iPads learning tools at Lynbrook middle schools

Pens, pencils, textbooks and notepads are just a few of the essential resources that students have used over the years to gather information and communicate with classmates. But now, middle school students in Lynbrook can add another tool to that list: Apple iPads.

In January, the district purchased 60 iPads that were divided between North and South Middle schools. Two carts were also purchased to store, charge and sync the iPads to a single Mac laptop. Dr. Paul Lynch, director of communications and technology for the district, estimated the total cost of the purchase to be $45,000.

Lynch had been exploring the idea of buying tablets for students to use since November 2010 when he attended a workshop on the subject. From there, Lynch evaluated a number of tablets before ultimately choosing the iPad.

Only teachers can sign out the iPads for their classes to use, and according to Lynch both the faculty and students enjoy using them. “Kids are interacting with curriculum in an interactive way,” Lynch said, “they’re not staring at the screen. The first time I touched the thing I said, ‘this is the game changer.’”

At the request of Superintendent Dr. Santo Barbarino, Lynch, with the help of teachers, students and librarians from both schools, gave a presentation to the Board of Education on April 17, discussing how iPads are being used in the classrooms. Barbarino said he got the chance to see students at North use the iPads during a health program and was astonished. “That’s when I knew we all have to see what is happening in these classrooms and how beneficial the use of this technology is to the instructional purpose,” Barbarino said.

REAGAN Murphy, a social studies teacher at North, used the iPads as part of her lesson on the Great Depression. “We used the iPads to discover and share new and previously learned information,” Murphy said. “For the students in the class it provided them with the opportunity to use this technology that they really enjoy. The use of the iPads created an air of excitement and a willingness to learn. The speed of the equipment and the ease of use allowed for maximum time of instruction.”