(PDF) Tablet PCs in schools

Open Research Online The Open University’s repository of research publications and other research outputs Tablet PCs in schools: Case study report: A report for Becta by the Open University Authored Book How to cite: Twining, P.; Evans, D.; Cook, D.; Ralston, J.; Selwood, I.; Jones, A.; Underwood, J.; Dillon, G.; Scan- lon, E.; Heppell, S.; Kukulska-Hulme, A.; McAndrew, P. and Sheehy, K. (2005). Tablet PCs in schools: Case study report: A report for Becta by the Open University. Coventry, UK: Becta. For guidance on citations see FAQs. c [not recorded] Version: [not recorded] Link(s) to article on publisher’s website: http://partners.becta.org.uk/index.php?section=rh&rid=11279 Copyright and Moral Rights for the articles on this site are retained by the individual authors and/or other copy- right owners. For more information on Open Research Online’s data policy on reuse of materials please consult the policies page. oro.open.ac.uk Tablet PCs in schools Case study report A report for Becta by The Open University Tablet PCs in schools Case study report Twining, P; Evans, D; Cook, D; Ralston, J; Selwood, I; Jones, A; Underwood, J; Dillon, G and Scanlon, E with Heppell, S; Kukulska-Hulme, A; McAndrew, P and Sheehy, K Executive summary This report provides an analysis of twelve case studies involving schools in England that were using Tablet PCs. The analysis is complemented by brief individual reports describing aspects of how each of these schools was using Tablet PCs. Key findings ‘Ownership’, the use of champions and having a critical mass of staff and/or student users all seemed to be The key findings emerging from the case studies were important factors contributing to effective Tablet PC use. that Tablet PCs: • for maximum benefit, needed to be used in It was clear that the increase in ICT skills related to the amount of Tablet PC use and that, with Tablet PCs, ICT conjunction with a wireless network was much more integrated with other subject • needed to be introduced in a planned way that teaching. A timetabled class set of Tablet PCs could took full account of the school’s vision, as well as of the technical infrastructure, support and staff effectively replace an ICT suite, freeing up space and development, and day-to-day management issues enhancing the amount of ICT undertaken and the degree of integration of ICT in the curriculum. • increased the amount of ICT use and the degree of integration of ICT across the curriculum To support and extend whole-class teaching, Tablet • at some schools were used effectively to replace an PCs were used with data projectors in conjunction ICT suite and thus free up space with wireless internet access to widen the range of • increased motivation, and hence were likely to resources available to teachers and students. have a positive impact on learning outcomes In many schools there was a move towards cross- • supported moves to more independent and curricular working and/or a greater emphasis on collaborative study ‘independent research’. • used with a wireless data projector, provided a All the schools found that Tablet PCs (when they better solution than a desktop or laptop and hardwired interactive whiteboard worked) had a significant positive impact on motivation. All the schools felt that the Tablet PCs had • were seen as being more versatile than laptops, enhanced learning, although the majority thought it although the higher price of Tablet PCs relative to was too soon to be able to see this in standard similarly specified laptops was prohibitive. performance indicators. In some cases, introducing Tablet PCs had freed up other resources and extended Summary of the case studies learning beyond the confines of the school. Tablet PCs Seven primary schools and five secondary schools were seen as providing a particularly convenient (including one special school) were selected from over interface between the physical spaces where staff and 90 schools in England that were identified as using students were working and the school’s ‘virtual’ resources. Tablet PCs in late 2004. Data collection took place in Staff tended to use Tablet PCs in laptop mode, except December 2004 and early 2005. for marking or when working with children. Students Tablet PCs are a relatively new development, and none tended to use the pen, except for extended writing, of the schools had been using them for more than when they tended to use a physical keyboard. When two years. It seems likely that the practice documented using the pen for writing, students tended to use the here represents a period of transition during which onscreen keyboard or to leave their writing as digital schools were experimenting in order to find out how best ink. Few of the schools used handwriting recognition. to make full use of the potential offered by Tablet PCs. There is scope for schools to explore the potential of Both slate and ‘convertible’ Tablet PCs were in use. The handwriting recognition further, particularly in the number of machines ranged from four to over 300. light of the enhancements in the 2005 edition of the Schools varied as to whether they allocated Tablet PCs Tablet PC operating system. to staff or students, and whether the machines were shared between users or ‘owned’ by them. The There was general agreement that wireless networking resourcing levels that schools thought necessary for was essential for effective Tablet PC use. Two thirds of effective student use also varied considerably, in terms the schools thought that data projectors were also very of both the number of Tablet PCs and also the amount important. There was general agreement that a Tablet of time that individual students needed to spend using PC plus data projector with wireless connection was a Tablet PC each week. These