iPod Touch Schoolwide Implementation
There are a number of posts from individuals interested in using iPod Touches for teaching and Learning. At Culbreth Middle in Chapel Hill, NC we began a pilot this past August to place the iPod Touch in the hands of staff and students.
Our staff development for faculty to roll out the new technology centered on teacher coaches leading their groups in exploration through professional learning communities.
Our AVID students use the iPod Touch in the AVID classroom and in all other courses. They have piloted this program, using the iPod Touches daily for note taking, keeping individual agendas, translation for world languages, and accessing research through the Internet. In addition, our AVID students use many of the apps that teachers sync with these mobile devices. As student leaders, they’ve understood their responsibility to work and share this learning tool in collaborative groups.
This winter we were able to add iPod Touch labs for each of our seven interdisciplinary teams and two labs for our exploratory and resource teams. The interdisciplinary grade level iPod Touch labs are housed with each team and shared among the four content teachers (math, language arts, science, and social studies). These teachers plan together so that their students have access throughout each day. They access the internet as needed and use many apps as well.
Teacher current app favorites include: WordBook, Thesaurus, USA, Countries, Brain Tuner, Blanks, Whiteboard, CoinToss, Lose It!, Word Warp, FlipBook Lite. Of course they are using the included apps: Calendar, Calculator, Notes, Clock, YouTube throughout each day.
We held an iPod Touch Day last week with visitors from all over the state and from across the country. We even had a group from the UK come see our students and teachers in action with the iPod Touch. With almost 400 iPod Touches now in use at Culbreth, we’re happy to share what we’ve learned and what we’re learning.
Our staff development for faculty to roll out the new technology centered on teacher coaches leading their groups in exploration through professional learning communities.
Our AVID students use the iPod Touch in the AVID classroom and in all other courses. They have piloted this program, using the iPod Touches daily for note taking, keeping individual agendas, translation for world languages, and accessing research through the Internet. In addition, our AVID students use many of the apps that teachers sync with these mobile devices. As student leaders, they’ve understood their responsibility to work and share this learning tool in collaborative groups.
This winter we were able to add iPod Touch labs for each of our seven interdisciplinary teams and two labs for our exploratory and resource teams. The interdisciplinary grade level iPod Touch labs are housed with each team and shared among the four content teachers (math, language arts, science, and social studies). These teachers plan together so that their students have access throughout each day. They access the internet as needed and use many apps as well.
Teacher current app favorites include: WordBook, Thesaurus, USA, Countries, Brain Tuner, Blanks, Whiteboard, CoinToss, Lose It!, Word Warp, FlipBook Lite. Of course they are using the included apps: Calendar, Calculator, Notes, Clock, YouTube throughout each day.
We held an iPod Touch Day last week with visitors from all over the state and from across the country. We even had a group from the UK come see our students and teachers in action with the iPod Touch. With almost 400 iPod Touches now in use at Culbreth, we’re happy to share what we’ve learned and what we’re learning.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Susan Wells on
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We do have student use forms. I'll ask our tech coordinator, who is a member and has posted here, to attach some of what we're using. I'd love to see others as well.
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Permalink Reply by Brad Pascoe on
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Thanks
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Permalink Reply by Gary Symons on
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Hi Tom, I saw you were trying out Poddio. I'm the guy who developed it, and we are working on ways to make it more useful in the education arena. For example, a teacher in my town is using Poddio to record her school band, and select the parts she wants students to work on. We're adding a feature where she can send these shorter segments to all the student's email addresses all at once, right from her iPhone or iPod Touch.
We also make some mics that might be handy. A $20 mic with no gain control, and we'll be selling a high-end mic with gain control, which is actually made by Blue Microphones. Locally, you can likely get a Belkin or Macally mic, which connects to the docking port, but neither have gain. Anyhow, we're interested to see how teachers are using these programs, and what features they'd like to see. Any thoughts like that on your end?
