UPDATE (3/18/12): In conjunction with this post please also read the second part of the story which I wrote about two months after creating this post, along with the third part of the story. The text you see here was originally crafted in November of 2011 which was a lifetime ago in terms of iPad and Chromebook updates.
I am fortunate to work in a school district that is often on the cutting edge when it comes to instruction and technology integration. Much of our technology is purchased by individual school site communities and this diversity has led to many teacher-led, grass-roots instructional technology innovations. However, it means at Technology Services we must be flexible, adaptable, and constantly learning.
As part of this learning process, we have the opportunity to work with one school site that happens to have simultaneously occurring iPad and Chromebook pilots. The class set of iPads are used in the intermediate grades and the class set of Chromebooks are used with middle school English, history, and AVID students. In both cases the teachers are leveraging technology to support the site’s instructional focus of comprehensive balanced literacy (Reading and Writing Workshop and balanced literacy approaches). We are only a few weeks into each of the pilots, but so far the iPad teachers are a bit disappointed. One of them even asked, “Can I trade the iPads in for Chromebooks?” To Apple iPad devotees, this request might come as a bit of a shock. However, this statement really stems from frustration with iTunes and the iOS operating system.
So why do the Chromebooks look so good?
- Immediate Set Up: When delivered to the site the Chromebooks were being used by students within 5 minutes of being taken out of the boxes. The devices integrate with our Google Apps for Edu system, so Technology Services could take care of the initial set up and students were able to immediately log in with their district-provided Google Accounts
- Complete Integration with Google Apps: All of the Google Apps tools, along with third party apps the district installs from the Google Apps Marketplace (SlideRocket, Aviary, etc) work with the hardware.
- All Websites Work: The Chromebook works with any website. Flash, HTML5 – it doesn’t matter. It just works. The teachers do not have to spend any time looking for or downloading a special app.
- Personalization: Since students login to the Chromebooks with their individual accounts, they can personalize the device in terms of adding bookmarks, browser backgrounds, and apps. This particular classroom where the Chromebooks are being used has close to 95% home-Internet access. The kids have mentioned that they also like the fact that all of their settings, documents, and resources can be retrieved at home by using the Chrome web browser. Effectively, these students are able to seamlessly move their technology and learning experiences between both school and home.
- Additional Costs: The teachers noted that the Chromebooks don’t need a case or any additional apps, yet the initial purchase price is about the same (or even a little less) than a 16GB iPad. Additionally, if a Chromebook has any problems we just drop it in a box, mail it to Google, and they’ll send out a new one.
And why are the iPads frustrating?
- Device Set Up & Management: We were able to preconfigure the iPads before they were sent to the school site. However, the devices still have to be associated with the iTunes account and the computer to which they will all sync. When you plug the 30 devices into the computer (through the Bretford Syncing Cart) you are met with the most un-Apple of Apple experiences. First you have to wait…it takes iTunes a few moments to see all the devices. Then various windows start popping open including update and registration windows. These windows open for all of the devices. So, if you have 30 devices, you have 30 windows to close. Once the windows are all closed you need to rename each of the iPads.
- Updates: Have you ever updated your iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch? To update a class set of iPads you have the luxury of experiencing that process 30 separate times. There is no “Update All” and walk away. You get to do them one at a time. We have discovered a method for streamlining the process – get the first iPad all updated and configured, back it up, and then use that file to individually “image” the remaining iPads.
- Apps: The teachers have described the App Store as being “a complete mess.” It’s challenging to find apps that are educationally relevant and effective, while also being within their limited budget. As time passes on, we’re really focusing on free apps because for any paid app you need one copy for each device. A $5 app will cost $150 to have it on all of the devices. Additionally, there really isn’t a method for trying out an app before buying it.
- “The Syncing Cart that Doesn’t Sync” – This is how one teacher described the Bretford PowerSync Cart. The cart does allow you to plug all 30 devices into your computer with one cord. However, once they show up in iTunes you manage each device separately. If there is a video you want on all of the devices you use the iTunes menu (just like you would for your iPhone) to chose that video and put it on that device. Once you have iPad 1 set up, just repeat the process 29 times. There are some short cuts like having apps and iTunes content automatically download to all devices. However, one of the teachers suggested that iTunes really needs an option where she could tell the program “make all 30 devices look like iPad #1” and be able to a walk away.
- Google Apps: Our students and staff have access to Google Apps EDU. Google Apps and specifically Google Docs, has become a very powerful tool for teachers and students. They love the fact students can start an assignment at school, finish it at home, and collaborate on their work with other students. Unless the school site pays for an app (and we’ve had challenges finding a good one), the iPads cannot effectively use Google Apps and all of its features.
- Turning In Student Work: While the iPad may have been designed as a personal device, due to limited funding our sites have situations where students must share iPads. For example, the teacher might use the same set of iPads with three different groups of students. When students use an app like Pages or Keynote to construct content, they cannot easily submit it to their teacher. Our teachers are used to students submitting work via Moodle or a digital dropbox. We are still working with teachers to identify a solution that will effectively assist in this process. Our students do have email (through Google Apps for Edu), but we can’t really have 3-5 different email accounts set up (and ready for use) on each device. Additionally, email does not work well if the teacher has many students – like our secondary teachers with 165 kids.
- Additional Costs: Between the need to purchase apps, a case, and headphones the $499 iPad can quickly increase in total cost of ownership.
