Blogs on 1:1 Implementation

Much has been said about the iPad being a revolutionary device for education. There are even education conferences that are dedicated to its use. About a year ago, after the death of Apple founder Steve Jobs, 60 Minutes ran a piece on how the iPad was being used as an assistive technology with autistic students. This piece was eye opening for many -- it showed the potential for this device as an assistive technology and how it can change learning for students with disabilities or impairments.

In my last two posts, I detailed the iPad initiatives at Burlington High School. I talked about what we learned after a year of a 1:1 iPad environment and dispelled some myths surrounding iPads in education. Recently, I had the opportunity to connect with two of my elementary teachers at Pine Glen Elementary and Francis Wyman Elementary schools. This year, four first grade classrooms will be piloting a 1:1 iPad environment. The iPads stay in the classroom and are only used during class time. Two of the teachers involved, Irene Farmer and Erin Guanci, sat down with me and answered a few questions about their expectations of the initiative, how they are using the device at the moment, and how they feel it will work in an elementary classroom.

Yes, let's give students iPads so they can be smarter and learn better. It sounds so easy. The reality is that there are many unknowns, like how do you hand out 800 iPads and keep track of which student has which iPad, and how do you get 800 students to register with iTunes so they can use their iPads on the school system? (The school system: How do you provide enough bandwidth for 800 iPads? That's another challenge entirely!)

The mobile learning revolution is alive and growing in popularity every day. When schools move toward mobile learning in the classroom, they can take advantage of electronic devices such as tablets and cell phones that offer portability and ease of use. Mobile learning technologies can offer teachers a flexible approach to learning with their students in a variety of locations, and encourage this learning to continue at home.