Over this quarter I have spent quite a bit of time thinking about how to use the IPod Touch in my classroom. It’s ease in use for voice recording is a great tool all by itself, but would that make it worth the expense when there are other digital voice recorders out there they might serve the same function?
In my current placement we are fortunate enough to be able to use a lot of technology on a daily basis. We are a pilot program for having Net Book computers in the classroom (in addition to several desk top models that we have access to in a shared space right outside our classroom door). We use these resources as often as we can, making sure that they have a legitimate learning purpose. The mere mention of getting the computers out raises the excitement level in the room, even if it’s just to use them for writing friendly letters or using them for graphic organizers!
In contrast I only had access to one IPod Touch. I think if I had the resources to have a set (at least 5 or 6) so that we could rotate activities in small groups I might have had more incentive to explore the possibilities for differentiating instruction, just as we do with the computers that we have. Having just one put me in a position where I would have to choose just one student at a time to make use of it. I can however imagine the excitement students would have for learning with the Touch. Anything that makes a student WANT to learn is a good thing, in my opinion.
If our classroom had students that needed extra remediation in a particular subject (such as a special ed. Student or ELL), there might have been a logical use for one student to not participate with the rest of the class in what they were doing and do something different that was geared toward them, but as it was, our class is a highly capable class without these students to make considerations for.
You might ask yourself: Wouldn’t a classroom of gifted students be an ideal place to pilot differentiation of instruction using an IPod Touch? Yes, it would…if I had more than one. How do I choose from a class of 26 unique learners which one gets to use the Touch? Because I can guarantee, in this class, it would be noticed. Just asking 3 students to record interviews using the Touch caused all kinds of “why not me? Why them?” questions. If I only let 1 or 2 or 3 students sit off to the side and “play” with the Touch, I think we would have had another classroom management issue on our hands.
We instead chose to differentiate learning with the resources that we had: the Net Books and desktop computers. I anticipate that Touches could possibly be great tools in a classroom possessing a set and a teacher who was motivated to learn how to make use of them. But for the cost of a Touch relative to a Net Book (which I believe is much more versatile), I would have to choose the Net Book. If we were fortunate enough to have access to both, the possibilities for advancing our students in our learning would be even that much greater. Maybe someday in the future we will! I can hope…
In an ideal world, yes, I would love to have a set of Touches in my classroom. If I am ever fortunate enough to get them, I will make an effort to use them in real learning every day. Motivation goes a long way in helping students to learn. I have visions of math centers that kids rotate through to practice math facts, and literacy centers for beginning readers that allow them to listen to audio books and even make their own. But until I do have a set that I can work with and know that I can use for my students, I also believe that I need to focus on the resources that I DO have to differentiate learning for all of my students.
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