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Permalink Reply by Tom Olson on
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Hi Gary,
I've not been on the Forum for a couple of weeks, but have had a chance to use Poddio on my Touch during that time. It's a great app, easy to use, and I'm going to show and suggest it to my language teachers. I especially like being able to upload files directly from the Touch over the network. This eliminates an issue with syncing the Touches to a Mac, then copying the sound files to the individual teachers computers. This is especially helpful for the one language teacher who has a PC, we can upload directly without having to worry or involve the Mac. I think there are many places in school where there might be interest in having a flexible recording studio in the palm of their hand. We use the Blue Snowball mics and like them, so I'd be interested in checking out the higher end mic.
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Hi Tom,
We have had band teachers using the Poddio, but we never even thought about language teachers. That's a great idea. So good, our management team would like to offer you a way to implement a trial free of charge. This is something we're doing with broadcasters as well.
We have a way of sending you a number of free Poddio applications through a coupon code. If you're interested, we could send you a couple of dozen codes by email, and these could be loaded onto your iPods. As well, for those who don't have mics, we have a very cool little microphone coming out that's only $20, much cheaper than the Belkins, Blues or Macallys.
Your language idea blew us away, as we realized you can actually create entire lessons on your students' iPods, downloading them either through the share function or sending them by email. By the way, emailing of sound files will be on the next version, which is being submitted to Apple this week. I also have a pre-production version of the Blue mic I can send out if you want to do this trial. the advantage is better sound, stereo recording, and manual gain control.
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Hi again,
I had another thought. What is not obvious on Poddio is that you can link multiple iPods together in a network, using the sharing function. You must have WiFi in your school for this to work, or there is an interesting work around I can tell you about, if you don't have WiFi.
This function allows several people to download files at the same time. To do this, go to the sharing screen as usual, and press 'Start Server'. If you want, put in a user authentication code, so everyone in the neighbourhood can't log on.
Your students then press Start Browser on their screens, select your iPod by name, and type in the authentication code if necessary. They can then select the file you want them to download, press the download button, and that's it. Gives you a very nice, easy way to send a language lesson on a mobile device.
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Permalink Reply by Derek Keenan on
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I have a feature that I would love to see, as your program is AMAZING but for one feature that I can't find elsewhere. I want to be able to actually create a podcast episode and upload to a server from any given device. What I am thinking of is having my class record their own episodes, edit and then each post an episode to our classroom podcast. Mini lessons and the like. Also, the ability to send recordings from ipod to ipod to combine would be amazing...Perhaps something the new OS can allow. Of course being able to add photos from the iphone/touch into the podcast would be fantastic too, but probably well out of possibility right now as I don't even know what that editing would look like. Would be great to have the podcasting feature though if you could figure out a server connect and RSS creation tool.
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Permalink Reply by Cory Tressler on
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Thanks for these posts. We are looking at piloting iTouch programs in a few elementary and middle school settings and these posts are quite insightful.
What age would you start an iTouch pilot program? I was thinking 3rd or 4th grade. Any thoughts?
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Cory,
We're finding the devices ideal for the middle school environment with the goal of spending more learner-centric collaborative time. Access to tools for the work students need to do, and the ability to conduct that work together in a social mobile environment, is extremely desirable for the middle student. I think the device can also be used with great success for the same purpose with upper elementary students. And in spirit of full disclosure, my 7 year old nephew is highly motivated to carry out his spelling work on the iPod Touch each week...
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Permalink Reply by Kathy Parker-Jones on
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We're using them as young as 2nd grade. So far so good!
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Third grade in KS.
Please check news article:
http://www.usd306.k12.ks.us/classroom/3rdgrade/NEW%203rd%20grade%20...
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Hi Susan,
Great initiative. We would love to know more, so please do keep us updated. In the mean time, it would be great if you can create a list of cons and pros for the Ipod touch in a classroom environment and also a list of nice to haves as we are very interested in rolling out some sort of devices to students in schools in the middle east and would like to consider ipod touch as such an option next to netbooks and regular laptops.
Thanks!
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