The Tablet PC…. It’s all you need.
Paul Volpe PostGradCompEd, BEd(Melb)
Teacher of Information Technology & Webmaster, Xavier College, Melbourne.
Rose Elsom MInfoTechEd, PostGradCompEd, BEd(Melb)
Director of Information Technology (Education), Lauriston Girls’ School, Melbourne.
Abstract
The use of the Tablet PC enables, for the first time, the creation of a real electronic teachers ‘desk’. Imagine having access to your chronicle, student attendance, assessment results, as well as an archive of all your marked student work. Combine this with the power of user friendly electronic marking tool and a portable electronic whiteboard in a single two kilogram device, and the possibilities are endless.
What started as separate trials of a new technology at Xavier College and Lauriston Girls’ School, has unveiled a device that provides a real opportunity to move teachers into an electronic future without the sacrifice of traditional teaching methods.
Introduction
Notebook computers were a great step forward in placing powerful, portable technology, centrally managed and organized, in the hands of teachers. While the general use of email and Internet/intranet resources initially revolutionized the education program and communication within school environments, many of the fundamental tasks carried out by teachers were difficult and inconvenient to carry out utilizing the notebook. Tablet technology has finally resolved a number of these difficulties and greatly assists with both the administrative and learning component of the teacher role.
What is Tablet Technology?
Tablet technology involves the use of a stylus (pen) to write directly onto the screen of the notebook and have that writing or diagram then included as part of the electronic document. Unlike hand-helds, the Tablet PC has the full processing power and software capabilities of a notebook. In 2002 Microsoft released the Windows XP Tablet PC version and since then a number of notebook manufacturers have produced a version of the tablet.
The ‘true’ tablet consists of just a screen, no keyboard or mouse control. / Convertible tablets have a traditional laptop clamshell design with a screen that rotates 180 degrees.Background
Over the past 18 months, both Xavier College and Lauriston Girls’ School have trialed Tablet PCs in a limited manner and this provided the opportunity to explore and develop the application of the technology. These trials have utilized tablets from different manufacturers but in each case have used the convertible clamshell design. The tablets were used with a range of software, including Windows Journal, Microsoft One-Note and 2002 and 2003 versions of MS Office Professional.
Outcomes
Despite some initial skepticism by those trialing the tablet the experience has had an enormous impact on the development of curriculum, classroom teaching and the completion of administrative tasks.
Classroom Practice
Connection of the Tablet PC to a projector allows the teacher to write notes and create diagrams in a viewable format for students, while still having the flexibility of movement and interaction with the class. This overcomes the problems associated with standard whiteboard activities where the teacher has their back to the students and has to return to the front of the room to add information to the board. The wireless projector, currently in its infancy, will enhance this method of teaching even further.
Diagrams, brainstorms and notes created in this manner are also available to be saved and communicated to students in real time via the use of email and/or an intranet. The focus of the class during these activities is firmly on the concepts and ideas of the discussion, rather than taking notes. Providing the actual diagram produced on the board to students also creates visual links to concepts and memory tags to the discussion that occurred at that time.
In these ways, the Tablet PC has replaced the use of the whiteboard, photocopied notes, student note-taking and is perhaps making the electronic whiteboard redundant.
An example of Windows Journal being used to display concepts that can then
be displayed en mass via the use of a data projector.
Student Assessment
While the technology is available to submit work electronically the marking of students work in the same fashion has been problematic for teachers. Features such as ‘Track Changes’ in Word have assisted with this process however it is a time consuming task that has forced teachers into an often unnatural correction method. In addition, despite regular use of this method to correct work, students often have difficulty interpreting the assessment due to its cumbersome nature. These sorts of issues have been a major barrier on the road to the full implementation of the use of electronic assessment methods when developing curriculum and the submissions required by students within units of work.
Using the Tablet PC, work submitted electronically can be assessed using the features of traditional marking methods. A teacher can highlight sections and make comment exactly as they would on paper. Students then receive work back in an electronic form and can clearly see their teacher’s comments. This work is also in a format that cannot be edited therefore protecting the authenticity of teacher comments, often an ongoing problem in the ‘Track Changes’ method.
