Sunday, October 21, 2012

iPads, Kindles, and Nooks Oh My!

Electronic devices such as iPads, Kindles, and Nooks are finding a place in classrooms while heavy books are finding their way out.  Some schools have done the calculations and learned that incorporating these into the classroom will be less expensive for the long term.  Their big screens are user friendly, the touch screen provides an interactive experience, apps enhance learning, and software updates make the device constantly feel like new, regardless of when it was purchased.  Reports related to students' learning and test scores show higher scores, and at the same time, the classroom atmosphere is left unchanged and devices give teachers flexibility.  Their popularity has increased, and combining them with online sources makes them a great resource and learning tool for all students.  Other benefits besides having an entire library in your lap are reducing photocopying, decreasing the weight of backpacks by the pounds, and saving school districts money from buying textbooks.  Educational benefits students' will receive include a text-to-speech feature, adjusting the font to their preference, getting students motivated to read, the ability to highlight and take notes while reading, to later share with others, and looking up words that are unfamiliar.  Introducing these electronic reading devices into the classroom will be a strong step in a bright educational direction.  From this movement, our students of today will become our shining future of tomorrow.





3 comments:

  1. There's no question that we'll be seeing more tablets and e-readers in schools in the future. Is there a device you prefer over the others or are they all pretty even in terms of usefulness in the classroom?

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    1. I've been in several special education/inclusion classrooms, and I've only seen the iPad. I would prefer the iPad just because of it adds the number of educational apps a student can use compared to the Nook and Kindle which are primarily used for reading. The iPad is just so versatile, and there aren't many gadgets that can compete with it on the market right now.

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  2. I was subbing for a fourth grade class a couple of weeks ago and at the end of the day we were reading Scholastic News. The article was discussing the use of Nooks, Kindles, and iPads in the classroom. Schools in China are already on board, but many school districts in United States are reluctant because of cost of these devices. I have seen an ESL classroom working with iPads. I agree with you, the iPad is the way to go because there are so many apps a student can use and they can use the iPad for reading and writing. However, I do have a Nook and I love it for reading!

    I came across this on Pinterest- http://edudemic.com/2012/02/1000-apps/. This site has 1,000 Education Apps.

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