variations seemed to be better and more cost effective than an interactive closely linked with the school’s vision for education. whiteboard or a laptop plus data projector. i Tablet PCs were almost universally seen as being more Much of the work observed could, in the researchers’ versatile than laptops, but around a third of the view, have been achieved using a laptop. However, schools considered the price differential prohibitive. schools often did not share this view. There was a There were also concerns about security issues, battery general consensus that Tablet PCs (in slate mode) life, screen size and glare, and the cost of replacing pens. were qualitatively different from laptops or other computers and that students related to them more There was general agreement that the introduction of intimately. Tablet PCs required careful planning and extra (on- site) support. Where users were already confident with There is significant scope for further evaluation of the ICT they adapted easily to using Tablet PCs, which potential of Tablet PCs to enhance learning and most people found to be very natural and intuitive. teaching. “Despite problems we are still optimistic that we will recoup on what has been a big investment –there is no going back – they are so much more mobile and the children really like them … It is always difficult to be a ‘lead school’ but we knew this and accepted it. We are still convinced that this is a better solution than laptops or an ICT suite but you need to stand by your beliefs and to persevere especially if there are unexpected problems.” Senior management team, St Peter’s ii Contents What is a Tablet PC?...............................................................................................................................................................................................................1 Analysis..............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................2 1 – Descriptions of practice.....................................................................................................................................................................................3 2 – Impact – staff.............................................................................................................................................................................................................5 3 – Impact – curriculum .............................................................................................................................................................................................6 4 – Impact – students ..................................................................................................................................................................................................8 5 – Features of Tablet PCs ......................................................................................................................................................................................10 6 – Complementary technologies...................................................................................................................................................................13 7 – Thresholds.................................................................................................................................................................................................................15 8 – Support.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................16 9 – Staff and student development................................................................................................................................................................17 10 – Comparison of mobile devices...............................................................................................................................................................18 11 – Learning spaces.................................................................................................................................................................................................19 12 – Lessons learned .................................................................................................................................................................................................20 Research conclusions................................................................................................................................................................................................22 Further research............................................................................................................................................................................................................23 The case studies.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................24 Case study index grid ...............................................................................................................................................................................................24 1 – St Mary’s RC Primary School........................................................................................................................................................................25 2 – Green Lane Infant School..............................................................................................................................................................................28 3 – St Peter’s CE (C) Primary School................................................................................................................................................................30 4 – St Willibrord’s Primary School ....................................................................................................................................................................32 