iPads for College Classrooms? Not So Fast, Some Professors Say. - Technology - The Chro... - 2 views
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Despite the iPad's popularity—Apple has sold nearly 15 million of them and just came out with the iPad2; and there are dozens of competitors, like the Samsung Galaxy—early studies indicate that these finger-based tablets are passive devices that have limited use in higher education. They are great for viewing media and allow students to share readings. But professors cannot use them to mark up material on the fly and show changes to students in response to their questions, a type of interactivity that has been a major thrust in pedagogy.
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Despite the iPad's popularity-Apple has sold nearly 15 million of them and just came out with the iPad2; and there are dozens of competitors, like the Samsung Galaxy-early studies indicate that these finger-based tablets are passive devices that have limited use in higher education. They are great for viewing media and allow students to share readings. But professors cannot use them to mark up material on the fly and show changes to students in response to their questions, a type of interactivity that has been a major thrust in pedagogy. -
I think Stuart Selber would disagree with many of the limitations pointed out in this article. Most of the criticisms can be easily overcome with an app or accessory such as a stylus, bluetooth keyboard, or an app like iAnnotate. The people who were interviewed may have lacked the support of a good technologist.
