Posted on 04/08/2011 10:51:03 PM PDT by Swordmaker
AUBURN, Maine — Moments after her daughter worked on writing and pronouncing letters on an iPad 2 Thursday, Natasha Landry said she was happy the Auburn School Committee voted to give kindergartners the tablet computers in the fall.
“It makes it easier for teachers to teach a larger group of kids, one on one, without having more teachers,” Landry said in the hall of Washburn Elementary School.
The $200,000 cost for the iPad 2 tablets will be less than hiring more teachers, she said. “It probably would take four teachers to do what the computers can do with one teacher.”
Landry was also fine with a 5 percent hike in the school budget, even though it would mean her property taxes would go up, if the budget is approved in a May 10 referendum.
“If we don’t try to keep up, our kids are going to fall behind,” she said.
But parent Nicole Fortin said she didn’t understand the idea of giving iPads to young students.
“It’s crazy,” Fortin said. “I look at all of the budgetary restraints we have. Our school system loses money every year to certain things. This is a lot to put in the hands of a 5-year-old.”
That great divide in opinion was common in Auburn on Thursday as news about iPad 2s for all Auburn kindergartners spread throughout Maine, New England and beyond.
Washburn Elementary School Principal Holly Couturier was “ecstatic” about the vote.
“I’ve seen myself the few students who have used iPads with [teacher] Mauri Dufour, and the gains they’ve made,” she said. “If they can make those gains in a relatively short amount of time, I can’t imagine where the kindergarten students are going to be at this time next year.”
Superintendent Tom Morrill said he would work diligently to pay for the iPads privately through grants or donations. Only if that fails will money in the budget be used, he said. By being first in Maine, and gaining the endorsement of former Gov. Angus King, Auburn has positioned itself well for grant money, Morrill said. The iPads will cost $479 each, he said.
Another way of paying for them could be through the newly formed Auburn Educational Fund, a private, nonprofit organization to support educational initiatives, Morrill said.
Some people questioned giving iPad 2s to 5-year-olds. They said the youngsters would drop and break the tablets. But children take care of things that are important to them, Morrill said. Also, the iPads are lighter and smaller than laptop computers, have no moving parts and will be in protective cases.
After students, teachers and parents go through iPad orientations, students will be allowed to take the computers home, Morrill said.
Two people representing Auburn taxpayer groups said Thursday they were unhappy with the school committee’s decision to approve the iPads.
Leroy Walker, a co-owner of Andy’s Beans in New Auburn and leader of the United New Auburn Association, said the iPads “are not needed in the kindergarten age.” He called the tablet “a toy.” Kindergartners “are a little young to be starting off with iPads. They’re too expensive,” he said.
However, he said, “educated people like teachers may be right. I may be wrong. We’ll see.”
He was less forgiving of the 5 percent budget increase, which he said is far too much.
“The whole state is in deep financial trouble,” he said. “Taxpayers are strapped with all these fuel problems and wars going on. It’s not the time to be asking for this kind of income.”
Ron Potvin of the Auburn Small Property Taxpayers Association agreed, calling the increase “beyond common sense.” To go from no increase to 5 percent when people are struggling “is not a doable figure,” he said. “All the things they’re asking for do not have to be done this year. They can be phased in.”
Both said a 2.1 percent increase would be more realistic.
Potvin was receptive to iPads “if the money’s there.” Young people seem to instantly understand technology, he said. “You look at kids today, they do stuff I never did. There would be value in it.”
I wonder what the life expectancy of one of these devices is in the hands of your average five year old.
On average less than 15 minutes or so.
Don't bet the children's education on it.
How does this allow the teachers to work one-on-one with the students?
““It probably would take four teachers to do what the computers can do with one teacher.” “
Correction:
“It probably would take four teachers to do what the computers can do with one lazy a$$ teacher.”
Idiocy marches on.
“We live in a sea of thoughtlessness, informing ourselves to death.” (from a letter to the editor in this morning’s WSJ.)
“I wonder what the life expectancy of one of these devices is in the hands of your average five year old.”
Touch screen devices are much overrated, they can be a pita.
Can you imagine all the jelly encrusted fingers all over these ipads. I hope Apple makes a Nerf iPad.
It is an updated version of “cut and paste” which I considered nothing more than busy work when my kids were that age.
The calculator in itself is applied incorrectly in your example, simply because you don’t regard time when calculating (the first half of the trip took twice as long as the second half; with this, you arbitrarily assign a time).
The calculator will give you ‘45’ if you solve it incorrectly.
But yes, it is not a substitute for thinking, and a tool can hurt the user if used improperly.
Our school, and I bet most others, send sends the students to reading and math labs. The kids hate it because they’re bored to tears. All they do for the class period is sit in front of a computer and work on math and reading lessons. There is no teacher interaction. But of course, my tax dollars pay for a teacher to sit in there full time and for the other teachers to bring their kids in so they can relax and read a magazine or gossip with the lab “teacher.”
“I think Swordmaker just posted the article, I don’t think he made the purchasing decision.”
No, but he probaly has stock in Apple. Or at least a black light velvet painting of Steve Jobs. :-)
I think the taxpayers are the ones who are really falling behind.
It just reveals the level of thinking that goes into purchasing decisions. This is going to cost $200 K? Auburn isn’t the richest of communities in Maine. I could understand the Camden school district doing this, but not a declining mill community. You can see on the picture what they’re using the device for. “Which is A” Push the A. Good job.
The ipad, the xoom or whatever top of the line android tablet there is, they all have a tremendous amount a powerful. They’re the most powerful tablet devices that exist right now.
Kindergardeners need something very very close to a toy, which should not cost $500.
But I agree entirely that computers can and should be used where appropriate, and I agree that teaching music would be a good use. The educational market is potentially a huge one. Every kid, everywhere, gets a new one every year? That’s a huge market. But the idea that kindergarders are getting a $500 ipad which has so much stuff they don’t need, and no one thought about alternatives to $500, like $50. It just shows they’re putting much much less thought into the process of getting computers than I would’ve hoped.
Okay, what could possibly go wrong?
I have a mental image of at least one thing...sort of like a junior version of the current Southern California Honda dealer ad, where the helpful Honda sales rep lets the guy borrow his “tablet computer” and the guy promptly takes off to the men’s room for a nice long...read. And the helpful sales rep goes...”Keep it.”
The Apple iPad2 is like a tablet computer, only smaller, lighter, easier to use and less expensive. “There’s no mouse. You use your finger,” King said. “Everyone knows how to use their finger.”
That’s Former Maine Governor Angus King.
“like a tablet computer” “less expensive” wow? Less Expensive? I thought the argument was that the ipad was the best? Now it’s the cheapest? Perfectly fine for 5 year old s android tablets are available for $67. with flash 10.1.
memory foam. that actually could work. cut a piece of memory foam out. remove the section above the screen, a big piece of foam with a touchscreen in the middle.
http://techland.time.com/2011/04/08/must-be-nice-kindergarteners-in-maine-getting-free-ipads-now/
time mag on this
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