By no means is this post meant to be a comprehensive review of either device. When I first purchased an iPad I found it frustrating as well. It didn’t do what I expected it to do. However, over time I realized it definitely was a powerful device I would hate to live without, but it was different than anything I had owned before. Similarly, I have had my own Chromebook for the past two months and while I love the battery life and seamless integration with Google Apps and any web 2.0 tool (it’s great for conferences), you can’t do much with it if you don’t have an internet connection and the trackpad is a bit challenging. Interestingly, none of the students have mentioned any frustration with the trackpad – perhaps it’s just an adult issue.
The experience of supporting both Chromebooks and iPads at this one school site reinforces for me the importance of choosing technology that directly supports your instructional goals and then providing the time, talent, resources, and professional development to ensure the seamless integration in the classroom. Fortunately, we are just at the beginning of these pilots and we have even more to learn from this great group of innovative teachers and students. Who knows, perhaps in few months the Chromebook teacher will be asking to trade her devices for iPads? I’m just happy they let me come learn with them.
Joe
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{ 83 comments… read them below or add one }
I’ve said it ever since they were released: iPads are one of the WORST devices to purchase for schools and educational purposes. When they first came out, I was excited, because I thought they would be like an inexpensive mobile computer (like a netbook) but with an easy touch-screen interface. Instead, what we got was a jumbo iPod Touch.
As a teacher (and a computer programmer, and an educational technologist), I use a LOT of great (usually free) online resources with my students. The vast majority of those educational and project-based learning websites use Flash. Since iPads can’t access Flash, they limit the educational opportunities for our students. Since when is that okay? There are over 100 million Flash websites. There are 250,000 iPad apps. It simply doesn’t compare.
Couple that with the fact that there is no USB port or memory card slots for easily storing and transferring files (which much pretty much all be done through “cloud storage” online — not a good choice when the average school only has 10-20 mbps internet to share between all teachers and students at the school), combined with a pricetag several hundred dollars more than netbooks or Android tablets, and you can see why iPads get a big red F for using in the classroom.
I am making a series of videos outlining all of these limitations and problems for iPads at schools, which you can view on YouTube: “Just Say NO to iPads for Education”, as well as “Cloud Computing is a Dirty Word” ( http://youtu.be/hQ467weAX7Q )and some new videos in which I outline some of the many, many great online resources you can no longer use once you put your students on iPads…
@MatthewGudenius
Thanks, Stephanie – good information.
I am an avid apple and google educator, and I am surprised to read such mis-information on the post and the comments. Any educational technology device should meed the individual needs of the teachers and students, which will be different at each school and classroom. Wireless infrastructure and ability to manage devices should be considered..then compare devices for educational needs. I only truly believe this because my district did the opposite- we got the devices before knowing and understanding both of those things.
I set up and managed 100 iPads that are shared between teams of teachers in 3 schools (2 elementary 3rd/4th grade and 1 middle school 7th/8th grade). I am not a techie at all- I am a science teacher who loves technology. I set up all the devices with restrictions, reviewed over 200 educational apps, created the VPP for my district and chose about 20 apps for my teams that I thought would fit their needs. I also led professional development training on how to use the devices AND how to use the devices effectively with the existing curriculum in our district.
We don’t have a management device, besides me, and I used Xcode to update all the operating systems simultaneously (6 -12 minutes TOTAL instead of 35 minutes PER DEVICE)…this was before the Configurator App, which I am sure will do the same thing, maybe faster. I did create email accounts within the google domain for each iPad to facilitate transferring of work (mainly with the use of apps) to teachers and to student accounts, but students also have used DropBox and sendtomydropbox to get their work.
My district went to Google Apps for educators this year and all we did was download the “g” app, which is free, and ALL the google apps sync perfectly- except there is no Sketchup. Students can collaborate through docs without any problems- Joe, I’m not sure what is happening on your iPads, but the google collaborative apps work without any hiccups. Students can also graph on the iPad, using Skitch or Distance Measure or Multimeasure Free (in reference to a comment that students need netbooks to graph).
There are amazing free and paid apps that allow for student creation, and most sync well with google apps and pages, but the favorite part for all students is having the camera. Students use this to take pictures of their work or labs and then import the photo into Noteshelf or a google doc and instantly write about it. They use the video camera and audio recorder to practice fluency. Teachers have begun to use it more and more as a way for students to practice and edit and revise their work, especially for english language learners.
I was fortunate enough to have a Chromebook donated to me by one of our google affiliates, so I have had some time to test it out and compare it to the iPad. I love the Chromebook. I use chrome on all my computers and find the syncing and update to be seamless. I love that by having a Chromebook, you can get most apps for free or at a lower cost. It’s easy to set up, they are easy to manage and share between students as well. But there is one hiccup for my district- our wireless isn’t set up for high density, it’s set up for coverage. We have tested netbooks and have had many problems with more than 20 devices streaming, web browsing and transferring large files. We do have a new 1:1 BYOD initiative at one of our high schools and they paid over a hundred thousand dollars to reconfigure their wireless to high density and students can use whatever device they want. Until we get high density wireless, the iPad is our best option because the apps don’t need to stream any data, unless using Google Earth and when students email their files.
That being said, I do think that the iPad allows for much more creativity and interaction with content via apps than Chromebook. There is something about the touch screen that allows for a more personal experience.
