Tablet un-PC

Simple, Safe, Innovative, Intuitive, Powerful
Clever, Fun, Memorable, Cool, Better

Which words were spoken by the teachers and which ones were spoken by the kids when presented with the possibility of using a Tablet PC to teach and learn?

This was the intro to a hugely entertaining talk from Geraldine --- from Fleet (though I don't know which one). Too entertaining to blog ;-)

Quite a lot of what she was showing example-wise were things that could be done on a traditional computer but the tactile element has made things easier. She also found a practical reason for tablet pc-ing textbooks - so that lads (and possibly some lassies, too) can graffiti books without any hassles later ;-) This actually has a great use, because kids can also write notes down the sides of pages, removing the need to copy things out (incorrectly).

I'd be keen to know what the differences are for a council in buying Tablets instead of traditional laptops. If we're talking relative peanuts then it seems like a great tool for both teacher and student. Why? Because the tactile element of writing and drawing on your computer seems less like work than sitting down at a rigid box. Need to find out more...

Comments

[AB]

Unfortunately, it's not peanuts Ewan. You can get a decent(ish) laptop for around £3-400, but a decent(ish) tablet is still around £700. having said that, equip a teacher with a tablet and you don't need an IWB, so the cost of kitting out at classroom becomes significantly cheaper.

[Ian Delaney]

My main anxiety is the fragility of Tablets. The ones that convert into a laptop are OK, but the ones that don't are asking for trouble since the screen is continually exposed.

[Steve]

Until getting my MacBook Pro I used a tablet. My first tablet was the type without an attached keyboard, this was a great introduction to tablet pcs but the lack of a proper keyboard annoyed me. My second tablet pc is an Acer Travelmate, this is a convertable type and is excellent. It is great to have the functionality of a tablet pc but the practicalness of a laptop.
I have always been a proponent of tablet pcs over IWBs, as they give a lot flexibility and you can take it home at night.
In Shropshire we had a couple of pilot projects that put tablet pcs into classrooms, it was great to see students using them for notetaking in lessons and then converting it into text later.
I think the increased functionality of the tablet outweighs the increase in cost.