Tablet PCs/laptops in physics class
COMPILATION. Tablet PCs/laptops in physics class: a distraction
Date: Sat, 28 Jun 2008
From: Penny Blue
Subject: oneNote or other e-notebooks
We have a 1 to 1 laptop (pc) program at our school. We've upgraded to Office 2007 so next year
students will have access to oneNote. I know many of you are Mac users, but if you have insights
into how to use oneNote or another type of e-notebook in class, I would love to hear them!
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Date: Sat, 28 Jun 2008
From: Matt Greenwolfe
After two years of experience as a tablet pc school, I am afraid to say that I find very few
really productive uses for them, especially compared to their negative value as a distraction to
students. The laptop or tablet pc program places an entertainment device constantly in
the hands of students. It is difficult to police this use and make certain it is purely academic, and
the policing activity sets up negative interactions with students. The combined effect is not a
good one for the culture of a school or for setting a positive, least-distractive learning
environment.
I would gladly go back to having desktop computers in my lab. In particular, I would
discourage their use as a note-taking device during class, as this gives precisely the cover
students need to surf the internet or text-message friends or check their e-mail.
With that said, there are three places I have found them useful.
1) I have students take photos of their whiteboards and post them online in the forum of my
moodle course. The students can do this themselves and it creates a record of class that goes a
long way to replacing notes.
2) All students have Logger Pro and Fathom - the data collection and data analysis programs on their own computer. I can give them test or quiz questions on data analysis and otherwise
make them more accountable for learning how to analyze the data. In practice, they can also
share files more easily, which reduces the value of this a little. But most of my students are
honest, so overall this is a positive.
3) In my AP classes, I have students write a lot of programs using VPython. (Once again, I
highly recommend Bruce Sherwood's Matter and Interactions online course at NC State, which
uses VPython and is very compatible with modeling.) Since each student has a computer with
VPython, I can give programming for homework and they can all write their own programs. In
practice, this is a small effect, as I have learned that it is still best to have them do most of the
programming in class due to novice programmers’ need for periodic help.
I also give students homework assignments online. They do them with the tablet pc and turn
them in to me online. This saves paper, but I can't see how it adds any value to their education
by making them think any differently. The more complicated and technology-dependent
process, compared to paper, is also a ready source of excuses for those students looking for them.
However, overall students prefer doing their homework this way compared to doing it on paper.
Next year, I will require the tablets to be stacked in the corner unless the students are taking
data, analyzing data or programming. In other words, during class they will use them only for
those things that they could have done with desktop computers at the lab stations anyway. Since
my school administration are cheerleaders for the tablet program, I am not sure how they will
respond, but I feel that I have to take action to maintain a positive learning environment in my
class by minimizing distraction.
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