Hi Stephanie,
I noticed in your comment that you described this post as containing “misinformation.” I wanted to clarify a few things for you and potentially a few other readers. First of all, this post was written in mid-November before I (and many others from what I read at the time) were familiar with XCode and certainly before Apple Configurator was released last week. As you will notice in the follow up post related to this article, we learned quite a bit since then and continue to improve our iPad deployment.
http://www.joewoodonline.com/update-can-i-trade-the-ipads-for-chromebooks/
Secondly, I would completely agree with you that the choice of educational technology devices should meet the individual needs of teachers and students. I actually have a series of posts where I have been composing my thoughts on that here. You might find them interesting.
http://www.joewoodonline.com/category/choosing-the-right-tool/
From my own experience if I were asked to choose between a device, I would still chose an iPad over a Chromebook. For me this largely stems from its ease of use as a multimedia creation tool (iMovie, SonicPics, Skitch, Comic Life) and the fact that it integrates nicely with ebook creation tools, such as Creative Book Builder and Book Creator and iBook Author.
Finally, and this is more a clarification for me. You mentioned the “G App” in your comment. I have been on the hunt for a great app that would allow our teachers and students more seamless access to their Google Apps resources with live, realtime collaboration. I assume you are talking about this particular app
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/google-search/id284815942?mt=8
On my iPad Presentation doesn’t seem to work and when I click on a new document or spreadsheet I am defaulted to the mobile page. I can click to the Desktop view, but it seems to be a bit glitchy. Do I have the correct app? I am using an iPad 2 running iOS 5.1 Any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated!
Joe
Joe,
I just read your other blog post and seems like things are moving more smoothly- it is a learning process and that’s great that you have a team of people working on it. I just tested out the “g” app, and yes it is the one in the link you posted. Presentation works fine for me on my iPad, and I have the same iPad and iOS. There may have been changes to google docs or to the new iOS because it is glitchy in desktop version- I even tried all the different wireless networks that we have (some are more restricted than others). What I do see is that if a document has already been created, mobile or desktop versions have no glitches. It’s the creation of a document or spreadsheet that throws things off. And when our students and teachers use the google docs collaboratively, they are all working on a collaborative document that had already been created by the teacher with structural support. So maybe I just never noticed that docs were glitchy when creating a new one? I am not sure. I will do some more investigating and testing.
My district hopefully will be piloting a bunch of Chromebooks as well, so it will be interesting to see how things move differently. What ages are your users of iPads and Chromebooks? I can imagine Chromebooks being geared more towards middle and high school since you have to have a google account for everything… thoughts?
You CAN create a document using the mobile version, but not desktop. This is a great resource from a google certified educator https://sites.google.com/site/gappsforipad/docs that may be helpful as well.
That’s a great resource! Thank you for sharing!
Joe
We have about 2500 iPads in the district at multiple school sites, so they are used with students K-12. Our Chromebook pilot consists of 36 computers in an 7th grade ELA/History classroom.
Joe
Hello.
Can you be more specific about the name of the Google App you used for the iPad? It seems there are a number of them out there and I am interested in the one that you had a good experience with. Are you using “Google Apps Browser – G-Whizz!”?
Thanks.
It’s blue with a lower-case “g” on it. It is NOT the g-whizz app.
Thanks. According to the site you mentioned above (https://sites.google.com/site/gappsforipad/docs), the “g” app as you call it is the Google Search app. “Google Docs can also be accessed from the Google Search app, although it is merely a shortcut to Safari-based Google Docs. ”
Just to clarify, are you essentially using Google docs in Safari on the iPads? It sounds like you (and my school) have found that to be a bit problematic.
I found this app in some searches tonight (http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/perfect-web-browser-extraordinary/id373916467?mt=8). I wonder if putting this in Chrome mode would provide a better experience in Google Docs? The app retails for $3.99.
According to the author, this app does the following (along with many other features including faster browsing and full screen browsing options):
✔ DESKTOP WEB BROWSER RENDERING
Perfect Browser can spoof user agent and render web pages like the target browser of your choice: Chrome, Opera, Safari, Firefox or IE. Websites show up as if you were surfing from that browser.
Great article and discussion! I am a former teacher and a current grad student. I can’t understand why any school district would invest in iPads – on top of being expensive, they are certainly not productivity tools. I own an Asus Transformer Prime, and while it has better multitasking and Google apps integration than the iPad, it is still not a productivity device. Right now, at least, tablets seem like a waste of money for schools (with the possible exception of interventions in special ed).
I use an Acer Aspire One every day at university, and it works great. I certainly prefer it over a tablet for writing, working on spreadsheets and presentations, and light image editing (e.g., paint.net). It was $199 brand new and runs Windows 7 fine. I’m dual-booting Ubuntu as well, but W7 consistently outperforms it. Of course it wouldn’t be good for PS or other programs like that, but it’s still more powerful and flexible than an iPad – an insanely more cost effective. I look forward to hearing how everything works out for you!
Absolutely.
In fact, I just created a video showing just how much of a WASTE OF MONEY iPads are — to be precise, if all K-12 schools were to adopt them for 1:1 programs, we would be wasting $3-6 BILLION PER YEAR just for a shiny apple logo (because, even if you want a tablet, you could get an Android one at half the price that provides the same benefits.) [see my video "Just Say NO to iPad for Education, Part 5: Apple Products Break Budgets"]
Just another of public taxpayer dollars being funneled into private corporate pockets.