5 – Engayne Primary School ................................................................................................................................................................................34 6 – St Francis RC Primary School ......................................................................................................................................................................36 7 – Wylde Green Primary School ......................................................................................................................................................................38 8 – Queensbury School ...........................................................................................................................................................................................40 9 – Invicta Grammar School.................................................................................................................................................................................42 10 – Cornwallis Technology College ..............................................................................................................................................................45 11 – The Coleshill School........................................................................................................................................................................................48 12 – Wilmslow High School..................................................................................................................................................................................50 Benchmarking of the case study schools .....................................................................................................................................52 References ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................53 What is a Tablet PC? A Tablet PC is a lightweight computer, similar to a notebook, which allows the user to interact with software using a stylus (digitiser pen) as if writing on a slate. ‘Microsoft and a number of hardware manufacturers (including Acer, Toshiba, Hewlett-Packard, Fujitsu • Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005 – an enhanced version of the operating system, released in August Siemens and RM) launched the Tablet PC in 2004 (which we refer to as ‘Tablet 2005’). November 2002. Both versions of the Tablet PC operating system The Tablet PC is a fully functional Windows XP provide handwriting recognition and are supplied portable computer that can be operated with a digital with Journal and StickyNotes, which are note-taking pen. The pen can be used to control the PC and also applications that take advantage of pen input. to ‘write’ on the screen of the device. Integrated However, Tablet 2005 provides enhanced handwriting- handwriting recognition technology enables users to recognition features including: create handwritten documents. Handwriting can be saved as an image, converted into typed text, and • more accurate word and character recognition some applications, such as Windows Journal, allow the user to save and search ‘digital ink’ documents. Tablet • an improved input panel, instantly accessible in all applications, that provides ‘real time’ conversion, PCs offer an alternative to pen and paper, with a more more input modes (such as ‘free text’ and individual natural and intuitive interface than a conventional characters), and improved facilities for correcting laptop computer. Tablets can also be easily carried mistakes in the conversion from handwriting around providing enhanced mobility and ease of use.’ to text (Becta 2004, p1) There are two basic types of Tablet PC: • handwritten annotation facilities that integrate with Office 2003. • ‘slates’, which lack keyboards, although they can be Seven of the case study schools were using the connected to a USB keyboard or docking station original Tablet operating system; three were using • ‘convertibles’, which come with an attached keyboard Tablet 2005; two were using a mixture of the two on different machines. and can be used in either slate or laptop mode. The case study index grid on Example of original Tablet PC operating system input panel p24 provides an overview of the numbers and types of Tablet PC used in the case study schools. Tablet PCs typically do not have internal floppy, CD or DVD drives or ‘legacy ports’ (such as serial ports). This applied to all of the Tablet PCs in use in the case study Examples of Tablet 2005 input panel and handwriting- schools, although many of the recognition correction facility schools had a small number of external drives and/or port adaptors for use with their Tablet PCs. Two versions of the Tablet PC operating system are available, and were in use in the case study schools: • the original Windows XP Tablet PC operating system (which we refer to as ‘the original Tablet operating system’ throughout this report), which is the same as Windows XP with the addition of functionality to support pen input 1 Analysis This report is based on 12 case studies carried out between the beginning of December 2004 and early February 2005. The case studies set out to address a number of key questions identified by the literature and projects review that was carried out by the team in late 2004 (see Sheehy et al 2005). Each case study involved the same basic design, which It is worth highlighting a number of factors to bear in included: mind when reading this report. • a questionnaire completed by the ICT co-ordinator Firstly, the longest that any of the schools had owned and followed by an interview Tablet PCs was two years. One school had received all of its Tablet PCs only a matter of