become a step behind.
With tablets having so many features accessible anywhere there is an internet connection this creates an incredible work environment for teachers and students alike. Teachers are able to use the many apps across the different platforms of tablets to keep their data in order, share and evaluate documents with students, and keep a curriculum in order and editable. Students are able to replace books and notes with digital versions, use the internet for research, and collaborate with other students and teachers by sharing their documents. Also, while everyone is getting a multitude of work done they are able to listen to their favorite music in the background or take a break to read the news or watch an episode of TV.
Unfortunately, some brands of tablets are stronger in one or more of these areas of work or entertainment. Amazon and Barnes & Noble have an upper hand on the digital book and textbook management, while Apple and Android are leaders in the apps category. However, with Microsoft introducing their Surface tablet they are the leader in tablets with full computer software functionality. Almost all of these provide some way to listen to music and watch movies. These features have pretty much become a staple in tablet functionality.
With tablets becoming integrated with schools there have been a wide range of results. Some positive and some negative. Since tablets were intended to be purchased and used by a single person there have been problems with integrating them into a school setting where the school may purchase them and control what features are used on them. Since most tablets are tied to one specific account this creates a problem for a school. There are instances where there can only be so many devices tied to one account which means there can no longer be one account for the whole range of school devices. I personally have even run into a problem with certain devices of mine where purchased software can only be downloaded a number of times. Since technology by nature is upgraded every few years downloading things over and over is just natural and having to purchase software again is never a positive.
However, the schools that were able to introduce tablets to their students 1:1 were able to cut costs on books, increase the excitement of learning for students, and allow them to get their hands on technology and use it in a way that is a little different from normal. Most of the students found that the tablets were easy to use but hard to master. Even though students were allowed to use tablets to take notes there were still some that would use the tablet for their book or research and still take hand written notes due to not being able to use the keyboard easily or not being able to use two applications at once like a laptop. The results found that most students liked their tablet and would like to be able to use it in many different classes but it was not a resounding answer. Only a little more than half of the students preferred them while the others were either not fond or indecisive.
While there are technical limitations in place as well as different levels of student understanding the tablet technology can definitely be used in an incredible way to further education and enable students to learn advanced and more efficient ways of getting work done. There are a number of incredible websites that have tutorials on how to use the tablets as well as education specific websites where teachers share their success and failures with tablets so that others can repeat or avoid similar circumstances. Since this technology has been used in education for the past 2-3 years now we are arriving at a time where studies are able to acquire more information on this topic. Since there are more people involved in this kind of research there are also more hubs of teacher driven communities that are not reinventing the wheel but learning how to use the wheel in a new way. If implementing technology in your classroom becomes a struggle try learning from the number of people who are sharing their stories online.
Well done!
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