But aside from that point, they are NOT productivity devices, they were not DESIGNED to be productivity devices. People keep trying to mold them into something they are not. They find workarounds and force-efforts to “make it work” instead of simply finding the right tool for the job.
I can’t fault people for liking these features:
(a) Built-in camera
(b) Touch-screen (especially for drawing/writing, and music, etc.)
But these are not new, not novel, and not exclusive to iPads. My 8 year old Toshiba Portege tablet PC was GREAT for writing and drawing — even better than these capacitive tablets, since it used the special stylus instead of finger.
Additionally, all we have to do is look for what people are using IN THE REAL WORLD. Yes, some companies are supplementing computers with tablets. Tablets serve certain needs in certain situations. But if you go to Monster.com and do a search for “iPad” or “tablet”, NOT A SINGLE JOB shows up looking for that skill (unless they are for app developer/programmer positions — which use a REAL computer to do the work!)
Yet if you search for “keyboarding” or “typing” and “Microsoft Office” — thousands of jobs are listed. The fact of the matter is that we are doing a serious disservice to our students by focusing on “project-based learning” which is not actually PBL at all because it’s not relevant to real-world skills. Making comic books and taking digital photos on the iPad may be fun, may be engaging, and may even help learning… but it is not PBL because PBL is designed to enforce skills students will use in careers.
PS. I use a class set of Acer Aspire Ones that were only $250. They do everything we need, and my students continue to create amazing products. Thanks to their CAD designs in SketchUp, a group of my girls just won first place in the Smithsonian/ePals international invention contest. It wouldn’t have been possible to do using iPads. Two years ago we won first place in video entries from California, Oregon, and Washington for a Pollution Prevention video contest, and as a result we were recognized by the state of California and had a Skype conference with actor and environmental activist Ed Begley, Jr. This was done using video editing and Flash animation — we couldn’t do it on iPads.
I also completely developed a speech-recognition e-book application and wrote a 150-page MS thesis on an Acer Aspire One.
I own both the Chromebook and and iPad2.
The Chromebook is great and the idea is very good too but the hardware and processor let it down, if it was an i3 or above it would be a no brainer, also the offline docs and a few more offline apps would make it the best, working on the train from Lancaster to London is a nightmare, so I now have reverted back to my 15 inch MacBook Pro.
as for the iPad, as great as it is, it only really shines in media consumption, not creation, however, if you had the same app on the Chromebook as the i\pad, the children would find the iPad less laggy and more engaging in my opinion because touching what you are interacting with gives much nicer feedback.
If Chromebooks are to take off properly, they need much better offline support and a much better trackpad and processor to handle some graphics work and having multiple tabs open.
Yours,
Stuart (Chromebook and iPad owner)
Stuart,
Its interesting that you describe the iPad as more of a consumption device. In my experience so far I see our students creating quite a bit of content on their iPads, especially multimedia projects, using apps like Sonic Pics, Creative Book Builder, and iMovie. I agree that the Chromebook needs more offline support.
Joe
A little late to help, but this might be useful to others going forward:
http://www.tuaw.com/2012/03/07/apple-releases-configurator-app-for-mac/
Helps manage and configure multiple iOS devices.
Dave,
Thank you for the link to Apple Configurator. I actually have been using it since last week and its a great tool!
Joe
Kind of surprised the “iPad is the pinnacle of civilization” crowd hasn’t already put out a hit on you.
Seems like a REALLY simple solution for the problems of both systems is to just buy $500.00 laptops. There are plenty available from almost any manufacturer and you’d have connectivity, the ability to fully utilize G-apps, battery life, compatibility with flash, plenty of storage, vga out (w/out buying an adapter), CD/DVD drive and writer, and portability.
Sometimes mundane is just the best solution.
The problem with cheap laptops is management and maintenance. The beauty of an iPad or Chromebook lies in the simplicity of the OS, there really isn’t anything to break.
Chromebooks are zero maintenance (for both device maintenance and user data maintenance), and what makes zero maintanance possible (as opposed to high maintenance Windows or Apple Mac desktops/laptops, or iPads/Android tablets) is the fact that it is stateless. Stateless means no data or user settings are stored on the device. This means that backup of data, separation and preservation of user data and settings are assured no matter what you do to the device and without user action, and seamless and transparent auto updates to the device are possible without involving the user. It also means that Chromebooks are eminently shareable.
Chromebooks are like school books – you don’t need to configure or maintain them, you just open them, use them, and then close them when you are done. They are what all desktop computers should be like, but can’t be because of their design legacy.
Very true!
30,000 students and staff at Richland School District to implement browswer-based access to Windows desktops and apps.
http://www.eschoolnews.com/2011/12/06/richland-school-district-two-acquires-a-30000-user-license-of-ericom-accessnow-for-browser-based-access-to-vmware-view/
Re iPad mobile device management (MDM), has anybody tried a solution like JAMF Software’s Casper ? http://www.jamfsoftware.com/solutions/ios-management/
It provides capabilities beyond that of iTunes that ease management and deployment headaches. I have not used it personally but am currently investigating it for several client projects and would love to hear thoughts from someone who has used it. Thanks for the great article and comments. Inspired learning through technology!