weeks before the • an interview with a member of the senior data collection took place, though the school had management team (SMT) been planning and trialling their implementation for • separate observations of two key users, who were considerably longer. Many of the schools felt that they then interviewed had not had enough time to experiment with their Tablet PCs and were still exploring how to use them • portfolios illustrating how Tablet PCs were used, most effectively. It may well be that the practice compiled by the two key users documented here represents a period of transition • logs of Tablet PC use over a two-week period, from the use of traditional desktop and/or laptop PCs compiled by the two key users to the exploitation of the full potential offered by Tablet PCs. • further interviews with the two key users to follow up on the portfolios and usage logs. Secondly, in around half of the case studies the introduction of Tablet PCs was accompanied by the In practice, there were inevitably minor variations to simultaneous introduction of wireless networking the data collection across the case studies to take into and/or servers. The extent to which any issues or account the local context. In all cases the data changes were due to the Tablet PCs, to the other collection allowed the same set of key questions to be changes in ICT infrastructure and/or to an interaction addressed. between the various systems was therefore not always clear. Thirdly, in all the case studies the introduction of the Tablet PCs meant an increase in the level of ICT ‘Even though we’ve had the Tablets for two years we are still provision. Furthermore, their introduction often learning and experimenting with them; there’s very little represented a school’s first move into using mobile technologies. Thus, many of the issues and changes guidance out there on the best way to use them.’ identified in the data may be due to an increase in the Field notes, Queensbury overall level of ICT use and/or in the provision of mobile technologies in general rather than to Tablet PCs specifically. ‘As the initial level of ICT skills for some staff “People want to do more things now: we was very low, their first step was to engage are getting to the stage where children can them through administration, planning and a access material from central resources on limited range of teaching activities. This has the server… getting this in place takes time.” proved very successful and they are now Teacher, St Peter’s extending all aspects of Tablet PC use to take full advantage of their potential. We’d need to wait a year I think to see the real impact of this.’ Field notes, Wilmslow 2 1 Descriptions of practice The case study overviews (pp24–51) provide a rich picture of different ways in which Tablet PCs were used in the 12 case study schools. The case study index grid on p24 gives an overview of some of the key differences between the schools. In this section we highlight a number of different dimensions that were evident in the case study schools. Tablet PCs are typically described as either slates or In two cases where there were only a few Tablet PCs, convertibles. Convertibles include an integral keyboard one or more of these was allocated to an individual which you twist to convert the Tablet PC into slate child on a long-term basis, as part of support for a mode, and which in some cases you can totally particular learning difficulty. Half the case study remove. Four of the case study schools used schools kept at least some of their Tablet PCs as sets, convertible-style Tablet PCs. The remaining eight often on mobile charging trolleys, which were then provided slate-style Tablet PCs for their students. Two timetabled for use by specific classes and/or were of the secondary schools in this latter group also bookable. These sets varied in size from 4 to 30 provided convertible-style Tablet PCs for their staff. machines, with 14 or 15 being the most common Where slate-style Tablet PCs were used, external (three cases). In one secondary school, Tablet PCs (with keyboards and/or docking stations were sometimes associated data-projection equipment) were allocated also available. to specific classrooms. In another secondary school, Tablet PCs (with associated data-projection The number of Tablet PCs in each of the case study equipment) were allocated to all staff in one schools varied from 4 to over 300. The way in which department. In a third secondary school, class sets Tablet PCs were organised varied across two key were allocated to specific subject areas. Two dimensions: to whom they were allocated; and secondary schools and one primary school allocated whether they were shared or ‘owned’. There was no each child in one or more classes their own Tablet PC clear pattern to the way in which the Tablet PCs were for a prolonged period (at least one year). In these organised based on the number of machines available. latter cases, teachers were also allocated their own Tablet PCs. This either meant one teacher (in the primary school this was the class teacher, who also had her own laptop) or most teachers in the school (in “Staff are making more effective use of electronic resources for both secondary schools). In another primary school planning and delivery of lessons. They are using the network to most of the staff were provided with a Tablet PC as transfer files and use the Tablets to record notes at staff meetings, their main computer. Most of the schools used their Tablet PCs with data projectors. thus reducing the amount of paper produced and carried.” ICT consultant, Engayne Tablet PCs were being organised and managed Where students had ownership of a Tablet PC in many different ways, which depended more the Tablet PCs were in use for more of the on the ‘vision’ underpinning their use rather time than when Tablet PCs were shared than on the number of machines available. between classes. Students quickly learned how to operate the features specific to Where staff had ownership of a Tablet PC they the Tablet PC, building upon their existing were using them for administration, ICT skills. preparation, teaching and their own professional development. Staff use often involved whole-class teaching, using the Tablet PC in conjunction with a data projector. 