iPads in Schools: Good or Bad?

The iPad has reached the education world and taken it by storm. One school after another has jumped on board with using the technology and most will swear it works to keep students interested and wanting to learn. But is this enough to teach students the fundamentals? I feel using devices like iPads is a step in the right direction, but should not be used until parents and teachers figure out how to balance learning with the growing problem of over consuming media. 

Technology can do amazing things to aid in the education process. As this video on youtube shows below, there are several ways students can use iPads to aid in reviewing vocabulary, writing and reading. The problem lies in the fact most of these students are using technology without realizing there are other issues involved such as how much more media they can handle.  A recent report by the Kaiser Foundation reveals most 8-18 year old use entertainment media an average of roughly 11 hours a day. The study goes on to say children with the heaviest media use are more likely to have lower grades in school.

This leads to the question of what can we do to make sure students are still learning in this media saturated world.  Some authors like Laurie David and Susan Stiffleman believe schools should cut out technology altogether due to this media addiction.  In their recent article, they believe:

Increasing the use of technology in the classroom is like feeding our kids pop tarts and soda; it tastes good and they like it, but it doesn't offer the nourishment they need. If schools go hi-tech across the board, they'll be feeding an addiction that, as most parents can tell you, is already out of control.

The only problem with this idea is it appears technology will become essential in classrooms in the future. Chris Pirillo in a recent internet video (see below),  believes the iPad is here to stay because of the ease of downloading books onto it and the amount of space that will be saved from using the technology.  School officials like J.Gerry Purdy go as far as seeing textbooks becoming revolutionized by the iPad.  In a recent article by The Journal, he said:

We'll go from trying to feed PDF textbooks into portable devices to building interactive, dynamic applications that students can carry around with them.

Whether technology is here to stay or not, there are many things parents and teachers can do to ensure children are learning their material and staying away from over using media. Teachers, like the ones in Shore and Wennona in Australia, should use the iPad to ensure this is something their students can handle. Parents can reduce media consumption at home by enforcing rules about media use and encouraging family time. The Smart Bean Magazine offers additional tips both parents and teachers can use to reduce the amount of media children consume.

Regardless of what parents and teachers decide to do, the children should remain their top priority.  If they are not learning the material and are struggling to function physically and mentally, by all means pull the plug on iPads. But if they are not, parents and teachers should collaborate with each other to figure out how students can get the most out of their new invention without causing a lot of problems.