School District Buying iPad 2s for Kindergartners

[K2N hater]

[citation][nom]ericburnby[/nom]Bunch of idiots again on Tom's so blinded by hate they think that any use of an Apple product is a waste.[/citation]
Grade 0 for supporting slavery in China and unemployment in your country.

 

[ThisIsMe]

Well, for my kids when they went to kindergarten they had to know the alphabet, count to 50, be able to write their full names, and be able to add and subtract single digit numbers before they were considered capable of starting. They then had to be able to write each letter of the alphabet before the 6 week mark or they were considered to be far behind. They would have spelling tests each week starting at the end of those six weeks. Starting at the 3 month mark, they would bring home a reading log where your child has to ready 30 minutes each day at home for home work. At this point the students are allowed to go to the library a often as is needed to get new books for reading because 30 minutes a day can go through a lot of books. This also included the weekends btw. I can go on about this, but I'll finish my points up now to save you all the blah blah blah.

So anyways, I can see how these may be very helpful with these younger students because of a few key capabilities that are inherent to iOS devices. First thing is the fact that it lets you use your fingers to do stuff. I know this sounds silly, but kids love this feature. It can help them learn how to make letters by allowing them to trace an image on the screen. It can help them learn patterns and math easier by allowing them to know if they got it right as soon as they answer the problem. It doesn't have to give them the answer, but by simply telling them it's wrong as soon as they put their answer down would be much more helpful then having to wait a day or two for a graded paper to come back telling them they got it wrong.

Also, these will probably also allow the school to cut down on teacher over time because they can automatically grade or check any work that is done by the students because it's all electronic anyways. Also the amount of money saved in buying the paper handouts can slowly be saved over time as they transition to this style learning materials. It can also save even more time, because in my kids school the run the kids through a computerized test that tracts their progress about every 3 weeks. With the devices already handing out work electronically and storing all the data in real time, it can track all of this stuff and maybe eventually after a while when they wok some things out, there may be no need to do these extra tests, or at least maybe not as frequently.

Now, of course this doesn't simply apply to the iPad or anything Apple specific, but to any device in this category that can be considered to be at least of the same quality as the iPad. But, for $500 plus the discount Apple is sure to give the school, it'll prolly be hard to find a good "Pad" to replace the iPad with. I just hope some of that money listed in the above report is going towards some sort of rubber bumper case-like protective thing to at least allow it to survive several drops from a desk.

I'll leave you with my thought of the fact that things are going this way whether we like it or not, and we are the cause of this effect. We buy these things cuz they are cool and they help us do things. It's only natural that after these things become such a part of our lives that they will need to become a part of our children's lives as well. I mean, my 1st graders had to sit through a typing class 3 times a week for the first half of the school year. Not a fun filled hey lets go play on this weird crazy thing called a computer once or twice a week. This was a full on typing class that assumed your child already knew how the basics of a computer worked. (how to use a mouse, how to open and close programs, how to navigate to different websites, what Microsoft Word is, etc.)

So there you have it, my two cents... lol

 

[Guest]

I was going to write a long, articulate, potentially intelligible response to many of the posted comments. Instead, a brief comment.

I am quite surprised by many of the responses. A website dedicated to technology illicits responses that appear narrow-minded, short-sighted, and display an archaically incalcitrant view with respect to applying technology to education.

 

[tbq]

"the iPad will help kids who have a hard time keeping up in class"

Um, I think having an iPad in class might prevent some kids from keeping up in class because it's more fun to play with a toy than to listen to the teacher try to teach you something.

 

[_Cubase_]

They need to work on the education system first before they start looking at new ways of implementing it into kids' minds. For example: teaching kids the value of safe browsing practises and how to avoid internet predators before making the whole world of web available to them.

 

[web11]

If it was my kid I would replace his with the new HTC tablet. No way I will let my child be brain washed into being just another sheeple.

 

[f-14]

2014: "maine kindergartners all had to be held back for the last 3 years due to the tots playing angry birds all the time instead of their class work. school officials were unable to comment as the only people on staff were tech support to keep fixing the iOS after kids kept deleting the software to get the parental locks disabled while the entire budget school budget went towards insurance plans and the constant replacement of kids dropping their iPads in the toilet while going wee or getting soaked in the bathroom sinks and water fountains or being left out in the rain during recess or after school or left in the road or drive way when the poor tots aren't being robbed by criminals. one tot was beaten and stabbed death for not giving up his iPad to a mugger, while other kindergartners have turned verbally abusive and physically violet often hurling themselves from the tops or bed, cars, desk, tables and foxconn factory rooves at parents and teachers when they are told they can not a popular app called 'angry birds'. the schools teachers and staff were all let go after the first year as there was no money left to pay them and education was directed to apple's webstore where students were forced to purchase their classes. some critics say the classes go to far in prompting students to whorship apple founder steve jobs and in religious schools the devices classes actually teach kids that steve jobs is god re-incarnated in human form. our experts examined the devices and software and found hidden text 'flashed' upon the screen once every minute declaring apple executives as the only adults alive to listen to while subliminal audio messages are played when ear buds are plugged in declaring microsoft as an evil empire that must be eliminated at all costs along with capitalism. other messages include ' fur is for animals green house gases from fossile fuels are destroying the earth and those using them should be purged from the face of the planet' 'saving dolphins and whales as more important then the lives of non-apple users. in other news the newly formed united states of soviet socialist republic celebrates it's first anniversary since the collapse of it's bankruptcy defeated predecessor and is erecting a statues in honor of stalin, lennon, marx, mao, ho-chi-min and castro at the capital, san fransisco...."

