IPad Classrooms a Boon or a Bane

Discuss whether Ipad classrooms are good or are bad. Use studies and statistics for support. 

Several questions ponder our mind. We have smart phones, smart TV's , smart classrooms embedded smart boards, smart printers etc. So all gadgets around us have become SMART now what about humans? Are they becoming smart along with the gadgets or is it a suck on their thinking capability as these gadgets do most of the stuff like they keep prompting , give clues and suggestions , remember our important dates and plan our schedule. Now its time to relax and enjoy life as there is one SMART gadget who does the work for us. Is this a boon or a bane? The world's best hard disk with the maximum space for storage is designed and developed by GOD totally extendable by leaps and bounds and can revive any data any time which does not need a back up too. Isn't this great? And as the saying goes " You don't use you lose" the younger generation are using less of the GOD's given hard disk and are making their gadgets SMARTER and are they becoming more dumb? But without these will life be faster?  .

Let's look into IPad classroom and discuss if it is a boon or a bane to the young generation.

iPad's a Boon to classroom training:

a)       A multifaceted device gives access to wealth of information readily available to students. There are lot of application available which enhances student knowledge. Access to information is faster, queries and search is at a great speed there by resulting in a faster output to assignments and projects.

b)      There are lot of e-books ,white papers, journals, research reports that can be loaded into the Ipad which help students a big way . They need not carry bulky books and go searching for library resources.

c)      Assignment and project submission become a lot more easier as most of the stuff is in an electronic format thereby reducing paper waste, printing of question papers, project reports etc and hence could create an environment friendly surrounding.

d)      Connect with students is higher as teachers can interact with their students make dynamic announcements by broadcasting messages , clear doubts as and when required and leave no unanswered queries at the end of the day .

e)      Students can form groups to derive solutions to their projects and discuss solutions online using applications that are available thereby presence of each member is not mandatory.

IPad a Bane

a)      To start off with a huge health hazard for young generation as they are constantly exposed to harmful rays of the device there by effecting their eyes and at an young age could land up in Repetitive Stress Injuries. The WIFI connectivity set up also emits radiation which could harm the students.

b)      While the access to information is high with an IPad students lose their creativity and thinking as information is copy /pasted . It tends to deprive the brain from being active and as a result end up being a dumb learner of a smart device.

c)      The entire charm of writing on a paper is wiped off as students most of the time learn to type thereby a personal connect is lost. Technology today has already put an end to letter writing , art and drawing as students are getting into electronic formats.

d)      Gadgets change an individual's behaviour in totality as they are aloof with their gadgets thereby not developing a bond with their fellow classmates. Expression of human behaviour has shifted from talking to each other to just broadcasting emoticons. Young generations have lost connect with parents, friends and teachers and at times do not know how to talk and communicate in a social circle.

e)      While IPad's are a boon for large source of information , the student community could also fall a prey to unwanted sites, videos which can be a huge distraction to their learning.

f)       Gadgets need connectivity and getting a reliable WIFI connectivity with good security for students in larger number is a challenge. The device which holds large data might crash thereby losing vital information.

This clearly brings out the fact that IPads are double edged sword and if used rightly for the tight set of student community and turn out to be boon or a bane. Classrooms have to be a blend of a ancient teaching methodologies where students get to experience books, papers, pens, pencils, sharing of class materials, meeting and solving problems etc along with modern technology that would be a base of a plethora of information for students to access and gain knowledge.