Social studies teacher Brian Powell hopes to launch an experiment testing students working with iPads for the upcoming 2011-2012 school year.
“Right now, we are in the process of raising money for the iPads. The iPads will not be paid for with student tuition money,” Powell said. The iPads will be paid for by outside sponsors or donations from people in the community.
If enough money is raised, the students in Powell’s advisory will come into school for a day during the summer and learn about how they are to use the iPads.
The goal of the experiment is to compare iPads with laptops. “Tablets are the future of computing and the industry standard is the iPad,” Powell said. Powell hopes that the pilot for this experiment will involve his advisory and that at least 10 students will be able to do the experiment.
Powell’s advisory will use the iPads in different classes, and they will report back to Powell on how efficient the iPad has been during each advisory.
“I think it will be a good experiment because I have never had an iPad before. Plus, it offers students a new learning experience,” junior Claire Hofmann, a member of Powell’s advisory, said.
“I think it is a great idea and [it] will be fun to see if it works in school,” sophomore Carol Zubrowski said. Zubrowski is also a member of Powell’s advisory.
Powell feels that the experiment will be successful due to the appeal of the product. “It is generating a new sense of ownership in the project where people want to use it,” Powell said. “There are numerous options for science and math apps that you can’t get on a laptop,” Powell said.
The experiment must be funded completely, or Powell will not be able to do it. “This type of experiment has been done before with funding,” Powell said.
Megan Battaglia is a Multimedia Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.