March 2006 — Features
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In iPod We Trust
David Watts, a technology specialist for the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District (CA), says, “Kids are a natural; teachers are not. You’ve got to have plenty of hands-on staff training time.” McElfish agrees: “I wasn’t aware of what iPods were capable of doing until I saw it for myself.”
In Orange County, Craven’s department offers courses for educators in the use of iPods and related technologies, and will be running a Summer Institute as well.
“They come in, learn the fundamentals of the iPod thoroughly, and do their own podcast right there in the class,” he says. “We now have at least 15 teacherstudent groups in the district that I know of regularly podcasting or in the process of beginning, and I’m certain that there are many more than that.”
Craven says that participants often say they came because they want to find a way to give their students something that they can use with their iPods to further the instruction. It’s a realistic approach to student iPod use: They’ve got them, they’re bringing them to class; let’s find a way to use them for class.
A common hindrance, however, is lack of resources. “Have enough iPods for the project,” says Craven. “Too few can really hamper your efforts. Create a pool. Loan them to the teachers so that they have something to work with.” OCDE’s loaner pool of iPods was created to support teachers who want to make a case for asking their school administration for funding. “We loan them an iPod for a couple of weeks,” says Craven, “and tell them: ‘Use it to make a couple of example projects that you can show to your administration, so that they can really see what one of these things can do in an educational setting.’ ”
Sounds like a plan, but what are the realities when confronted by the almighty dollar? The current list price for a 30GB iPod is $299; the larger 60GB version runs for $399. With an educational discount, the price drops to $269 for the 30-gig unit, with a similar discount for the larger model. Is the expense justifiable? “There are some cheaper digital voice recorders that will play MP3 files,” acknowledges Craven. “Or you could use a cassette tape recorder for field work. But where the iPod stands out is in its ease of use and in the seamless integration it offers between audio, video, photos, and text. It’s the Swiss Army knife of electronics.”
Are the extra capabilities and the convergence of different media types worth paying $20 to $50 more for an iPod? Both Craven and his boss—who approved Craven’s request for the budget to purchase OCDE’s loaner pool of 20 iPods—are sure of it. “While it may be a little more than some of the other tools,” Craven says, “it pays off in so many ways because of its versatility.
