| The video conference with Elliott Soloway of Hi-CE's
Learning in the Palm of
Your Hand and the H.E.L.P. group on February 3, 2003 was a great
success. Participants came away energized by Mr. Soloway's
enthusiasm and vision of handheld computers' role in student learning.
"It's all about access," he said.
The
problem. Technology's impact on productivity and achievement has
been disappointing, and the singlemost cause for this is lack of
access. A majority of teachers have less than 1 computer in their
classrooms and 65% have access to a computer lab less than once a
week, according to a snapshotsurvey.org study. "A personal computer is
a personal computer. It was never meant to be shared with 9
kids,' he added.
The solution. If access is the
problem, handhelds are the answer, according to Soloway. The
significantly lower cost of a handheld compared to a desktop or laptop
computer puts a 1:1 computing to student ratio within reach of most
school budgets. Besides, they are truly personal--the students often
personalize them with stickers and decorations and use them to beam
notes to friends and play games.
The impact. Soloway asked ,
"Remember when it came about that children could have their own book?
It changed education." When every student has a handheld, learning
changes. Spontaneous collaboration happens with the Palms, students
are far more likely to write and rewrite, the handhelds can be used in
all all content areas. It also changes how teachers teach. Because of
their reliability, teachers don't have to deal with the tool as much
and can concentrate on the lesson. "When people say technology, they
mean 'gadget.' When I say technology, I think 'process,'" he said.
Q&A. H.E.L.P.ers engaged in a
lively discussion with Mr. Soloway during the following question and
answer period. They asked about upcoming software development, how to
get started in a 3rd grade classroom, how to manage syncing and what
compelling arguments to make to convince administrators and
colleagues. H.E.L.P.ers also offered to beta-test lesson plans that
Hi-CE is developing.
The Conference. How could we
bring together a group of educators, many new to the world of
classroom handhelds, with a leader in this field for a face-to-face,
real-time discussion when one group is in Kansas and the other is in
Michigan? A video conference over
Internet2 was the solution. Both Wichita State University and
University of Michigan, the site of Hi-CE, are Internet2 sites. WSU's
Media Resource Center and Hi-CE worked together to set up the
connection. Because of the mega-bandwidth, the quality of the video
was as good as being face-to-face. In fact, it was easy to imagine
that everyone was in the same locale. "This is exciting," said Soloway,
"to be in a room with so many Palm users."
Sharing, Learning and Reflection.
While the video conference was the centerpiece, much more occurred
during the day. H.E.L.P.ers shared their experiences with developing
and using their lesson plans integrating the handhelds. Hands-on
training in software applications (PicoMap and Quizzler) was
delivered, and we took time to reflect on what we have learned so far
from the H.E.L.P. project and how we can spread our excitement.
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