I have had 40 Chromebooks since the beginning of the year and running a paperless classroom in my biology class. Additionally, I personally own an iPad, have used them in the classroom, and am familiar with both products. A few things I’ve noticed. The Chromes boot up quick and do well with multiple tabs. If you start adding pictures to google docs, creating graphs, other seemingly not overly intensive work they start to lag. Secondly, the trackpad is terrible. This is the number one complaint I get from students and one I can agree with. Finally, as long as the Chromes have a strong wifi signal, they usually work well. However, if your wifi signal is at all questionable, look at. Seriously. We had mega problems at the beginning of the year, I realize this is a problem that is not entirely due to the Chromes. We went with Chromes because of the flash issue and ability to type and make graphs. Honestly, I think I’d rather have iPads. Spend a little extra to get pages, keynote, and numbers, give every kid an icloud account and the possibilities are endless. Even better would be to give every kid an iPad and have every teacher use it for everything. These apps with Evernote, Dropbox, iMovie, and a few others could really allow students to do some amazing things, and, most importantly, use technology to enhance their learning and not just as a gimmick. My two cents.
Dan,
Thanks for your insight. It’s good to hear from someone who has used both tools. We have an access point in the teacher’s room, so wifi has not been an issue. You’re also right on about the trackpad. I hate it!
I agree with your point about giving every kid an iPad. That’s where I think iOS devices can be the most powerful – when they are really leveraged as student learning devices. I wrote about this yesterday. http://goo.gl/qgCmu
Many of the iPad issues would go away if each student had their own…and honestly they are intended to be individual devices. In education we’re trying to make them something they are not. The only part that scares me about this idea is – what apps do you install? I can imagine a core suite I would like to start with, but are those the right ones for a particular group of students? With my personal device, I find I don’t need an app until I realize a website won’t work with the iOS platform.
Joe
Yes, but is this appropriate for school provided devices. After all I would expect schools to take back and reallocate devices to other students at some time.
One other thing…
I was looking over your website. I like your seamless use of Google Docs for labs, worksheets, presentations, data collection, and calendars. I also noticed in the video that your kids are using Wordpress. So much of this is inaccessible on an iPad. That’s why in spite of the cruddy trackpad I keep coming back to the Chromebook.
I have to comment about the trackpads. I have a Chromebook (Samsung, I can’t comment on the Acer trackpad), and I don’t find it particularly problematic.
Just remember that the left and right buttons are in the respective lower corners of the trackpad and occupy fully a third of the height of it, and you’re away).
I love the drag-two-fingers to scroll pages. I saves so much navigating to the side of the screen to grab the scroll bar.
I would like to see a mains powered wired nettop version of the Chromebook which would be mounted in the standard mounting holes in the back of LCD monitors, with additional USB sockets for a mouse and keyboard, and a headphone jack.
There are some situations where a fixed desktop version of the Chromebook is desirable.
I find this article a little confusing. I am not an management informations systems expert, but can’t help but recommend that you find someone else to handle your technology issues. Flash is dead for mobile apps. Adobe is not even going to support Flash for mobile devices. The company announced at their most recent analyst meeting about two weeks ago. Secondly, the Chrome books are just dumb terminals. If that is what you really want, then so be it. The iPad is the most easiest HIGH tech product to use out of the box that I have ever purchased. My mom with no training, high school educated, and minimal computer background, took her iPad 2 out of the box and was able to register the product, etc with ZERO problems. Hmmm.. Was this article written by Google or by a true user?
CHEERS!
Kevin,
Thank you for your feedback. To answer your questions.
1. Yes, this post was written by a true user – an educator who uses both an iPad and a Chrombook.
2. The iPad is easy to use, but the model you describe with your mother illustrates an example where the iPad is being used as an individual device. When placed in schools, iPads are not being assigned to individual students. Instead, they are often in a cart and used by a different student each period. The teacher manages the devices and iTunes requires all 30 devices to be managed separately. Many of these problems would go away if each student had their own device.
3. Flash is not dead from an educator’s perspective. Adobe may no longer be supporting it, but many of the websites students need to use today still make use of Flash. I agree that when everything moves to HTML5 it will be a glorious day. We’re not there…yet.
4. The role of a teacher is to educate children. If technology management issues can be simplified by selecting a more efficient tool or outsourced to another group or company to create seamless and easy-to-use instructional tools then I am all for that. Teachers have much more important things to do than manage iPads.
Thank you for acknowledging that Flash is still a necessity in the classroom.
I have used hundreds (if not thousands) of free Flash resources with my students. This represents nearly TWENTY YEARS of development. It’s not going to change overnight.
There are many, many industries and people who don’t really need Flash. A lot of people don’t even realize what it is (they think it’s for “videos”, like on YouTube)
My co-teachers jumped on board iPads, and then were VERY disappointed to find out they couldn’t have their students access about half the education websites they were trying to use. (despite the fact that I forewarned them of this limitation)
HTML5 will quickly prove to be a replacement for things like video. However, it will not be so quick to replace interactive uses like games, tutorials, and simulations. I am a computer programmer and can tell you it is much harder to develop those in HTML5 (generally it will actually require more than HTML… actually HTML + javascript), AND it the HTML5/Javascript version will not work as smoothly and will likely be less efficient (ie. it will use more CPU/processor power, and thus will also require more powerful devices and will use more battery life than Flash would)
See this website for more info: http://themaninblue.com/writing/perspective/2010/03/22/
Interesting post. I’ve heard comments about Chromebooks on Google Educast and those guys seemed “underwhelmed.” I’m curious as to what kind of projects teachers might do with the iPads. I teach 7th grade biology. My students create websites on Weebly to showcase their inquiry lab results and research projects. I use Moodle for managing student work that is created in PPT or Word. I’m working on getting Google Apps for Ed for our school mainly for GDocs collaboration.
