For a few years now, more schools are beginning to adopt the iOS classroom. I'm not sure if that's a real term yet, but if it catches on, I will appreciate royalties. iPads, especially, are being considered to enhance classroom learning. From what I've observed, schools take two approaches to this: either they like to play it safe (toes in) by buying a few to pilot in a classroom/whole school or they pull out the checkbook and commit themselves to a large investment (the cannonball splash). Both have their virtues, especially when budget is in consideration; however, neither one really has much chance of success without an implementation plan. Just saying "I want an iPad so we can let students use all those educational apps" isn't a plan as much as it is simply wanting to keep up with technology trends. If you're going to spring for a classroom iPad set, it needs to become a part of your curriculum that students don't see as a toy for playing games on all the time. I find this reminiscent of when I attended elementary school and we got our first computer lab all so that we could play Oregon Trail. It was a first step in implementation before really grasping the learning capabilities inherit to such devices. My research has lead me to discover an app designed with forward thinking for how teachers can truly harness the iOS classroom. Summary: Nearpod, launched in 2012, is a device management system that allows a superuser (teacher) to push content and deliver interactive presentations to the student users. It takes on properties similar to an MDM (mobile device management) system, putting the teacher in control by synchronizing content of what students see and do. The most impressive feature for this is the ability to create rich presentation material that includes audio and video multimedia, internet content, and interactive quizzes that push results back to the instructor. There is also a public library of content appropriate across a broad range of ages and topics. Creating content is intuitive and fun (at least for the first couple), and the delivery to other devices is great. Imagine being in control of all those devices. Feel the power...
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| Who doesn't love dinosaurs? |
Cons: Alas, there are drawbacks to Nearpod. The first is obvious - MONEY. While there is a Silver Membership, it really feels more like brass. Its privileges provide the limited capabilities of a demo: 30 devices, maximum 10 presentations, 200mb storage. All in all, not impressive. Cleverly designed to have you try it, like it, and affect your sleep once you realize you've used it to full capacity. A Gold membership is a great way to go when dealing with a single classroom set, but $120/month is too much for teachers out-of-pocket, provides unlimited access. If your school has multiple sets, a School Edition Membership may help you negotiate the right price. Drawbacks include:
- price tag
- content you create is only available using Nearpod
- cancellation of service may affect your ability to retain projects
- iOS compatible only (sorry, Droid)
For a classroom with iPads and iPods available for student use, this is a tremendous step forward in the instructional value. The price tag coming with this app, in my opinion, is worthwhile to provide meaningful delivery of content that engages student learning and still allows teachers to be put into control. If you're going to spend the thousands of dollars to invest in classroom iPad sets, you need to also budget for ways get the most of them. We don't buy toys for students (except when I was a kindergarten teacher), we provide tools for learning. You can't buy a car as a single purchase - you need to continue to budget costs of gas and maintenance to get the most out of your vehicle. Our technology purchases need to take on that same line of thinking. Consider looking into Nearpod to meet those needs. I believe this is the first of many MDM apps to come that will enhance the way iPads are used in education.
