January 28, 2012

Amazing Opportunities Within Schools

I had the most awesome feeling over last week. At my school, a new opportunity passed in the school board allowing students to bring their electronic devices with wi-fi capabilities to classes in school for educational use. I asked my English teacher if I could use my iPod Touch to take notes and she said, "Go right ahead!" I felt pompous that I was the only kid in the class with an electronic device taking NOTES! I think that it is an amazing opportunity for kids today to be able to take notes using their devices. It still gets the job done, but it gives kid the chance to be able to use their devices to their advantage. Not only can kids take notes, but also connect to the school's new wi-fi for Internet access. This works on all devices with wi-fi capabilities including iPod, iPad, Kindle, Laptop, etc
http://www.prlog.org/11159928-cheap-apple-ipod-touch-64-gb-for-sales.jpg

There are a couple of downsides to all of this though, one especially being that kids may play games instead of take notes. The thing is, if kids are connected to the wi-fi, they are giving the permission to the school to allow them to track what you do, so if they see you goofing off, they can track it back to your device. To me, it is much easier for me to type notes than it is to write them out since it saves paper and saves my hand from hurting. Even though this is a strict policy, it is also very beneficial to the students.

So the question of the week is...

What are your thoughts on this opportunity?