I learned something new this week. Setting up a class set of iPads is a tedious and laborious task. Having spent a few days giving Larry, our elementary IT guru, assistance preparing classroom sets of iPads, I discovered that each iPad requires twenty to twenty-five minutes apiece to prepare for classroom use. 20-25 minutes - at best! Let me explain. Boxes. Each iPad comes in it's own box. Ten individually boxed iPads are housed within another box. Those boxes of ten iPads are packaged in their own larger, padded, shipping boxes. "Un-boxes-ing" iPads alone takes time. Oh - then there are the cases. Each case is in it's own box, ten cases per larger box, and two boxes per shipping box. Once "un-boxes-ed" each case has a foam inner that is removed along with two protective films that are peeled off. Here's a timelapse video with clock showing the preparing of only 30 iPad cases as quickly as possible. Updates and Restrictions We purchased our iPads prior to the iOS9 update, so all iPads need to be updated to the new operating system before we apply student-specific restrictions them and set them up for deployment. Each unboxed iPad is plugged in to a cart and that cart is connected to a computer. The computer takes 10-15 minutes to update and apply restrictions the iPads to meet our specifications. Configurations Finally, a dozen or so specific configurations need to be completed by hand to finalize each iPad for deployment. This includes typing in the unique Apple IDs for your classroom set and their passwords on each device. These final steps are done by hand on each iPad to ensure that the student user experience is the same for all and as secure as possible. Delivery iPads in large quantities are heavy and awkward. They are transported with care to the buildings, sorted by classroom, chargers are unboxed and placed in a crate with your squid cords, and then they are ready to be delivered. IT Larry has been working tirelessly on these iPads every moment he has available in between computer, projector, printer, and SMARTboard maintenance, updates, and repair at all three elementary schools. Our tech tickets, requests, and daily troubleshooting are essential needs that must be met promptly for us to teach and learn with students. They also keep Larry away from the iPads he is setting up. This IS While I have been available to help Larry as much as possible, there is only so much I can do to be helpful. I have a standing offer as an extra pair of hands to be used in any way possible to expedite the process. Ultimately, I am waiting - just like you - for everyone to have their iPads so that we can begin creating meaningful experiences for our students using our new, powerful, and capable tech tools. The set-up is an IT thing - and they are working hard to get the job done. What have I been working on? App vetting for various grade levels and the creative cart. Teacher iPad optimizing. The Integration Menu website for teachers to "order" idea and lesson from me. The eVestED Project. App exploration sessions. Personal one-on-one tech help. Weebly website assistance - and more. Rest assured, that your iPads are coming as soon as possible. I look forward to the time when all classrooms have a premium tool for exploration, documentation, collaboration, and mobile learning. By the Numbers We have over 750 student iPads in the Hastings Elementary Schools with 390 delivered in just the last two months. Here's how those number break down as he prepares the devices for student use. 750 x 20min. = 15,000min. 15,000min. ÷ 60min. = 250hrs. 250hrs ÷ 7hrs = 35.7 days. 35.7 days ÷ 5 days/work week = 7 weeks and 1 day If Larry was able to focus exclusively on iPads, it would take well over a month to get them all ready for student use. As we know, he is not working exclusively on iPads. He is meeting our IT needs in numerous ways, at four sites, for over one hundred staff members.
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Teachers are asked to do a lot.
As education practices evolve, teachers are asked to change their approaches in all areas of our profession. From academic delivery to communication and documentation to professional development, we must stay current and innovate to best meet the needs of our learners, their families, and our global community. Many aspects of this evolution, advancement, and change is out of our control. PLCs, IGDPs, cloud storage, collaborative documents, mobile devices, classroom technology, this committee, that committee, email, text, website - ah! It can all be very overwhelming - and it can be frustrating, too. If you allow it. I have seen the power of the positive mental attitude (PMA) payoff in extraordinary ways in teachers in multiple schools with multiple teaching styles. For this post, I will focus on PMA with technology, as this is the foundation of my position within our district. Let's recall that a stone wheel was a technologic wonder in our not-so-distant past. That tool, made life easier for our early ancestors. Was it a perfect solution? No, it probably failed frequently as the tool broke, got stuck, or was used inappropriately. I imagine that it was frustrating for the user when the wheel they depended upon failed when they needed to use it. To this day we have to replace, repair, and maintain the tires covering the wheels of our car if we hope to get the best out of them. Interestingly, we don't get upset with the tire or the wheel when it fails. We are frustrated with the inconvenience and personal connection we have to what happened. Immediately, we begin to problem solve and address our issue to correct it and learn. Overhead projectors were state-of-the-art several decades ago. They, too, were a tool that made life easier for our students and teachers. Was it a perfect solution? No, it probably failed frequently as the bulb burned out, power cut out, or it was used inappropriately. As an overhead user for years at the start of my teaching career, I know it was frustrating when I lost my tool in the middle of a lesson. I quickly learned who had the bulbs, requested a stock for my own room, and learned to troubleshoot my problem and maintain my overhead in good working order. I did not get upset with the overhead or bulb when it failed. I would be momentarily frustrated with the inconvenience and disruption to the flow of my lesson, but I addressed the issue and carried on professionally. Immediately, I problem-solved and learned how to do it more efficiently. Today's technology is really, truly, no different. It is a natural progression in technology and societal advancement. Wheels have led to many other advancements over the decades. Overheads led to their own advancements (LCD projectors, SmartBoards, and screen mirroring). And today's tablet technology in the classroom is poised to do the same. And it will - if we have a positive mental attitude about it. It's easy, although largely unfounded, to be upset at a tech tool when it fails. Like an airplane, millions of unseen and under-appreciated components must work in unison to deliver the experience you desire. All the parts of the device must be functioning correctly, the network must be working, the source files, servers, infrastructure, and software must all be connected, updated, and in sync for everything to work. This is important to remember when your iPad "isn't working." Chances are, your (insert your end-user tech tool here) is not the problem. There is more likely a kink in that ever-increasing length of crucial hose that connects your device with your desired source. Remember this as we introduce iPads into our classrooms, into our learning, and into our lives on a more regular basis. Like the wheel and the overhead, an iPad is a tool that depends on many other aspects of non-iPad tech to align and work simultaneously to provide that rewarding experience. In a way, that is similar to the individual relationships we have to establish and maintain with the people in our lives. The network matters, people matter, technology advances, we adapt - and we must do so with a positive mental attitude if we hope to remain effective, current, and relevant. |
AuthorAndrew G. Leiser Archives
February 2016
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