In February I was given the opportunity to visit El Camino high school and observe how teachers and students were using iPads in their math and science classrooms. Unfortunately, the science classrooms were not available to observe on this particular day but we did get to watch sophomores prep for the CAHSEE test in their math classrooms. I saw 3 classes work on the test prep and with each class I began to understand more and more how using iPads was beneficial to classroom learning. It took the whole first class for me to understand what the students were doing and how they were doing it. I asked a few students to show me how they showed their work and how they submitted their answers. Essentially, students were using their school Moodle site to get the questions and submit their answers and iPad's picture and edit tool to do the work. Some students did their work on a separate sheet of paper (which is what I would have needed to do too.)
One of my first curiosities was what if something were to happen and the work was lost or the iPad freaked out. Students calmed my anxiety by telling me that their teachers required them to keep track of their answers on a separate sheet of paper. What a relief, even if technology failed, students would not. I then wondered how the teacher knew about students' progress. The teacher showed us the reports he got when students turned in their work, how many they got wrong, which ones they got wrong, which did the most students miss and which ones had been mastered. Not only was the teacher able to follow student progress, but the program created a report for him to follow and track exactly what he should go over again and what they students had mastered. WOW! What a great teaching tool, what other ways are there to get instantaneous feedback and know exactly what students learned?!
The most fascinating thing to me was that students did not venture from their assignment. I asked a couple of students, "What keeps you from going on the web and looking at pictures?" Students were taken aback by my question and thought I was trying to trick them. I told them that every time I get my hands on an iPad I get excited and start taking funny pictures on photobooth and playing games, what kept them working on math? The students responded with the facts. They said, if they don't do their work, then they won't get the points and therefore would not do well in the class. Well, that makes sense. Another student told me that the iPad was not as exciting to them because they used it everyday. I asked the teacher about how well students stay on task and he said that in the beginning of the year they get some time to play and he doesn't worry too much about them being off task because they enjoy using the iPad for math.
I've been wanting to purchase an iPad and seeing how it is used in the classroom made me realize how beneficial they really are. I've been searching my mom's iPad for apps to use in the classroom and the possibilities are endless. On top of that, my CP site right now just got a grant for 10 teachers to receive iPads and get Apple TVs installed in their classrooms. What was even better is that the principal informed the staff that if they bought their own iPads, then the school would install an Apple TV in their classroom. I thought that this is a great way for teachers to start using more technology in their classrooms.
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