Teachers: Part II

We are in the process of launching a dialog with teachers to better understand the challenges associated with implementing iPods and iPads in the classroom.  In the first post, Time to Meet the Teachers, I invited teachers to respond directly to me with their thoughts about apps for students. Thank you to the teachers who responded.  I have summarized your input for an “open dialog” with our community. Respondents included eight teachers representing schools from Maui to Cupertino to South Dakota. Grades ranged from K-12, in both traditional and special needs classrooms. This is what I’m hearing:

Challenges:

  • Budget cuts, furloughs, pay reduction, increased class sizes, and limited budget for class supplies (resulting in teachers paying for supplies out-of-pocket).
  • Cost of purchasing new apps
  • Having enough time to write for grants
  • School district buy-in (some teachers can’t access iTunes from the school network and must download apps from home)
  • Challenges with the Apple Volume Purchase Program ($100 minimum is out of range for many budgets, and number of devices is not unlimited, so the cost adds up)
  • Maintaining a “technology station” (finding relevant apps, sturdy cases for iDevices for school use, upgrading apps, recharging devices getting them ready for next class session)

Benefits:

  • Students who use iPods/iPads show increased attention span for the assigned tasks
  • Ability to “reward” students with iPod/iPad time can be both fun and educational
  • Solving problems by playing a game, customizing the levels, and offering positive reinforcement are all features of interactive media that are helping teachers and students meet their goals
  • Individuals who need assistance with communication (special needs, delayed speech) have found the iPad to be helpful as a communication tool

App Suggestions:

  • List of apps organized by category, so teachers don’t have to go searching through iTunes
  • Apps for math that demonstrate “Place Value”
  • Apps for science that cover topics like food, magnets, soil, etc.
  • Apps for assessment, specifically: reading count, data collection for student progress, and anything to manage data for IEP goals
  • Apps for picture sequencing cards (put the story in order of how it should happen)
  • Apps for following directions (give a task, and have the user follow it)
  • Apps for category skills (drag items to the appropriate box)
  • Apps for reading and listening comprehension ( Don’t just tell the story, ask questions about the story!)
  • Apps for building vocabulary and word skills such as spelling, synonyms, opposites, sequencing, and grammar
  • Apps for AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) and for developing fine motor control
  • Apps for middle and high school students to practice reading and vocabulary skills
  • Apps to support children with autism, such as visual schedules, and voice output apps for children with limited to no verbal output
  • Apps that allow students to create materials…many of the apps are drill and kill, it would be nice to see more apps where kids can make things
  • A framework to evaluate educational criteria of an app

Next Steps:

  • Are you a teacher that has more feedback to add to the above lists? Then email Lorraine so she can continue tracking the input: lorraineakemann@gmail.com
  • Are you a developer who knows about apps that would meet some of the needs outlined above? Please leave a comment so we can start identifying these tools.
  • Are you a teacher who would like to participate on our “Teacher App Review Board”, where Moms With Apps will offer you a free download of an app in exchange for your review & assessment of the app’s educational value? If so, email Lorraine.

And most urgently…

  • Are you an individual, company or organization who is interested in initiatives for:
  1. Getting more apps to more teachers
  2. Assisting the development of educational apps
  3. Developing a framework to evaluate educational criteria for apps

Then let’s coordinate. The time has come to move the iPad from an experimental playground to a validated educational tool. It would be great to get these efforts organized.

3 Replies to “Teachers: Part II”

  1. I am a special education teacher, currently grades 5-6. The list above is awesome. I would love to help review apps. I currently have my own personal iTouch and a claassroom set of 10 from a grant I wrote last year. We use them everyday for Lang. Arts, Math, Science and Social Studies. As well as behavior and fir fun:-)

  2. I am a high school math teacher, and I agree with many of the items listed above. Something that I am struggling with right now, is knowing which apps to get, without having to purchase them all. For example, there are several graphing calculator apps available, but none of the free ones do the things I am looking for. I don’t have the budget to purchase several of the “pay” apps to try to figure out which one would actually be the best one for my class.

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