3 1 Advantages of ownership Why did schools buy Tablet PCs? Where staff and students ‘owned’ Tablet PCs, there Five of the case study schools indicated that they had seemed to be clear evidence that the impact was obtained Tablet PCs as part of a project that they were greater than when the equipment was being shared. involved in. The remaining schools highlighted specific This seems to have related to both the actual amount features of Tablet PCs which had led them to invest in of time that was available for experimenting with the them. The most commonly mentioned feature of Tablet PCs and also the ‘convenience’ factor. Where Tablet PCs was their mobility (four cases), which was staff were not allocated their own Tablet PC, they often seen as being greater than that of a laptop. Another had ownership of either a laptop or a PC at home, and school specifically mentioned the need to save space this reduced their use of a shared staff Tablet PC. by replacing their ICT suite with Tablet PCs. Two Where students were sharing a Tablet PC, the amount schools chose Tablet PCs because they represented of time they spent using it was significantly less (often the cutting edge of PC technology and the schools around 10% of the available time) than in those cases were keen to buy equipment that would not become where the students ‘owned’ a Tablet PC (where obsolete too rapidly. Two schools mentioned the estimates of use varied from 25% to 75% of the potential that they saw in the Tablet PC’s pen available time). It appeared that in most of the schools interface. where the Tablet PCs were shared, these were not in use for much of the time, either because they had not What surprises did they have on been booked or because significant sections of the lessons where they were scheduled to be used introducing Tablet PCs? involved whole-class teaching. In one observation of a The practical issues of introducing Tablet PCs literacy lesson, for example, the Tablet PCs were used surprised most of the schools. In some cases there for less than a third of the lesson time – and much of were considerable technical problems, though these that use involved switching them on and locating the may often have been to do with the simultaneous materials that the children were supposed to be using. introduction of new servers and/or wireless In contrast, in two schools where children owned their networking. Tablet PCs they used them for taking handwritten notes during whole-class sessions. This apparent All the schools where pupils had ownership of the difference may have been due to a range of factors, Tablet PCs commented on the children’s ability to including the phase of education, but ownership of come to grips with them, in terms of the speed with the Tablet PCs did seem to be important in that it which they learned to use them and/or the increased familiarity and confidence, and children did imaginative ways in which they were using them. not have to worry about printing out their notes or Even where the Tablet PCs were shared, there was saving them to a network in order to retain them. considerable agreement that the children (and staff ) learned to use them quickly, building upon their existing ICT skills. Many of the schools commented that they were now teaching ICT skills in context rather than as “Tablet PCs had enough of a future model about them but were discrete ICT lessons, and that the general level of ICT competence had increased. However, nearly all the not too far ahead, remaining compatible with the existing ICT schools indicated that they needed more time to find knowledge of staff and pupils … Laptops are dominated by out how to take full advantage of Tablet PCs. keyboard-using skills and the stylus input of the Tablet PCs offered All the schools seemed to be enthusiastic about more intuitive potential.” increasing the use of Tablet PCs in the future, though SMT, Engayne several were uncertain whether they could justify the additional cost of Tablet PCs compared with laptops of similar specification. 4 2 Impact – staff We explored the extent to which staff were using Tablet PCs for management (strategic planning and performance management, for instance), administration (such as registration), planning, preparation, teaching, marking, record keeping, communication (with colleagues, students or parents) or in other ways. Of the five schools in which staff had ownership of Tablet PCs, four used their Tablet PCs for most aspects “I feel more professional. I’m not only of their work. In at least one case this included taking handwritten notes in staff meetings, as well as other improving my knowledge but going into administrative tasks. The staff in one of these four class with PowerPoint presentations. It [the schools did not use their Tablet PCs for marking. In the Tablet PC] adds quality and can make me fifth ‘staff ownership’ school the teacher also had her own laptop, which she tended to use instead of her more efficient.” Tablet PC, except for marking which she did on the Teacher, Wilmslow Tablet PC. Communication via ICT with parents was uncommon in all the case study schools. Where staff did not have ownership of a Tablet PC, problem. Where this was the case, teachers tended to they tended to have ownership of a laptop, which prepare their lessons on another computer