iPad Pilot Program Prepares for Launch

In a few weeks, New Hampton School ninth graders will be receiving an iPad as part of the school's new iPad Pilot Program. There will be ample time for students to adapt to the iPad as a learning tool as they take the required Foundations of Learning class. Teachers, meanwhile, will spend the upcoming weeks in numerous training sessions with the devices.

But the summer already has been filled with work toward creating a successful program that will inform the continued integration of technology in the classroom at NHS. With the help of department heads, Director of Technology Eric LaCroix and Technology Integration Coordinator Hans Mundahl, the pilot program is being shaped in a thoughtful and creative way.

According to Mr. Mundahl, the program's philosophy is grounded in a need for New Hampton School to continue to evolve in its delivery of skills and realize its vision as a curriculum innovator.

"In an industrial model of education the teacher’s job was to impart information and knowledge," says Mr. Mundahl. "The student in turn was in charge of receiving this content and demonstrating retention. In a networked model of education, more relevant to the needs of today's 21st century learners, the teacher’s job has changed. Today the teacher must inspire and impel students toward knowledge in the context of the world around them. Facility with durable skills, rather than memory of impermanent content, will allow students to frame and address problems we don’t know about yet."

The tools for this networked model of information retrieval— shared meaning making, content creation and collaboration have never before been so important, inexpensive and portable. According to one study by the Pew Research Center,  the mobile device will be the primary connection tool to the Internet for most people in the world in under ten years. Another study suggests that learners and workers who master these tools will be at a significant advantage for finding and keeping meaningful jobs.

The School's iPad Pilot Program has laid down a clear set of goals heading into the school year. We will continue to update you about the progress of the program.

Goals
New Hampton School’s iPad Program will:

• Provide students equal access to a durable, highly functional tool
• Meet Level 1 Foundations of Learning objectives
• Improve student / teacher communication
• Improve organizational skills
• Encourage global citizenship through access to ideas, information and voices from other countries
• Facilitate a personalized teaching and learning experience
• Encourage students to explore content beyond the limits and resources of the classroom
• Reduce student backpack weight
• Share outcomes and best practices with others