As per media reports, students in a Chinese school may soon carry iPads instead of books to their classrooms as the management is planning to allow the use of the gadget. The Jinling High School in Nanjing city has already allowed three students to bring iPads to their classrooms on a trial basis once their new term begins in September. The policy has been discussed extensively and will possibly be extended to all students, the management said.
The iPads can set students free from the burden of carrying school bags, said Xin Qihua, vice director of the school’s international department. It can also improve interaction between the students and teachers who can ask questions through the device and review all answers from the students immediately, said Xin.
A few weeks back, a high-profile school in Mumbai made it mandatory for the students to buy iPads for their studies. Although some parents objected to this direction yet in the coming months, with the arrival of so many economical tablets, teaching method is going to change dramatically. Only yesterday, reputed Indian computer makers – HCL Infosystems Ltd., has launched budjet tablets starting at Rs. 7,999/- and their MyEdu tab, details of which were blogged by me yesterday, is ideally suitable for education purposes.
Days of class teachers explaining their students by drawing on the class blackboards appeared to be numbered now. On the other hand, teachers as well as students have to learn the art of teaching and learning on tablets. It is a question of time when this technology takes over from conventional teaching in Indian schools and colleges.
Our HRD Minsiter is thinking in right direction to give tablets to school students in India, but unfortunately his choice is vendor does not appear to be correct. He can make his dream project successful only if he can procure tablets which are dependable and supplied by trustworthy vendor otherwise his well-intentioned plan will fail miserably.
