Access to quality digital textbooks proved the biggest challenge at Avery Middle School. The iPad doesn't provide a way to play a CD, and most of the textbook publishers weren't ready or interested in providing digital alternatives.
The iOS 4.2 release does allow users to print from iPads — as long as they have an AirPrint-enabled printer. To overcome this challenge, Wells used a plug-in that allows any printer to be compatible with AirPrint. While the printing process is slow and wonky, it does the job.
the device is a tool in a student's arsenal.
“The device itself can’t replace good teachers, it can’t replace good curriculum, it can’t replace good classroom instruction,” Wells said.
On the student survey, 74 percent said they preferred laptops for these three reasons:
Typing is easier
They can keep multiple windows open and switch between them more easily on the laptops
They can move documents and information between class and home easier than they can on a shared iPad
"You wouldn't believe what we just did today." Some teachers place study questions and curriculum goals on a blog so students can find their assignments. Others embed videos, make e-books using the open standard EPUB (short for electronic publication), and create individual blogs where students respond to literature they read.
“It allows them to be more like an orchestra conductor working with this section and then that section.”