Example of work assessed electronically using the Tablet PC Stylus
With the submission and assessment of work electronically, comes the added feature of creating multiple copies of the assessed version. This then allows the teacher to return a copy of the work to the student, as well creating an archive of student work throughout the semester. This archive is then readily available for use in writing reports, in meetings with coordinators and pastoral care staff, and in parent teacher interviews.
Basic archive of assessed work as organized by Windows Journal
Classroom and Student Learning Record Keeping
The teacher’s record of student attendance, assessment results, unit planning and class progress is traditionally kept in a paper book or Chronicle. To all teachers, this book is of critical importance and is their sole source of information for schedule planning and writing of reports. The use of a Tablet PC combines these features, with the archive of student work and access to online school calendars and schedules, in a format that can be moved around the class for discussion with students. Used with software to record the completion of tasks within an outcomes based assessment system in real time, the Tablet PC enables quick and simple documentation of students’ progress through tasks. Although not used in the trials, commercially available software such as Curriculum Manager greatly enhances this feature.
Administration software such as Curriculum Manager shown above allows a teacher to keep an electronic
Chronicle and do away with the traditional paper based version.
Administrative Tasks
One of the most common administrative tasks carried out by teaching staff and management within the school environment is attending meetings. Traditionally, notebooks, spare chronicle pages and scrap paper are used to jot down things to remember or follow up at a later stage and over the course of a year the volume of information in this format can make finding particular items a problem. Standard laptop note-taking within a meeting environment often distracts from the meeting with the noises of keystrokes and the obstructive nature of a screen between people participating in a discussion. The Tablet PC combined with software such as Windows Journal or Microsoft One-Note, readily enables note-taking without these issues. The Tablet is not much different to a standard clipboard and notepad in size, and provides no barriers between the people within the discussion. The pen writes with very little noise and using natural note-taking effort.
Example of Note Taking in Windows Journal
An example of meeting notes in One-Note
In addition, the organizational nature of the software makes finding and locating information at a later stage an easy process. Looking up notes and discussion from previous meetings or meetings with other groups of people often involves only one or two taps of the stylus and is stored in the exact format as it was recorded initially, rather than a later interpretation.
These types of programs also take full advantage of the electronic format with the additional features of audio recording embedded within particular locations on the notes page and the import of other documents for comment. Handwritten notes taken within meetings and during design and planning time can also be converted to text for more formal communication with others.
Any document can be imported into the journal and this is of great assistance when filling in forms or for documents that require an actual signature. Where these forms are traditionally completed on paper and then photocopied for records, copies can now be filled in, signed, stored and communicated electronically with ease and with little alteration to internal procedures. Examples used within the trial include internal requisitions and purchase orders, approval of payment for invoices, completing registration forms, surveys and other standard information gathering forms.
Example of completion of standard forms electronically using Windows Journal
Once again, the Tablet enables the portable creation, storage and management of all administrative type documents and notes without forcing major changes to un-natural or inconvenient work habits. With a tablet in hand, staff can have the entire record of meetings, other notes taken, comments on documents received, forms filled in and documents signed. These records, as well as the curriculum, teaching and student work managed by educators, have an enormous potential for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the profession’s management of information.
The Tablet PC Challenges
There is no doubt that to gain maximum benefit from the Tablet PC, teachers will need substantial assistance. Critical to successful adoption of Tablet PC technology will be initial and ongoing training. Early use is time-consuming, and requires a different way of thinking compared to the traditional teaching approach. Once this mind-set is overcome, there is rapid development of new ideas and ways to utilize the features of the Tablet. Without this support and the change in approach, the machine will always be just an expensive laptop. While not critical, the use of projectors (and the future wireless projectors) as well as wireless networks, intranet curriculum resources and a reliable electronic communications system, greatly enhances the benefits of the Tablet.
Conclusion
The use of the Tablet PC enables, for the first time, the creation of a real electronic teachers ‘desk’. The tablet contains all the results of classroom activities, student records, student work and assessment, administrative documents and communications. This technology could mark the end of the sight of teachers burdened with textbooks, corrections, the chronicle, pens, whiteboard markers and dusters and photocopied notes as they head off to class or home for the evening. The Tablet PC… all you need.