Are Ipads used a lot in secondary schools?

[vkyyu]

Will any secondary school teachers or parents share their views please. My children are not in secondary school yet. However many and more and more primary schools seem to be acquiring IPads for pupils use in schools. So just wonder if this is also happening in secondary schools. As I want to invest my saving in the right equipment for my dcs. I think IPads are very expensive for what they are. However there many tablet-PCs available on the market and often come with Microsoft office seem very good value as comparing to IPads. So just wonder whether a IPad or a tablet-PC will be better support their school / home work in secondary schools?

[lljkk]

Not used in any state schools I am familiar with (DC in 2 secondaries, 1 primary).
Probably another sign of our backwards ways in Norfolk? (Or our bounty of common sense)

[BackforGood]

None of the secondaries I'm familiar with use iPads or tablets or anything similar.
My dc do use their laptops every night for homework though.

[Talkinpeace]

most of the big ones round here use them - probably an lea wide deal from before they became academies

[Loshad]

We use them all the time, students and teachers. Some students get them free (fsm), some use the school ones, many pay a small sub per month.
They are so far from being gimmicks. the number of apps that really enhance student learning and engagement is huge. I am not saying another tablet couldn't do the the job, but they are far superior to laptops in terms of battery life and weight for students to carry them around all day. They are imo the best option for afl - assessment of student learning, handing in of assignments, making movies etc to demonstrate understanding, etc etc.
I was a real sceptic 2 years ago when the idea was first mooted in our school, I am now a total convert. The students love them and are far more engaged with their learning.

[LAlady]

At my DS's school all boys from year 7 right through to the 6th form have iPads. Scheme was rolled out last year and has been successful. We pay for them on a monthly basis.

[petteacher]

The techology is on the way to conquering most of us. Schools included.
And amazing game changer for good or ill(both I suppose)

[Travelledtheworld]

Ok so what software are schools using for word processing on an iPad, and are they offering keyboards too ?

[lljkk]

Schools that use them, issue them even: Do they bring them home? What if you refuse to pay? I really don't want to be held responsible for such an expensive bit of kit, especially if brought home on bus or around younger siblings.

[Hulababy]

DD's secondary school doesn't appear to use iPads either. They have PCs and Macs, but no tablets that we are aware of as yet.

I know more primaries who use them than secondaries - probably because of the numbers needed and the cost I would think.

Regardless though, I would still let a laptop rather than an iPad for a secondry school age child - if it is wanted for homework purposes.

[LIZS]

dc school have been trialling them and next September will start issuing to all year groups over a 2 year period. They remain property of the school though. atm dd uses her Kindle for school work.

[vkyyu]

My yr6 dcs use my tablet-PC to do homework, make videos, online games. Dc1 is learning to use excel and sometimes use PowerPoint for school work. Thats what really hold me back from buying an iPad. My dcs have a lot of fun with my tablet-PC everyday. And again it is only half of the price of an iPad but twice the capacities. It is a very tough choice!

[Nibs777]

And if you still think Ipads are just toys like LoopyLobster then think about all the new interactive text books that are coming out on tablets and read what Head of Eton has to say about this over the weekend (from the Mail on Sunday/Telegraph):

Schools have to embrace the internet and invest in teachers "like never before" or they will become redundant in a generation, the headmaster of Eton College warned today.

Anthony Little said "league table obsessed, class-room focused schools" would be overrun by the new technological age unless Ministers, schools and parents adapted.

He said that in an era where children could study Maths at Harvard over the internet, a new generation of flexible teachers was needed where they combined a traditional commitment to childrens' development with modern practices such as online marking.

Writing in The Mail on Sunday, he said the pace of change and rapid spread of internet tablets such as the iPad meant "the ground is shifting underneath adult assumptions".

He said: "Teachers and parents are understandably worried by the threats and dangers of social networking and the internet.

"But we should not confuse the medium with the uses to which it can be put."

He claimed that rather than worrying about becoming "relics" schools had to embrace "the massive dynamic frightening and exhilirating technological revolution " in classroom practice.

He added: "Second, we must celebrate the primacy of love over systems. We need to place the development of the person - heart and spirit as much as mind and body - at the very centre of what we do, or our schools will die.

