iPads in the classroom: Videos from three perspectives

You're an educator, perhaps a language teacher, and have an interest in how iPads can improve your teaching practice. But maybe you're not super confident about your tech skills and definitely don't consider yourself to be on the bleeding edge of technology. With the release of the new iPad, you're feeling excited to give this device a try, but you also may be feeling a bit overwhelmed by the possibilities. If so, then welcome to the club! You're definitely not alone. This is how many educators are feeling with regards to using technology in their classrooms.

The hype is all well and good, but when it comes time to actually use a new device, things aren't so simple. Take the iPad, for example. It's big in the news right now, and the thing is undeniably cool. But there is a bridge of questions that needs to be crossed before you can turn exciting potential into concrete reality within your teaching situation. For now, however, it can be helpful to simply view how other educators are making use of iPads. What are teachers slightly ahead of you on the technology adoption curve doing? So that's what we'll focus on here: three case scenarios of iPads in the classroom. Not all of these are focused on language learning, but the aim here is to simply give interested yet overwhelmed teachers a chance to see some examples of how it's being done. I invite you to take a few minutes and check out the videos below. Hopefully after you've done so, you'll have a wider view of what's possible for you and your students.


Case 1: Archbishop Mitty HS iPad pilot program (San Jose, California)
This article over at Siliconvally.com chronicles how the entire school is jumping in head first into using iPads with their students. Basic issues are addressed, such as who controls the iPads, how many are currently being used, how the school is managing the costs involved, and some of the main apps and accessories that teachers are making use of. For now, just watch:

A few things stand out for me when I watch this video, mostly how cool it must be when an entire school district gets behind this sort of technology use. It's amazing to see what is possible when everyone, from teachers to students to administrators, moves together. I also feel a bit envious and depressed because in my teaching situation we are nowhere near such a level! It's basically just me and a few like-minded colleagues interested in doing something with iPads up against a slow-moving bureaucracy. [Sigh] Still, it's good to see how things could be. Although this clip doesn't get into anything specific, I can take away a few things, such as the way students are collaborating in groups with their iPads. Perhaps I could do something like that, but how?

Case 2: The iPad for building literacy
Here is a totally cute and well-produced little clip featuring elementary school children in the States. They talk about how they are using iPads in their class for learning how to read. This one is good for language teachers, as the activities and apps they feature are easily transferable to an ELT setting. Check it out:

Overall, I like how this clip features students working in pairs; this means you don't need to have an iPad for every student. In fact, even if you only had a few, they could be used if you set up your class in a kind of "station" arrangement: students, in pairs, could rotate around to different stations in the room, doing different sorts of language practice at each one- speaking practice here, reading Graded Readers there, and reviewing vocab or some other activity with an iPad over here.


Case 3: How one teacher personally uses his iPad
Whereas the first case modeled program-wide iPad implementation and the second looked at specific usage examples, this final case showcases one teacher's perspective. Bob Smith's presentation runs about 14 minutes and introduces the iPad in an accessible way to educators who are just beginning to think about using this technology. Issues covered include the iPad's form factor and cost, student uses, the advantages of e-textbooks, faculty uses, classroom management (via the app Teacher's Attaché), and giving traditional presentations (via Keynote). The app Sadun's Whiteboard, an app that turns your iPad into an electronic smart board, is also demonstrated.

So there you have it: a brief look at how iPads are being used in the classroom, from three different perspectives. Again, my aim here was to give teachers just staring out with iPads some visual models and ideas of what's possible. Although these clips do not all directly relate to language teaching, I hope that seeing how this device is being used has been helpful. If so, then we'd love to hear from you.

From watching these clips, what has stood out for you?

Note: the photo above was taken from this page.