Connections
There is a lot of information my students will need to know about using iPads in the classroom. First, they will need to learn how to take care of and us the iPad. It will take some training for students to handle the iPad as both a computer and a piece of equipment. Either the school’s educational technologist or myself would train the students. They will need to learn about copyright infringement and the like. This is extremely important for any research they use to help them create a question to be answered. Time in class would be necessary to teach my students how to cite others’ work properly. Students would also need lessons about how to use different applications on the iPad. Since inquiry-based projects can be a broad spectrum of topics, students may be using different applications for different pieces of the project. I would take the opportunity to train students in order to learn how to use the various applications that could help them with their projects.
Having iPads is a great way to reach all types of learners. Students can use various applications to help them read, write, or do calculations. In general, inquiry-based learning allows students to take control of their learning environment. With a classroom using iPads, students will have access to many different ways of obtaining information or organizing data. For example, a student who is more visual may find a video on a certain topic, while another student may prefer reading an article from a science journal about the same topic. The nature of the iPad plays to the strengths of each student.
Although bringing technology into the classroom is very useful to students, they need to learn another set of rules about technological decorum. I mentioned copyright infringement earlier, and most students have no idea what that is. Students would also need to be guided and taught about being digital citizens. Since I anticipate their work being open for public approval, students need to be aware what can and cannot be posted on the Internet. They need to learn about internet safety and how educational users need to be careful about what they post.
Since I would be using technology in the classroom to advance student learning, I would use the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) to help facilitate student learning. Using the NETS would help me measure whether I am using technology in a safe and productive way, as well as preparing my students for the world outside the classroom. By observing the NETS, I could see if my students are prepared to use technology when they leave high school.
Implementing new technology in the classroom would be a challenge, and therefore it would be beneficial to share what is happening in my classroom with other teachers. I will attend workshops with other teachers who have used iPads in the classroom to get new ideas and new applications that would be useful. The National Science Teachers’ Association is offering workshops about using iPads in the classroom and I feel it would be a great way to get new ideas. Edtech Innovators is a company run by two teachers which investigates different uses of technology in the classroom, and they offer a lot of online support. Once I have become more confident and comfortable with working with iPads, I can share this information with my colleagues. I will run a workshop of my own where I can show how students use the iPads successfully in my classroom, and give possibilities of how the technology can be used in other classrooms as well.
Having iPads is a great way to reach all types of learners. Students can use various applications to help them read, write, or do calculations. In general, inquiry-based learning allows students to take control of their learning environment. With a classroom using iPads, students will have access to many different ways of obtaining information or organizing data. For example, a student who is more visual may find a video on a certain topic, while another student may prefer reading an article from a science journal about the same topic. The nature of the iPad plays to the strengths of each student.
Although bringing technology into the classroom is very useful to students, they need to learn another set of rules about technological decorum. I mentioned copyright infringement earlier, and most students have no idea what that is. Students would also need to be guided and taught about being digital citizens. Since I anticipate their work being open for public approval, students need to be aware what can and cannot be posted on the Internet. They need to learn about internet safety and how educational users need to be careful about what they post.
Since I would be using technology in the classroom to advance student learning, I would use the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) to help facilitate student learning. Using the NETS would help me measure whether I am using technology in a safe and productive way, as well as preparing my students for the world outside the classroom. By observing the NETS, I could see if my students are prepared to use technology when they leave high school.
Implementing new technology in the classroom would be a challenge, and therefore it would be beneficial to share what is happening in my classroom with other teachers. I will attend workshops with other teachers who have used iPads in the classroom to get new ideas and new applications that would be useful. The National Science Teachers’ Association is offering workshops about using iPads in the classroom and I feel it would be a great way to get new ideas. Edtech Innovators is a company run by two teachers which investigates different uses of technology in the classroom, and they offer a lot of online support. Once I have become more confident and comfortable with working with iPads, I can share this information with my colleagues. I will run a workshop of my own where I can show how students use the iPads successfully in my classroom, and give possibilities of how the technology can be used in other classrooms as well.