I’m very interested in either Netbooks or Chromebooks mainly because of the limitations iPads have with GDocs.
But I don’t want to limit myself when it comes to “thinking differently” about the student centered classroom. I have an personal iPhone and MacBook Pro, but no iPad. So I don’t really have a clear vision of how an iPad can be used in an inquiry based classroom (though I did see a video by Tony Vincent that I thought looked interesting). I’d like to have students create video projects to showcase lab results and research projects. I like that the iPad and iPods come with cameras. But the whole GDocs thing has me concerned. As well as the added costs for apps and cases mentioned in Joe’s post. But maybe I don’t really want/need GDocs? Maybe the GDocs type of research project is a paradigm I need to shift from in my own thinking?
So teachers, enlighten me! I’d love to hear about innovative ways you are using iPads with Middle and High School students.
Thanks!!!
I would first buy an iPad for yourself. Then install apps you think you would integrate into your lesson plan. Keep in mind an iPad is not like a computer. It’s all about the apps, if you can’t find an app(s) that work for your lessons then iPads are not for you.
I’d also stay away from netbooks. They are the bottom barrel of all computing technology. You will be better served with a Chromebook or a White EDU MacBook.
If your frame of reference is netbooks running Windows, I’d stay away from them too. But we’re not talking about netbooks running Windows. Chromebooks are just netbook-class machines running Linux and Chrome, which is fast and light, and explains why they are so nimble.
Check Weebly.com. it currently will not work with an iPad.
The Chromebooks’ biggest advantage from an IT management and deployment point of view, is that there is centralised, web-based control and no manual updating, no anti-virus software, and no locally-stored data to lose when you drop your chromebook. Also, they are completely fungible – anyone can use any Chromebook, log in and get their docs. And if you have visiting or new pupils, they can pick up any Chromebook, get guest access and not interfere with anyone’s documents. All already built-in!
Great post and comments. I very much enjoyed reading it. I have a classroom set of CR-48s. Yes, spoiled.
I love everything about them except for two minor things. 1. Java. There are few websites that I’d like to use but they run on Java and that is not supported in Chrome. Not a huge deal but annoying. 2. Log ins. For some reason, students have to log in with the username, click “sign on” twice and log in again. No one can tell why it is this way. I’m pretty sure it’s something in our Active Directory because I can log into my personal gmail with no problems.
The greatest parts are the batter live, the fact that they just work, and that they are automatically logged into Google Apps. I can say to docs.google.com and we can just start. Pretty cool.
One last thing, I’m an AVID teacher and I’d love to connect with you AVID teacher about technology and AVID. Please pass my email along to your AVID person.
Hey Joe, have you looked at ubermix? Less expensive, more flexible, just as management free, and it even works on the hardware you and your students already have. http://ubermix.org
Jim, I’m not totally familiar with it. I think John P mentioned it at the FallCUE Conference. I will have to check it out. Clicking around the site it looks kind of intriguing. I have to admit though, one of the things I do love about the Chromebook is that if a teacher has any issues they just ship it back to Google and have a new machine the next day. It’s almost as dreamy as when I could just plug a Macbook into the network from my classroom and have it re-image itself. Have you used Ubermix with a bring-your-own program?
The support/maintenance mechanism you describe is exactly the way we handle it. If a user has a software problem, the restart, press a key, and 20 secs later there machine is back in business. If it’s a hardware issue, send the hardware back for repair or replace, reinstall the system in 5 mins from a USB key on the replacement, and once again you’re back in business. And you can do it on a $250 device.
Difference is that this is a full operating system (based on Ubuntu) with all of the apps you could want, including Chrome. Working with webapps alone can be pretty challenging, especially those that require Java or some other plugin that Chromebooks don’t do. And rich, complex applications on the web (or iOS, for that matter) are few and far between.
Since the software pretty much works on whatever you have, it makes for an ideal solution for a BYO program, since you can install it for free and create a consistent environment that works and makes sense.
Colin Matheson from Carmel Unified just tweeted: “If you are considering 1:1 ipads netbooks chromebooks etc. check out my take on #ubermix http://goo.gl/XGNtX” Lots of good stuff there
Ubermix is good, but it loses the Cloud concept. It still stores info locally unless you’ve trained your students to use their DropBoxes, and it cannot provide centralised control over what the devices are used for.
And I forgot to mention: Google Docs offers simultaneous, collaborative document editing. This is an important facility in my classroom.
I’m with you on the power of cloud apps, but what sort of central management are you referring to that can’t be accomplished any other way? And why can’t you use all the same cloud applications to the same benefit on ubermix, along with all the other apps with Dropbox/GDocs/any other cloud storage as a backend? Seems like you’re spending more for quite a bit less capability.
Jim, I think I need to explain my context to make things clearer. My school is a boarding school and my pupils carry the devices ‘home’ at night. What they can get up to with illicit downloads, illegal movies, etc undermines our e-safety policy. I need a device that I can control even when scholars are not on the cloud. Since the Chromebook can’t run anything I don’t permit from the console, problem solved. And I don’t have to worry about another means of controlling this, so no extra software, etc.
