By Maureen Vander Sanden
Contributor
Textbooks are taking a back seat to technology in the Washington-Caldwell School District in Tichigan, where middle school students are now relaying on iPads as a primary learning device.
The school’s iPad program was fully implemented at the start of the current academic year in an effort to best prepare students for the increasingly competitive digital world.
Funded in part by the U.S. Department of Education’s Rural Education Achievement Program (R.E.A.P), as part of the school’s 1:1 Technology Initiative, all sixth- through eighth-grade students are provided an iPad with the most up-to-date electronic textbooks and dozens of apps, which educators say can target students with varying learning skills. A number of iPads are also available to elementary-aged students for special projects and activities.
“With the changes in toward common core standards, and lifelong learning, iPads just made sense,” said Kelli Vogt, the school’s technology specialist, who headed up the initiative.
Washington-Caldwell is not the only district introducing the new technology. Education News reports students in more than 2,000 school districts across the country are now using electronic devices to aid their education following a radical shift in the way schools view modern mobile technology in the classroom.
According to Vogt, students are ready to learn and use technology at grade-school age, which prompted Washington-Caldwell officials to implement the program.
Vogt said the use of iPads accommodates all types of learning styles – not just those who absorb information by reading. Lessons via the iPad are offered on a multi-media platform using audio, video and interactive demonstrations and games.
“We are now getting more creative assignments,” said seventh-grader Carson Bragg.
“We’re doing things like drawing and making maps, rather than just writing essays,” she continued. “Students are a lot more involved and interested in learning things. You can do so much more than you could with just a notebook and pencil.”
Twin brothers Tyler and Tommy Hoffarth, who are in sixth grade, agree that using iPads has helped them to be more organized and accountable.
Students can record lectures, or dictate their own notes while reading lessons. A cyber network, allows students and teachers to share information and get instant feedback from their teachers as projects and assignments are in progress. Most recently, Google calendar was implemented as an assignment notebook.
Tyler Hoffarth said he no longer worries about forgetting his books or assignments, since the bulk of his materials are accessible anywhere at any time.
“The information is at our fingertips,” he said.
While the new devices have certainly triggered more student engagement, for some it is simply the lighter load of school work that makes their learning experience better.
“My backpack is not as heavy and I have less to carry around to classes,” noted sixth grader Adam Forkner.
The new technology has been equally popular among parents.
In a survey distributed shortly after the iPad program was rolled out, 66 percent of parents surveyed reported their child is more organized as a result of the new technology.
Seventy-one percent of parents surveyed reported that their child is more willing to do homework with use of the iPad, and 83 percent believe their child has access to more resources than in previous years.
“They’ve revolutionalized the way I teach, and how kids learn,” said Kelly Hanson, seventh-grade teacher.
She continued, “Students have been able to turn in work and keep their own copy, have developed new ideas for demonstrating their working knowledge (Pro Show app has been popular), review materials differently – hands on – and have a greater means of expressing themselves. I have also been able to asses their learning more quickly, and notes are much easier to read and study from, too.”
While Vogt acknowledged the immediate benefits that students are experiencing, she emphasized that the latest technology is no substitute for quality educators.
“It is not the new technology, it is our curriculum that creates student success, but the iPads are definitely complementing our every changing, rigorous curriculum,” she said.
“All in all, the iPad is just a device used in conjunction with our curriculum and teaching. It will never replace good teachers and solid curriculum.”
Vogt reported very few drawbacks from making the switch, noting that any training necessary for the change has been quick and seamless.
Some prefer a larger keyboard for writing assignments, and have opted to purchase keyboards, but a “very small number” of students have done this, she said.
“Some projects are better suited for a desktop computer, so when those come up, classes use the school’s Innovation Center. We still have a well-equipped lab for everyone,” she added.
Textbooks are still provided to those students who prefer traditional resources.
The school has a leasing agreement with Apple that costs about $300 per device over a two-year period. The district would then have the option of purchasing the used iPads, for a yet-to-be-determined cost. New devices will likely be provided at the start of the 2014-15 school year, according to Vogt.
Officials are currently reviewing and updating the district’s technology plan, and are expected to have new goals unveiled by June 30. In addition to surveying parents again at the end of the current school year, Vogt said a committee made up of parents will also be formed to “help build our vision for the future.”
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