How can time feel as if it is moving so slow, yet events pass so quickly. It has been a little over a month since we've received our iPads, and it seems as if they've already become an indispensable part of or daily living. I can't attend a class where the majority of the Fellows are not actively exploring (parts of ) the lesson through some application or use of the iPad. They are seriously a great tool in education.
As students, we are using them in the role of clarifying concepts that are brriefly brought up in a lecture. For example, we were being presented to by Dr. LaBeau with several options that we could use to engage our students visually through on-line 'animation' programs. I found one to be particularly interesting (Animoto) and in the time that she was explaining its possible uses, I downloaded the (free) App, created an account, took pictures of our surroundings, and produced a short video (including music) of our lesson [and sent it to her before she had even finished presenting].
This does not indicate that I was not paying attention to what she was presenting, but to the contrary, I was keeping step by actually DOING what she was presenting. Perhaps not all lessons will be regarding how to use the iPad, but this concept can apply to anything being studied in class. Take a lesson on evolution for example, students can explore timelines of relevant events and the developments tha pre-ceded certain theories. For global learners, this would help to incorporate the 'bigger picture' that Darwin wasn't some guy alone on his island; that there were others that influenced him and were later influenced by him.
