Final Thoughts

Since this is my final post for the class, I would like to leave you with some final thoughts.  There is one thing that I have learned from this class and writing this blog that I think we should all take with us as we continue our education and careers.

Let the curriculum drive the technology, not let the technology drive the curriculum.

In this world of education we are so enraptured with the addition of technology that we are at risk of forgetting our main focus, and that is the student.  We do not have to include technology into a classroom if it is not needed.  We can include it to keep a student's attention if it is a boring subject, such as the building of the Teanscontinental Railroad, or Westward Expansion (Sleeping yet?).  But we should not include it if it is not necessary.

Take SmartBoards.

I have heard many complaints about them, and they all have to do with one thing that the teacher is lacking.

Time

It is nice to have them in the class if the teacher has the time and need for it, but let's be real.  These things cost over $1000.00, and all many of them are is paperweights for the wall.

We should focus on learning about our particular class, and then see how they are reacting to our subject matter.  If they need a bit of a boost in order to understand the material, then let's use that tech!

IPad cost comparison

In this discussion, we will look st the costs associated with using an IPad in the classroom.  The biggest influence in migrating a school to the IPad is the costs associated with it.  It can be a bit daunting to make this transition, even without the cost analysis in play.

Let;s look at the basic cost of the IPad.  This will be a retail cost, without any school discounts or grants associated with it.  It will be for a school with 500 students.

The cost of an IPad, retail, is $399.00 (http://store.apple.com/us/buy/home/shop_ipad/family/ipad2).

$399.00 x 500 students = $199,500.00!!

Almost $200,000.00 !!!!

Now this cost is just for the IPad.  Let's look at the textbook.

Retail, the textbook for an IPad is $14.99 (http://appleinsider.com/articles/12/01/19/apples_e_textbooks_cost_1499_or_less_major_publishers_already_on_board.html)

Each student will have, on average, 6 textbooks, so let's do the math.

$14.99 x 6 classes x 500 students = $44,970.00

Now this includes updates to the text in case of typos, incorect information, etc.  It does not include new editions of the text, so if the school wants to keep up with editions, it will cost them this amount every time.

These prices are based on retail prices.  Apple has programs for the schools to get IPads cheaper, as well as the textbooks.

So there are the numbers.  good luck in trying to compare these to what is actually spent in the real world on texts, considering the publichers don't release the cost of the texts to anyone, even the schools when they buy them.

This is my rubric for my World War 2, Home Front Prezi Project for my students. It is designed for grades 11 and 12 in public school.

Digital Storytelling Example

Home Front Demo on Prezi

This is my Prezi example for my students on World War 2, Home Front.  This class is for grades 11 and 12.  We will be studying this while we are studying World War 2.  The Home Front is a study of what was happening in America while the War was going on overseas.  It highlights the sacrifices and work that we did here to help the war effort.

I added a video for the first time in this one, so if you get a chance watch it.  It's really cool.

My students, in creating their digital storytelling project, will tell a story about how people looked at and dealt with World War II, specifically the Home Front (what life was like in America).  This is a 11th-12th grade project, and will be created while we are covering the World War II time period.  We will be usint the free account, so we will be able to embed video, and will be audio in the form of voice or music of the era, and pictures taken in that era to enhance the text.

The web resources that the students will be using is the Prezi learn tutorials, as well as websites about the home front era, such as http://www.history.com/topics/us-home-front-during-world-war-ii from the History.com website.  other resources will include the textbook and lectures, but the students will be encouraged to search for other resources based on their subject choice of the era.  I would also have them access http://www.archives.gov/ for other resouces of pictures, video, and audio from that era.

I think that I would need to create an online resource of video, audio, and pictures from that era that I glean myself from their resources, so they can not only download and use these from my site, but will also serve as an example of what they can look for.

In making this Prezi, I hope that my students will learn something extra about what AMerica went through during World War II, and how it impacted their daily lives.

IPAD vs. eReaders

So I have been posting about the IPad and it's uses in the classroom. But we need to ask ourselves the most important question before getting these for the schools...

Do we really need them?

This is the question that needs to be asked by every school board before buying anything that is going to cost so much in monetary costs and time costs for set up. The school needs to find out exactly what it needs the IPad to do for the students and administration.

Students:

Do they need to read books on it? Do they need to run the apps on the IPad? Do they need internet access for the classroom? What are they going to do with this IPad, besides read on it? These questions are just the basics,, but if they are not ALL answered with the afirmative, then we need to stop ourselves and look at the answers. If the students are just going to read on them (both books and assignments from the teacher)and if the students are just going to be running basic apps, then they do not need an IPad. They can use an eReader like the Kindle Fire. It can do those things and is a LOT cheaper. This cost savings can help school boards decide on the implementation of this technology, especially in this economy.

Teachers and Adminstration:

Again, the same questions apply. What we have to take into account also is that if we keep the same technology for he students and the teachers, they can be Synched together in real time so the teacher can actively work with the whole classroom, literally staying on the same page. The adminstration really doesn't need any, because they can use the computers in their offices to do their work, since they are not actively teaching students.

So there it is. Do we really need the IPad inthe classroom, or can we use the eReader to do the same job.

Next time, we'll look at the IT department and see the cool stuff they can come up with to help the classroom that uses the IPad/eReader.

Prezi Presentation

Digital Storytelling eme5050 on Prezi