"And to make these things happen we must invest in teachers like never before. The teachers of the future will need to be flexible, innovative pioneers."

Mr Little said inventive new approaches in the classroom were already on the way, such as using gaming to motivate children in tasks they find tedious.

He said the world of online shopping offered other possibilities, such as using the same principle behind 'people who bought x also bought y' in teaching.

He said: "Why not the same principle as an education aid? 'People who struggled do x, found that y helped?' Using the distilled experience of millions of students gives far greater depth than one expert can achieve."

[Nibs777]

fwiw - for senior school I plan to but my kid an iPad (with keyboard attachment) for portability and making notes in class and he alreday has a macbook (with word/powerpoint software). I just hope he takes care of them !

[friday16]

he alreday has a macbook (with word/powerpoint software)

Why on earth would you buy a Mac and use Word and Powerpoint, when Pages and Keynote are cheaper, cheaper and native?

[LoopyLobster]

Ipads have no flash. We have a number of interactive, online text books that can't be accessed on the ipads, hence the need for the macs. Same with many educational websites.

I still stand by my toy comment. Powerful, interesting toys, but not in any way a replacement for a computer. Storage issues and keyboard issues mean that, if I were inclined to buy a tablet as my only work machine (impossible) I would look at an android device rather than ipad (although I do own an ipad, it isn't great for educational purposes - I use mine as a diary and organiser, but mostly my toddlers play with it).

Apple's ipad apps are amazing for use in the classroom as engaging games/toys. However, you really need a whole class set for this, in which case the school would be providing them.

[noblegiraffe]

They aren't a replacement for a computer, but not many classrooms have a full set of computers either, so an iPad is a lot better than nothing.

Flash is becoming less of an issue as educational websites adapt to the increasing numbers of iPads being used in schools.

[Pinkpartysprinkles]

I look after a 12yo, his whole year group were given iPads this term in a pilot scheme, so far all he seems to have used it for is playing games. Still ends up using the desktop computer at home for the majority of his homework as the iPad does not appear to have the tools needed to complete his work.

[Nibs777]

friday16

why - because not everyone else in the world has a Mac - so he can switch between the two as needed.

(and because i got a special deal and got it v cheap because of work offer) eg sometimes he has to do a powerpoint presentation and take it in on a stick and use teacher's PC to present it...agree I much prefer Keynote

[Nibs777]

agree iPad is not replacement for laptop but portability is the obvious benefit =so supplementary to a laptop or desktop- instead of lugging text books about, interactive text books, educational videos, take notes in lessons etc.

[Loshad]

lobster you are so far off the truth with your toys comments, although i agree all the class need one, we don't provide them for most, a charity runs our scheme, and as i said the vast majority of parents pay a small monthly fee. We have started writing our own textbooks as well, to be viewed on the iPad, so giving the students access to way more revision materials than they had beforehand. We have embraced the technological age and are running with it (cool to be ahead of Eton) and the future is looking great to us, and our students.

[Talkinpeace]

we looked at bying an ipad for DHs work - to run a specific thing - and just could not justify the cost as it was so utterly non versatile
having no sockets to attach (eg) the wireless mouse was the killer
we stuck with Tosh laptops

the kids use the school ones for all sorts of art, english, tech type projects
but homework seems to still be done on the laptop

[friday16]

having no sockets to attach (eg) the wireless mouse

iPads have Bluetooth, so any Bluetooth mouse would work, in so far as a mouse makes any sense on a touchscreen device. Isn't the point of wireless mice that they're wireless, and therefore don't plug into anything?

[noblegiraffe]

Wireless mice need a USB dongle. But yes, I also can't see the need for a mouse with a touch screen.

[friday16]

Wireless mice need a USB dongle

Only the ones sold for desktops that don't have Bluetooth. For practical purposes, all mobile devices do. A mouse like this will pair directly with a laptop or tablet without the need for a receiver.

[Talkinpeace]

sorry I was not clear
the toy he uses is a remote pointer with integrated mouse buttons and laser pointer for when he's doing a presentation in a huge room

so he has both hands practically free and does not have to keep dashing back to the side of the stage to press a button or touch a screen

if there is such a thing that will work without any plugging in I've not found it ( but would be delighted if y'all know where one is )