Technology in the classroom can benefit students in many ways, as it can create an engaging environment, incorporate different learning styles, improve collaboration and prepare students for the future.
However, district-provided iPads cannot achieve these benefits because they are out-dated and ineffective. Instead, the district should invest in laptops for high school students.
Most teachers utilize Canvas to give online assignments to students, but iPads are not the best or most efficient way to access these resources. It is difficult to edit documents, load PDFs and type on iPads.
Apple manufacturers did not design iPads for work and school purposes. Professional offices and jobs use computers, not iPads, to complete their work. To truly prepare for the future, students should become accustomed to computers.
In addition, technology updates fast and therefore iPads become slow and dysfunctional quickly. This makes accessing apps and the internet difficult and frustrating. In some cases, students spend more time trying to get their iPads to work than they spend on assignments or activities.
Although iPads do not have notable benefits for high school students, they can help younger students. For example, most middle school students do not have personal technology, so they can use the school-provided iPad to complete simple assignments and access the internet. Ipads are also more durable and easier to carry around.
Laptops provide opportunities to operate programs such as Word, Photoshop, PowerPoint. These programs are used in professional settings, so access to them for students would prepare them for future jobs. Laptops would also distract students less because most cannot have apps downloaded to them, and the school wifi blocks gaming websites. Laptop batteries also last longer.
Students should become familiar with useful technology, not outdated iPads. The district needs to stop spending money on iPads that few students use. If they want to invest in technology, they need to invest in updated technology that works for student’s daily use.