or, in one they used for most aspects of their work. In these case, on the Tablet PC in school during planning, cases, Tablet PC use was limited to preparation and preparation and assessment time. teaching (which often included marking work on the children’s Tablet PCs). Preparation often only meant Using the Tablet PC for teaching either meant initial familiarisation with the Tablet PC and copying supporting the children’s use of the Tablet PCs and/or resources from their own computer (using a memory using a Tablet PC with a data projector (for more on stick or over the local area network, for instance) onto this, see 6 – Complementary technologies, p13). Many the Tablet PC for use in the lesson. In a number of of the schools indicated that using Tablet PCs in their schools the Tablet PCs were configured so that they teaching had had an impact on their pedagogy, worked with the school network but could not be resulting in more independent work, often based used at home, which staff commented on as being a around research using the internet (see also 3 – Impact – curriculum, p6). Where staff were using the Tablet PCs extensively, they “Tablets have renewed my enthusiasm for topics – they offer new often reported that their own ICT skills had increased considerably. However, in at least one case this was clearly exciting approaches. I have begun to consider Tablets as a matter more to do with the amount of time they were spending of course when lesson planning. They offer another dimension using ICT than the fact that they were using Tablet PCs which embraces different learning styles.” per se. Indeed it was predominantly the case that staff reported using Tablet PCs outside class time as if they Deputy Head, St Mary’s were laptops, except when marking children’s work (when they tended to use handwritten annotations). Staff ownership seemed to be a very important All the case study schools reported using the determinant of the level of impact that Tablet Tablet PCs for teaching, which often meant PCs had on staff usage. Where staff were using them in conjunction with a data making more extensive use of Tablet PCs – projector. Where sets of Tablet PCs were even where this was limited to teaching time – available for student use, teachers often their ICT confidence and competence noted planning for their use, though this increased. normally did not involve the teacher in using a Tablet PC as part of the planning or preparation process (except where the teacher had ownership of a Tablet PC). 5 3 Impact – curriculum We examined the impact of Tablet PCs on the curriculum (what was ‘taught’ and how it was ‘taught’) using part of the Computer Practice Framework (Twining 2002), which identifies three different possible levels of impact: • Support – increasing efficiency without changing the curriculum • Extend – the curriculum is changed, but this could have been achieved without Tablet PCs • Transform – the curriculum is changed, and this could not have been achieved without Tablet PCs. Support and Extend The field researchers noted that most of the work that ‘Their size and portability means they they observed or had described to them could, in their can be used by the whole class in a view, have been achieved using standard laptops. It normal classroom, and this means they was often the case that the same software was used can support and extend teaching and on the Tablet PCs as on other computers in the school. Unpacking the relative importance of Tablet PCs learning anywhere.’ compared with other aspects of a school’s ICT Field notes, Wylde Green infrastructure – or indeed compared with the results that might have been achieved using a similar number of laptops – is difficult, if not impossible. It may also be unhelpful, as it is likely that the impacts on the curriculum that were identified are the result of “The pen technology allows for very direct a combination of factors, with the Tablet PCs being part of the whole. There may also be ‘subtle features’ of cursor use with direct hand/eye co- Tablet PCs which have a significant impact (see also 5 ordination and doesn’t rely on a remote – Features of Tablet PCs, p10). What is clear is that the cursor/eye co-ordination. This must have Tablet PCs were felt by all the case study schools to be an impact on the way in which the pupils having a positive impact on the curriculum. remember what they are writing/doing.” There were many examples of using the Tablet PC – often in conjunction with a data projector – to Project co-ordinator, Cornwallis support and extend whole-class teaching (see also 6 – Complementary technologies, p13). The technology increased the pace of such lessons and the quality of the content being examined, but reported in several cases as altering the dynamic of a often without any impact on the subject matter being session, making it more flexible, spontaneous and at studied. When used in conjunction with the internet, times opportunistic. For example, it enabled staff and Tablet PCs clearly extended the range of resources students to refer back to previous lessons and/or to that students and teachers had access to. A Tablet PC save multiple versions of their work so that they could plus local area network and internet access were examine how it had changed over time. Tablet PCs were being used in ways that In a smaller number of cases, Tablet PCs supported, extended and transformed the were seen as transforming the curriculum, curriculum. The pace of lessons was improved, particularly where students had ownership as was the richness and variety of the of the technology, or where Tablet PCs were content examined. being used to extend learning outside the formal classroom context. In most schools, Tablet PC use led to more cross-curricular work, in terms of integrating ICT