I can do you one better with Parental Controls, and even let each parent make the decisions re their child’s access with whitelist/blacklist and time of day controls. See http://wiki.ubermix.org/page/Ubermix_Parental_Controls
I am really enjoying this debate, Jim. Its helping to crystalize all sorts of issues. I am happy with our web filtering we already use. Because these are high school kids, they are far more capable of bringing unwanted downloads into campus on portable drives or flash sticks. Chromebooks automatically limit this by (a) not having enough local storage, and (b) not having all the players and codecs, also (c) not providing an option to install players.
Actually, more useful than all of these, and in the context of comments above about difficulties with syncing iPads, the Chromebook wins this argument with its administrator control panel which allows me to install an app for all of them at once. I don’t have to gather them all up from users; the app appears when they log in.
At some point, we have to address the behavior issues as behavior issues, and not technology issues. That said, locking machines down is also quite simple to do, although I’m opposed from the perspective of student empowerment.
Remember also that you aren’t actually installing “apps”, just links to web sites. There are countless ways to do this, but if you really want to manage Chrome web browsers, you can do that on any device – you don’t need a Chromebook. See the Google Chrome for Business management tool here: http://goo.gl/Pvlo0
It would be nice if Google included a remote access tool for Linux, and in particularly K4 Linux LTSP servers many schools already use as they already do for Citrix servers. This would be a simple solution that allow Ubuntu LTSP desktop servers which are widely deployed, to be used from Chromebooks, while preserving all the advantages of Chromebooks.
The struggles we have faced with iPads really reflect the personalized/individualized nature of the device’s intended use. Our efforts to make iPads “shareable” have surfaced a number of issues – data privacy, configuration, app management, imaging, etc. – that reflect the potential need to rethink the distribution and implementation paradigm for these devices.
Observational and quantitative data from deployments at other districts seem to indicate that the highest likelihood for success with iPads involves a 1:1 approach with significant opportunity for instructors to become familiar with the device in advance through hands-on experience and professional development. After all, teachers will need to know which apps make the most sense for their students and instructional goals, and they will need to be able to manage them with limited assistance from Technology Services. Targeting a specific function, need or program – vs. a more “general use” deployment – also appears to be effective. Impact on learning and cost-benefit associated with these deployment approaches remain to be quantified, though.
I think it’s up to Apple. They need to change the way the device is managed for EDU and Enterprise. If they don’t then EDUs and Enterprise will purchase other products. Free enterprise will teach them a lesson.
Very interesting article. Ericom works with several schools who are using Chromebooks and need to enable access to Windows apps or desktops. The browser-based capability is a cost effective solution in that it doesn’t require any client software to be downloaded and maintained. We are also starting to come across schools with BYOD (Bring Your own Device) initiatives. The obvious challenges involve support of these devices (laptops, iPads, Android, etc.) and ensuring privacy. A browser-only solution ensures that no inappropriate software is downloaded, virus risk is minimized and IT does not have to support student and faculty personal devices.
Here is more info: http://www.ericom.com/html5_RDP_Chromebook
We have been looking at various desktop virtualization solutions to enable access to legacy software and client-based applications from the Chromebook. A functional tool for enabling access to these kinds of resources could make the Chromebook a viable, low-cost Windows laptop replacement – assuming that the wireless infrastructure is in place to support the devices.
Joe,
I have a CR-48 (test version of Chromebook) and love it. I’m a big proponent of using Chromebooks and web apps for a variety of reasons, most of which you detailed here.
I also just wrote an update of my Chromebook articles and referenced your article. I’d love to have you read it and share your ideas.
http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2011/11/ipads-chromebooks-on-device-apps-cloud.html
Dave
Thanks for the thoughtful writeup!
At my school district, we’ve had it with traditional laptop carts and are exploring iPads and Chromebooks. I’d love to hear more about limitations of chromebooks (i.e. there’s no way to run a program like Scratch, right?), as well as how iPads are working in the iCloud era.
Keep us posted!
In a nutshell, a Chromebook is just the Chrome web browser with a keyboard. The upside to this is that the devices instantly boot up, can access any website, and have long batter life. The downside is that you can’t install software on the devices. So, Scratch would be out. However, if you have it set up to allow students to install apps from the Chrome Web Store you may find a free web-based program that would meet your needs.
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/category/home
Additionally, if you have a Google Apps EDU implementation there are apps you can install on your domain for all students to access regardless of what piece of hardware they are using (as long as the device has a browser that can support it – so iOS devices might be out).
https://www.google.com/enterprise/marketplace/search?categoryId=25&orderBy=rating
Oh…and iCloud…I forgot that part. We experimented with it a little, but we found it was slowing down the wireless network. 35 devices and all that syncing wasn’t pretty. We plan on investigating that more in the future.
We had 10 iPads with iCloud turned on that brought our 25 meg pipe to a standstill. We have turned if off on all our iPads.
The one thing that you didn’t cover was how much functionality is removed from the Google Chromebooks if you ARE NOT a Google Apps user. iPads and Chromebooks both have their pluses and minuses when you aren’t using Google Apps across the board — and our teachers have several sites they use that require additional plug-ins in the browsers, so updating is necessary on the Chromebooks we piloted. They are nice, but we found the overall functionality as low as the iPads… neither was usable across the board and both had individual classrooms that loved them.
Very true. If your site is not using Google Apps for EDU, then a Chromebook becomes much less functional. However, I can’t imagine teaching in a district without Google Apps…regardless of the hardware.
