Sun, Jun 05, 2011 page11

• iPads replacing paper as schools go high-tech

  Pens, pencils and paper could soon be a thing of the past as schools look to tablet computers to replace and revamp the classroom experience

  • By Simin Wang / AFP, SINGAPORE
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  Apple Inc’s iPad and other tablet computers are replacing traditional note pads in some Asian schools, which some say is making the lives of thousands of students a whole lot easier.

  Soon pupils could be reading on their tablets about a quaint old communication device called “paper,” especially in Asia’s advanced economies where many schools are racing toward a paperless classroom.

  The slim glass slabs slip easily into a bag and can store thousands of textbooks, making a fat school bag full of heavy books, pens and notepads a thing of the past.

  

  Singaporean students use iPads in a language arts class at Nanyang Girls’ High School on May 18.

  Photo: AFP

  “I like the iPad because it is portable and we do not have to carry so many bags and files around,” said 13-year-old Nicole Ong, who now makes notes on her iPad during class at Nanyang Girls’ High School in Singapore.

  A sample group of more than 120 students and 16 teachers at the school have been given iPads, at a cost of over US$100,000. By 2013, every student in the school will have one.

  The number of software applications — or apps — that can be used for educational purposes on tablet computers is set to explode.

  

  Children use old-fashioned paper notepads at a school in Osat village near Srebrenica, Bosnia, on June 2.

  Photo: Reuters

  It’s a brand new business that even media mogul Rupert Murdoch has identified as an area of huge potential growth. Murdoch said his News Corp group is to push into the education technology market in a speech to the e-G8 conference of Internet entrepreneurs and European policymakers in Paris last month.

  He described education as the “last holdout from the digital revolution” and outlined a vision for personalized learning with lessons delivered by the world’s best teachers to thousands of students via the Internet.

  “Today’s classroom looks almost exactly the same as it did in the Victorian age,” Murdoch added.

  

  Singaporean students use iPads in a language arts class at Nanyang Girls’ High School on May 18.

  Photo: AFP

  However, many Asian schools are already way ahead of the game.

  Rene Yeo, head of the information technology department at Tampines Secondary School, also in Singapore, teaches science with his iPad. His students learn factorization by simply moving the numbers around on the screen.

  They also read about animal cells and the human brain structure by clicking on the various parts. And tablet computers make the double helix structure of a human DNA practically come to life before a student’s eyes.

  There are apps to learn English and maths, pupils can do cause and effect analysis on iBrainstorm, prepare for oral exams and speeches with AudioNote and even strum the guitar for a music lesson on GarageBand.

  The rise of classroom technology will mirror its rise throughout society, says Sam Han, a US-based expert on the role of technology in education.

  Han, instructional technology fellow at the Macaulay Honors College, City University of New York, said he expects some Asian countries to leapfrog the West.

  “While the Internet was birthed in the US, Singapore and South Korea boast far greater broadband Internet access penetration and infrastructure than the US,” he said.

  Japan’s communications -ministry has given tablets to more than 3,000 pupils under the age of 12 at 10 elementary schools and even fitted classrooms with interactive electronic blackboards under the so-called “future school” pilot project.

  In South Korea, where schools have Wi-Fi zones, the education ministry has been testing “digital textbooks” in some schools since 2007. Next year, the ministry says it will decide whether to supply tablets to schools nationwide.

  Singapore has a hugely competitive education system known for its high level of science and mathematics instruction. The education ministry provides a grant for schools to buy this kind of equipment, as well as software and services. Many schools already have Wi-Fi, making it easy for students to connect to the Internet. Although some teachers acknowledged there are students who get distracted by playing games or surfing Facebook and other social media sites like Twitter.

  Education psychologist Qiu Lin cautioned against schools getting carried away and promoting the blind use of technological devices and neglecting the real goals of education.

  “The trend of integrating technology into education will definitely increase,” said the assistant professor at Nanyang Technological University, which is separate from the high school.

  “But after one month when the novelty of iPads wears down, a good curriculum and teaching materials that can increase deep thinking and problem solving in students needs to be in place,” Qiu said.
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