in other subjects and/or moving to more multi-disciplinary or ‘topic’ types of activity, that often involved more ‘independent’ research and collaborative work. 6 3 Many people regarded the pen as a more intuitive and Transform direct physical interface with the PC compared with a mouse and keyboard (or touch-pad on a laptop). This The use of the pen input, which is a key feature of was seen as making certain software more accessible, Tablet PCs, often indicated when a change was particularly where it involved selecting moving items transformational (that is, making changes that could on the screen. One specific example of this was using not have been achieved without Tablet PCs). Examples Wordshark, which the children found almost of this included: impossible with a standard laptop touch-pad, • one child who had poor motor control was able to yet very easy with the Tablet PC pen. use the handwriting-recognition facility of the Tablet PC to record her work, thus providing her Several schools commented on how the Tablet PCs with access to the curriculum from which she had changed what the children were learning, though would otherwise have been excluded this often appeared to have more to do with the fact that they were using new software than that they • art work in several schools, where the use of the were using Tablet PCs. For example, one school used pen was clearly seen as changing the dynamic and Kar2ouche for the first time on Tablet PCs and felt that providing a qualitatively different experience, even this had significantly altered the nature and content of when using ‘standard’ painting and drawing the sessions. packages One field researcher described how the Tablet PCs • in several of the case study schools, adding appeared to have ‘revitalised the teachers’, increasing handwritten notes to work in Journal or OneNote their motivation in general and their enthusiasm for and using Tablet 2005’s annotation facility in Office integrating ICT into the curriculum in particular. Many 2003 appeared to change qualitatively both the of the schools commented on the way in which the process of note taking in class and the process of teaching of ICT had become an integral part of their marking work teaching, in one case ‘doing away with the need for discrete ICT lessons’. • in one school the children created animations to illustrate and explain scientific process in a way In four of the six primary schools, the teachers that the field researcher felt they would not have reported that using the Tablet PCs had led to a move been able to do using a standard laptop or PC. back towards cross-curricular work, which in at least One field researcher described the way in which the one case was accompanied by a loosening of the children’s own Tablet PCs were used in conjunction timetable and a move away from the constraints of with a data projector to develop ‘corporate note the literacy and numeracy hours. There was evidence taking’: children’s individual notes were shared by in many of the schools of a greater emphasis on connecting their Tablet PC to the data projector, in ‘independent research’ and on collaborative work, with order to move towards a record that represented a children asking questions, locating information, class consensus. evaluating that information and then re-presenting it in different ways (often using multimedia). In another school, the use of the Tablet PC had extended outside the classroom and was seen as changing the nature of field trips. In yet another, the mobility of the Tablet PCs had also helped to transform aspects of the PE curriculum, changing the “For some teachers it has been transformational. For some way that teachers and pupils interacted with data and students, it has completely changed the way they do things. allowing sports analysis to be integrated into practical sessions rather than being restricted to formal Others find the technological challenges more difficult and classroom lessons. therefore I would say it hinders their learning.” Deputy Head, Invicta 7 4 Impact – students We explored which students were using Tablet PCs, when and where they used them and what impact, if any, the Tablet PCs were having on students’ learning (including motivation, access to the curriculum, learning outcomes, learning approaches and so on). Which students were using the Tablet Children who shared access to the Tablet PCs used PCs and where did they use them? them for some lessons, often on a regular timetabled basis. This applied to one secondary school and six In two of the secondary schools where one Tablet PC primary schools. In one of these primary schools, the was allocated to the classroom or teacher, direct Tablet PCs tended to be used by children who were student use of the Tablet PCs was quite limited. In one withdrawn from the classroom for additional support case the Tablet PC was sometimes passed around and/or extension activities. during whole-class presentations (using wireless data projection). In the other school, students entered and In most of the case study schools the Tablet PCs were analysed data (including video) on their own used across all subject areas, though different year performance as part of a circuit of activities. groups often used them for different subjects. In the primary schools this was often as part of a cross- In one school, where some Tablet PCs had been curricular research activity. Two schools specifically allocated to specific individuals as part of their SEN provision, those children used the Tablet PCs across all used the Tablet PCs to teach ICT, though one of these of their lessons and at home. This model of use was schools integrated this with maths, science and also in evidence in the two secondary schools where literacy work. Another primary school specifically said