i don't know about you guys, but because of all the books i had to carry from one end of the school to the other i was able to do the 100m in under 11 seconds every spring in highschool when track started. my school was a 1/8th mile long and every class was at the opposite end by sophmore year i had 3 lockers one at each end and another in the middle by senior year i had 5 including 2 of my sports lockers and i was able to get 70% of my homework done in class as i had afternoon sports and a job and the rest of the 30% the next day before school after morning practice. motivation to never have homework. also books don't react violently to rain or need to be plugged in and can be read any time any where even during solar flares and can be left next to magnets which are in everything with an electrical motor. they also don't exploded buring you to a firey crisp in less then a minute because they don't need to be charged or get over charged or hot. you can also drive over or step on a book and it doesn't get completely ruined. throwing a book at some one or using them to squish a bug/pest does not require an insurance contract.

 

[LORD_ORION]

I'm all for this. 200K to put modern technology into the hands of kids just starting out? Hell, we've wasted more money on stupid stuff.

Considering the amount of cash schools waste on training materials, this seems like a bargain.

 

[ericburnby]

[citation][nom]K2N hater[/nom]Grade 0 for supporting slavery in China and unemployment in your country.[/citation]

And you typed this on a computer where most of the parts came from the same place. Hypocrite.

 

[dormantreign]

This will push Microsoft out of the picture in 15 years. mac should support it fully.

 

[itchyisvegeta]

For the love of God, anyone who enrolls their child into a private school, should be able to write that off on their taxes, no matter the cost. This would force public schools to compete with private schools, and put a better focus on education, instead of wasting money, to not get funding cut for the next year.

 

[ArgleBargle]

I'm sure if Apple mass produced them, Hadron Colliders would be given to these kids. And some of you would say, "Ohhhh, but they're learning stuff! Stop being such Luddites!"

 

[fir_ser]

[citation][nom]f-14[/nom]2014: "maine kindergartners all had to be held back for the last 3 years due to the tots playing angry birds all the time instead of their class work. school officials were unable to comment ............ at the capital, san fransisco...."[/citation]
LOL.

 

[Vorador2]

The iPad craze is getting ridiculous.

 

[aaron88_7]

These comments show my American education is so horrible....the parents are utter morons.

Seriously, you're going to argue against getting the next generation adapted to technology early on? Really?

My cousin's 2 year old daughter is mesmerized by electronic gadgets. She gravitates towards all things gadgety; remotes, dvd players, cell phones, and yes, my cousin's iPhone. She can barely walk yet already knows how to start playing a song on an iPhone. By the time she gets to kindergarden an iPad shouldn't at all be complicated.

I think some of you need to get with the times and realize that just because these gadgets confuse you doesn't mean they will confuse a kindergardener.

 

[doive1231]

At least they waited for the ipad2 and didn't blow the money on the first one.

 

[SteelCity1981]

The hope is that, among other things, the iPad will help kids who have a hard time keeping up in class. Mauri Dufour,

Oh yeah that makes a whole lot of sense. Lets give them Ipads so they can pay attention. This will do the complete opposite. No gets at that age are going to pay attention to the teacher when they have something like that in their hand. It's hard enough to get adults to pay attention when they use ipads let alone a 6 or 7 year old.

 

[Guest]

All of you who think this is bad in any way are clueless. My then 2 year old received our first iPad. Now she's three and received an iPad 2. The UI is completely intuitive for her. She can spell words thanks to it. Did you read the part where she is 3? She is already past most kindergartners in terms of skills required to move to first grade. She thinks computers with mice and keyboards are stupid because they are too hard to use. She is correct. Install the Google app on the iPad and you have voice activated search. She gets it. Do you?

Educational games are perhaps the most powerful weapon in the war against illiteracy.

Inscription on the back of her iPad 2: Ava - May your fingers open doors to the world.

Do you get it now?

 

[razor512]

Many schools do not consider the long term costs getting certain devices. Most of the people involved in the decisions know very little about technology.

When I was in highschool (in a pretty poor area), they decided that it would be a good idea to get rid of the library, convert the computer section of the library into a confrerence room, use the other half as another conference room. Then buy a cart with like 30 laptops in them. The cart can then be wheeled to each classroom when needed.

The end result was the school finding out that LCD screens were not as strong as CRT's and some students thought it was smart to squeeze the screens, damaging them. Within a few months the cart went from like 30 laptops to like 20 and it became hard for teachers to get access to them because of the risks. The next problem was that the frequent cycling of the batteries, caused them to begin failing within a few months.

In my second year, there was no computer room and no laptop cart, the closest the school got to interacting with a computer was the once in a while where the teacher would get 1 laptop and the 1 projector and have the class watch them use the laptop.


Anyway, what will happen is, the school getting the ipads will get a couple, ther will use them in class for a short while. They will then see a few break when students drop them or mistake the touch screen for a punching bag, or do other bad things to it.

As the number of functioning ipads drops, they will be more reluctant to let students use them.
The remaining units may either remain unused or still used but under closer supervision and only with a few trusted students.

The ipads will then run into battery problems as well as other technical problems

The school will be shocked by the maintenance cost, and discontinue the use of the ipads.

 

[Tamz_msc]

This won't help the child's education at all, instead its going to adversely affect a child's development. I admit that youngsters these days are way more comfortable in handling the latest technology, but giving iPads to kindergartners is a crazy idea.