Tablets: Which one for the classroom?

So it has been approximately a year since the ipad was available to purchase in Canada.  Our school division is currently looking at purchasing some ipads for use in the classroom as well as by administrators.

Before this occurs we must make sure that it can be supported by our tech department and that there is PD for users so that the technology is used seemlessly.

Just as I say this….the new ipad2 was released and it comes with a few different options. It is lighter and faster and it comes with a camera on the front and back of the machine.  The price is the same as the original ipad and it has a neat protective case that can be removed.  Apple has even begun to sell packages which include a cart and a bulk set of ipads for a classroom setting.

Educational applications for all grade levels can be downloaded from itunes for free or with a slight cost.  You can even load etexts onto these machines so students will not have to carry textbooks.  Students can also access the divisions wireless network and find information on the go through google and wikipedia.  They have the ability to save documents to google docs and access the material from another technological device such as a computer.

I have attached a few links to websites that I feel have information that will assist our division in making this transition over the next few years.  Please feel free to comment or send me a link to a site that has similar information.

IPAD Educational Apps

ipad in Education

ipod and iphone in Education