Apple in Education

The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation for years has been working to stomp out disease in the world. It also has been installing computer systems in libraries and schools around the world.
Caught in its wake for years has been Apple Computers, Inc. But things have changed somewhat.
Apple is now considered the most powerful computer/technology company in the world (thanks largely to Steve Jobs) and in that standing, it has done some amazing things with education.
One example is its iPod Touch. The little handheld device is helping English Language Learners with their language skills at a greater clip than through traditional methods.
At Central Elementary School in Escondido, Calif., students using the iPod Touch, in a six-week period made four- to six-times the fluency gains. Normal fluency gains are anywhere from five to 10-word gains in six weeks. Students at Central were learning 40 to 60 words in the same time frame. Teachers also found that when students were able to record and — for the first time — hear themselves read, it gave them the instant feedback they hadn't had before.
One teacher noticed that students were more willing to fix their work using the iPod Touch. For example, an ELL student would read a story, then speak the story into a microphone and play it back. If they sensed errors, they would volunteer fixing it, removing any need for a teacher to say, incorrect, do it again.
And I think this pilot program is just the beginning, but I don't think Apple will own it, either. Apple is expensive. Just as I am typing this into a Lenovo brand PC, school administrators will find more inexpensive copycat devices to do the job. You don't need to buy a Ferarri to teach someone to drive. But that's ancillary. What is real is that these new, electronic tools, whatever their brand, are going to be in the classroom on a more consistent basis.