In his recent editorial: The iPad and Education, A Truly Revolutionary Concept, Adam Shear makes the case that tablet computers will revolutionize the classroom. Like many of us, he likes the tablet specs: lightweight, portable, long battery life, and affordable. Shear then goes on to speak of specific iPad features and apps such as parental controls, Find my iPad, The iWork suite of apps (Pages, Keynote, and Numbers) as being perfectly suited to the classroom.
He admits that “The tablet PC is very new and leaders in education are only starting to tap into what this powerful device can do.” This is true. What is unclear from the article is if Shear himself is a classroom teacher. He explains, “I will make up my own scenarios for how the tablet can be used in the classroom with the stories I’ve already heard as inspiration.” While we appreciate his enthusiasm, what we like best is when classroom teachers who are using the tablets with kids share exactly what is revolutionary. Are there teachers using Keynote on their student iPads? If so how has it revolutionized the way they teach? Still this is a worthwhile read.