We have Exchange 2010 and an extensive Sharepoint server farm — Google Apps would be simply duplicate and make the IT departments job a lot harder… and to be honest, the integration between Outlook, Word, Excel and Sharepoint is very easy to use and quite well done.
Interesting. We looked into Sharepoint, but as a 90% Apple environment sometimes Microsoft products don’t make it very far. We decided to start with Google Apps since it’s free and they have provided great support. Who knows though, we may need to look at Sharepoint in the future. Does it allow for simultaneous, real-time collaboration within the documents?
And, of course, you can dispense with that server farm, its attendant licencing and maintenance issues, and the IT burden…
We are a Windows/Exchange environment, as well, and have found the implementation of Google Apps for EDU to be seamless and have no detrimental impact on our existing infrastructure. Our teachers and staff continue to use Entourage and Outlook to send/receive email, schedule meetings, etc. Students use GMail.
Google Apps are available to the entire District through Google accounts that synchronize automatically, and securely with Active Directory each night. Authentication takes place within our District using SAML, so no passwords are released to external systems.
Interestingly, we are finding that staff are increasingly using Google Docs, Spreadhseets and Forms over their Microsoft counterparts due to the increased access to work content and the availability of powerful collaboration functionality. We plan to keep a close eye on the possibility of reduced licensing costs associated with a potential decrease in the number of required MS Office installs.
Yes…sites are very excited to pocket their $52 per device MS Office fee and to use it for other technology investments.
I had tested out an iPad, a Motorola Xoom tablet, and a Joli OS netbook. To be honest, the one that worked the best for me was the Motorola Xoom. I must admit I only used the iPad for 2 weeks, the Xoom for a weekend, and have been using the Joli OS netbooks with fifth graders this year. I think the Joli OS will work really well once our district figures out how to manage them and update the flash, etc. The Xoom just seemed to work…with every website. That being said, my daughter told me the Motorola Transformer is like the Xoom but it has a keyboard that you can dock it in. I am going to give that one a try one of these weekends.
Hmm…interesting. I am curious about the Android alternatives as well.
Then check out the Kuno with Curriculum Loft. Great control for teachers, allows access of digital curriculum when not connected. Fills the gap!
Just took a look at it. Very cool! How do you like it?
The Asus Transformer is a great tool. It is a 10″ Android tablet with a detachable keyboard. It runs the latest version of Android. A few really nice features beside the keyboard are two SD slots and two USB ports plus an HDMI port. With the keyboard, which is also a battery, I get 15 hours of run time. A new version is coming out this month which will have a quad core processor. http://bit.ly/spn8jg
I so agree!!!! My tech is finding the same thing and I can’t wait to forward this to him. My Chromebooks come up EVERY time in 8 secs and the students go right to work. We are on the cloud so everything is waiting. It’s not a touch screen…but the productivity is spot on!
When you walk into a classroom and see the Chromebooks in action it’s pretty impressive. I have to admit that I wasn’t completely sure about their effectiveness. They’re really just web browsers with keyboards. However, the seamless use is amazing. Prior to leaving the classroom I taught in a 1:1 Macbook school. As I watched the students quickly log on to their Chromebooks and get to work on Google Docs, wikis, and Glogs I thought…”wow…this is what I always wanted…”
As Joe describes them, Chromebooks essentially “just work”. The fact that we are a Google Apps for EDU district makes them a great tool for leveraging the benefits and function of Google’s system and the many, many third-party applications that integrate with Google Apps. I’m looking forward to working with teachers to explore ways to expand our use of Google Apps and the Chromebooks this year.
I have a classroom set of iPads with accessories, and was utterly disappointed to learn that the Google Docs experience was going to be so disappointing. As an English teacher, realtime c ollaboration with my students was the best instructional trick I had for writing instruction. There are tons of things I love about the iPad but I feel at a loss for such things. Maybe a slew of EDU tools is right around the corner.
I’m happy with Quickoffice for editing my Google Docs on my iPad. But it’s pricey!
A few of my coworkers are using Quickoffice with our Google Apps implementation on the iPads. Its price is a bit prohibitive for use with students. While it does allow you to edit your documents, the realtime collaboration is missing and I personally think this is what makes Google Docs a powerful tool.
Every day I say a little prayer that Apple will allow Google Docs to work on their devices. Scott Meech has a nice little letter to Google and Apple about Google Docs worth checking out. http://edreach.us/2011/11/07/a-letter-of-edreach-1-to-google-and-apple/
Hi,
Is the iPad pilot group using iCloud? It immediately syncs your devices without connecting to a computer. I realize this would be the free apps, etc.
Susie,
No, not yet. We’ve been experimenting with this. We’re finding it slows down the wireless network. However, this is becoming a smaller issue when compared with printing or trying to get student work off of the devices.
Joe
Great post! I was thinking about getting iPads for my science teaching lab at Memorial University of Newfoundland, and was wondering about device management. It seems like a nightmare!
Thanks! The management headache really is a problem with iTunes. It isn’t really designed to easily manage multiple devices. I keep hoping Apple will fix that. Regardless, iOS devices will still likely have their place in the technology ecology of our schools. In a science teaching lab I would be very interested to use iPod Touches as personal learning and data collection devices. They can fill the role of many tools including calculators, lab notebooks, and probeware.
I believe the new Apple Configurator app (free in the Mac App Store) is meant to help with this issue.
iTunes was never meant to manage multiple iPads. A combination of Configurator and a real Mobile Device Manager solution works fairly well.
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