The Apple iPad and a quick reaction for education.
So I am sitting here trying to watch the live stream from whatever web site is managing to stay online long enough to get an idea of what the new iPad will do and be like and my first reaction to it is that it will do very little for education out of the box.
Why do I say this… because it looks like it is simply a large iPhone. While the iPhone was a game changer in the consumer market it doesn’t have a lot to offer in education, at least not at my school.
If it is running the iPhone OS, as it appears to be, the apps that are available for that are very limited. There is not a lot of apps designed for the creation of multimedia applications which in our school takes up a good portion of how student would want to use this device.
I’ll have more later… but, if you were looking for something to replace a laptop and compete with a tablet PC, this doesn’t appear to be it… though the event is only 26 minutes past.
[Image from Engadget: http://www.engadget.com/]
iWork for the device look pretty cool… still waiting to to see if they have an iLife suite. The iWork stuff is something that you could do via Goole Apps and “The Cloud”.
Google Apps? The Cloud? That’s bullshit Stryker!! Either the device can stand on its own … or it can’t. This thing looks like a great device — but if you think it’s gonna make a difference to educators, you’re kidding yourself. Hell, I’ll get one asap — but let’s not think it is going to somehow advance education.
You wanna advance education? Give me a good chalkboard and a box full of dustless, a few good books, maybe an article or two, and some decent maps — and I’ll teach anybody!
Moderation? I have to wait for moderation? Stryker … you gutless fascist censor!