Today’s post comes courtesy of Sophie Gahan, ThirdForce Ireland Content Writer
It emerged in the news this week that up to eight Irish secondary schools will be introducing e-books to reduce the “cost burdens” of textbooks this September, where iPad’s will be used for the Junior Cert. (GCSE) cycle in these schools. The first being St. Fintina’s post primary school in Longwood, Co. Meath in Ireland to equip all students with The Education Company of Ireland (Edco) e-books.
By now you might be wondering “But how could this possibly be cheaper than textbooks”? In St. Colman’s College Claremorris, County Mayo parents have been able to buy iPads for €657/£575 under a scheme offered by the school. The e-books themselves will cost €200/£175, compared with €400/£350 for textbooks. The e-books will store the pupils’ books as well as notes, “putting everything in place” according to Seamus Ryan, education officer of Meath VEC (Vocational Education Committee).
The advantages of these e-books, according to Seamus Ryan include:
- School children will no longer have to struggle with lugging around huge textbooks around in schoolbags
- Children will learn and acquire technology skills from a very young age
- Children will learn how to touch type at a very young age (an important skill nowadays)
- Information will be stored in one centralised area
- Controlled access to the internet in the classroom, to teach pupils discovery based learning.
An Irish division of Steljes, a technology distributor in the UK (responsible for the introduction of the interactive whiteboards to the Irish market) will be offering the Intel based Fizzbook Spin (tablet style laptop) with a full range of Edco e-books installed. In 2008, St. Fintina’s in Meath equipped all first year students with the Fizzbook Spin laptops.
It seems to me that Irish schools today have started investing and embracing new technologies to enhance the delivery of learning to pupils.
Well, we’ve certainly come a long way from the days where taking the big step from pencil to pen was the most exciting moment in the classroom!
Would love to hear some of the things you’ve come across that supports this growing trend …
It is interesting to see this development in Ireland. I had read of a similar scheme in Egypt by the Ministry of Communications and IT. The Minister bought 1 million i-pads for school children in the country as they began school. He had calculated that the cost of issuing them all school books every year for 7 years was far outweighed by the cost of issuing them ipads. Least to say how many more of them actually read them with the delivery mechanism being more fun and engaging. I applaud any administration supporting new learning technologies.
I agree that e books have to be the way forward for schools of the future. I am not sure, much as I am an apple fan, that i pads are the answer though. I would also be really disappointed if this delivery system was just used to deliver the same old boring text books. There needs to be a revolution in the content, as well as the delivery.
are these the i pads everyones talking about if it is its a great idea and great for the children helps them struggling having to carry the school books around all day hopefully all the schools in ireland will catch on keep up the good work exellent idea