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Students learn with iPads
By christine keeling
Photo
North Jackson kindergartners Tommy Derrow, 5, and Jack Pittman, 6, practice writing words on an iPad. Using a federal grant, the district began implementing the digital tablets into its curriculum this month.
NORTH JACKSON
Instead of tracing over a dotted-lined “Z” with a pencil, Briley Chance, 5, used a cow-print font from an Alphabet Tracing application.
She is one of 43 Jackson-Milton kindergartners who began using iPad 2 in the classroom.
The school district spent $22,500 from its federal funds to purchase 45 of the computer tablets and began implementing them into its curriculum this month.
“We are always looking to enhance technology for our kids,” said Kirk Baker, the district’s superintendent. “This makes education fun.”
During class time, 6-year-olds Jack Pittman and Tommy Derrow were busy clicking on a frog to make it grab letters with its tongue to spell words. The coins they earned allowed them to purchase outfits to dress their amphibian uniquely and hone their math skills.
“I like to do these games,” said 5-year-old Braylon Taylor. “It helps me make words.”
District kindergarten teachers Kelly Williams and Sue Prozy are excited about the learning opportunities the new technology will bring to students. The teachers already have purchased a variety of apps that are helping students master letter- and shape-identification and reading and science skills. They plan to add math software in the near future. Most apps cost $2.99 and can be shared by everyone in the classroom.
“It’s everything we taught before, but in an innovative way,” said Williams.
Kate Harkin, executive director at eTech Ohio, said mobile devices are a very powerful tool that offers a global menu of educational options that are interactive.
It’s a lot different than a “Dick and Jane” book, but an iPad, as a tool, provides a vehicle to make education fun and lets everyone do it at their own pace, even while they are in the same classroom, she said.
ETech Ohio is a state agency that works to advance education through the use of technology.
Age shouldn’t be a restriction to who has access to technology, she said.
“Can you imagine someone saying, ‘You have to be in fifth grade to use a pencil?’” Harkin asked. The iPad “is not exactly a pencil, but it’s pretty darn close.”
She said there’s not a lot of data on the benefits of using this technology at this level, because it’s a relatively new practice.
The Columbiana school district gave iPads to its kindergarten-through-third grade students last year and is reporting success.
The school district was ranked seventh in the nation in the 2011 U.S. News & World Report’s Most Connected Classrooms. The ranking is based on a measurement of student-to-computer ratio, internet speed and access and technical support.
“I’ve noticed only positive results,” said Kim Sharshan, principal at Joshua Dixon Elementary School. She said the tablet reaches a wide range of students, including those with special needs, because it is multi-sensory by way of audio, visual and kinesthetic.
“Even though they are 5, they appreciate the technology,” Sharshan said. “It gives them the most up-to-date information.”
Jackson-Milton and Columbiana districts don’t allow kindergartners to take the device home and implemented rules so they are handled correctly.
Sharshan said no iPad has been broken or misplaced since they have entered the classroom.
Students in Jackson-Milton have handled the devices very well, and know it’s something they have to take care of, said Williams.
Prozy said her students are not afraid to explore the technology. They sometimes teach her how to do things, because they learn so fast, she said.