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Schools Dump Textbooks for iPods, Laptops Teachers Say Students Learn Better From the Devices, Even Eultitasking

Schools Dump Textbooks for iPods, Laptops Teachers Say Students Learn Better From the Devices, Even Eultitasking

"After two frustrating weeks of trying to get connected with a teacher who has used cell phones in the classroom, I finally spoke to Thomas Daccord, an educational technology specialist and author of Best Ideas for Teaching with Technology: A Practical Guide for Teachers by Teachers and The Best of History Web Sites. He was a "laptop teacher" who instructed in a wireless laptop environment for seven years."

"And I just replied to Monika with this - which I hope some of you, again, will chime in on to show me the error of my ways: I'll start with saying I'm still uncomfortable with the opportunity cost notion. As a history teacher - which to me means "preparation for informed citizenship" teacher - I'm not sure I want to sacrifice time that could be used learning and drawing conclusions from human history on the altar of failed web 2.0 experimentation. I see the value of both, though. I'm thinking a separate course - a sort of "Intro to Web 2.0″ - might be more useful than teachers across the curriculum failing and flailing about with the tools when their primary job is teaching content. And I'm still traditional in thinking content is more important. Without it, we risk churning out what I've recently been calling, in my internal monologues, "barbarians with laptops."