A Classroom Mobile Devices Pilot Enhanced the 5th Grade Exhibition Process

The students in Twyla Hanes's fifth grade class at The American School Foundation, A.C. in Mexico City participated in a mobile devices pilot during the months of April and May to support their preparation for the fifth grade exhibition. They worked collaboratively with sixteen iPads on loan to the classroom from Apple México for this project, seventeen iPod Touch devices, a couple of Blackberries, one iPhone 4 and one Kindle. Initially, they used their devices with all subject areas, but were most excited about their information exploration and construction of knowledge for their PYP Exhibition projects. Fun Friday, an occasional 30-minute free time for those who showed responsibility during the week with work at home and in class, allowed students time to play games and to pursue non-exhibition exploration.

They found use of mobile devices to be easier, faster and more engaging than other tools for information searching and construction, but students recognized that mobile devices could also be more distracting. They consciously practiced self-discipline to stay focused on their project tasks and they discovered that learning supported by mobile devices was more fun than traditional learning. When asked by Mrs.Hanes on the class blog whether they preferred to use MacBooks or iPads, Bessyna responded, "I sometimes prefer iPads because you can have apps and they have touch screens. The part I don't like of iPads is that you can't see Mathletics or Raz-Kids because you need Adobe Flash. In MacBooks you can't have apps. So sometimes I prefer iPads."

The larger screen on the iPads made accessing newspapers and video applications more enjoyable than the iPod Touch devices, and the daily access was a huge advantage over waiting for their reserved time with the twelve school laptops which were shared by the entire fifth grade. Students liked the portability of the smaller mobile devices. The laptops, however, were most useful for viewing Adobe Flash websites and for creating final products later in the process, like Google Sites. During the exhibition, the mobile devices provided a multimedia component to student presentations where Google Sites could be viewed, or where student-produced videos could be displayed.

This experience will prove very useful to these students who will be entering a Bring Your Own Device environment in the Middle School. The Connected Learning Community initiative which rolls out in September will certainly draw on what they have already learned from this pilot project. -- Tracy Miller, Center for Teaching Excellence Coordinator