all the children in a class or year group had their own that they did not use the Tablet PCs to teach discrete Tablet PC. Many of the children (around 80% in one of ICT, preferring to integrate it across the curriculum. these schools) chose not to take their Tablet PC home regularly. The other school in which all of one class had It was clear both from the interviews and observations their own Tablet PC (a primary school) did not allow in all of the schools that using the Tablet PCs had a the children to take them home. In contrast to this, one substantial impact on students’ motivation. Two of the school had allocated most of its Tablet PCs to targeted schools commented that motivation increased when individuals as part of a literacy project for half a term, the technology worked, but could decrease when the and these children had kept their Tablet PCs at home, technology did not work. All the other schools were only bringing them in to school once or twice a week. very clear about the positive impact of the Tablet PCs on motivation. One school noted a drop in absences on the days when the Tablets were due to be used. Four schools also noted that the children’s “Discrete ICT is becoming a thing of the past, as staff begin to concentration and time on task increased when using the Tablet PCs. Two other schools noted that the realise the importance of embedding ICT skills into other areas of children’s behaviour improved when the Tablet PCs the curriculum. Spreadsheets are used to support the teaching of were available. One school explicitly stated that the maths, science, history, geography etc – not as cold, standalone level of motivation was greater than that when spreadsheet activities that bear no link to real-life application.” using laptops. ICT consultant, Engayne ‘It’s early days and it remains to be seen what “What happens in the different locations has impact they will have on progress – there is an become less rigid. The Tablets have enabled a impact on motivation and if they are more varied programme, so boredom-related motivated and enjoying learning then there is behavioural problems are lessening. a higher chance that it will affect attainment Performance/achievements may be increasing and progress.’ because of this – but it’s early days.” Field notes, St Peter’s ICT support officer, Wilmslow 8 4 All the schools seemed to think that the Tablet PCs had had an impact on learning by increasing: “There are year on year tests. On average • access to and the range and diversity of resources [in the past] the test results go up by 2 (identified by four schools) sub-levels; 60% went up by 3 levels last • learners’ independence, including choosing to do year [when the children had their own extra work outside school time (five schools) Tablet PCs].” • the variety in the lessons, which often meant Teacher, St Francis making lessons more interactive and/or involving more collaborative work (five schools) • the differentiation of work to meet the full range of needs of learners (four schools). There seemed to be universal agreement that using the Tablet PCs had a positive impact on ICT competence: the greater the level of use of the Tablet PCs, the greater this impact. Evidence about the impact of the Tablet PC on learning outcomes in other curriculum areas was less clear. Four schools identified that their use had had an impact in one or more of the core curriculum areas. In three of these schools the children concerned had had ownership of their Tablet PC for at least half a term. In the fourth, the introduction of the Tablet PCs was quite recent but represented a massive whole-school effort, involving all staff (most of whom had their own Tablet PC) and all the children (who shared class sets of Tablet PCs). A fifth school thought that using the Tablet PC had probably had an impact in maths. This view was echoed by the children, who felt that the Tablet PCs helped them learn by making learning more fun and by giving them different experiences in a number of subject areas. Six of the schools felt that it was too early to say whether or not the Tablet PCs were affecting learning outcomes (other than in ICT). However, there seemed to be a general feeling that Tablet PCs were likely to have a positive impact owing to their effect on motivation, self-esteem, concentration and so on, which three of the schools explicitly mentioned. ‘In science there was no difference between students with and without Tablets last year; however the end of year exams showed that students with Tablets generally outperformed those without.’ ICT questionnaire, Cornwallis “They love the Tablet PCs. Using maths games as a whole class has motivated them to improve mental and oral numeracy skills as a starter.” ICT consultant, Engayne 9 5 Features of Tablet PCs We explored a range of ‘features’ of Tablet PCs in order to see the extent to which the features were used and what impacts they appeared to be having on practice across the case study schools. Type of Tablet PC (several schools specifically wanted to take advantage of the potential they perceived in the more immediate Eight of the schools had slate Tablet PCs, and one of and intuitive pen interface and were concerned that these also had convertibles for staff use. The other four keyboards might detract from this). schools had convertibles: three had the type with a pivot/twist design and the fourth had the sort with a Several schools reported that there were reliability keyboard that could either be pivoted/twisted or issues with early models, but all these comments removed totally. seemed to refer to slate-style machines from a single manufacturer. Five schools had the model of Tablet PC they chose for themselves. Two of these schools chose slate-type machines, while the other three chose convertibles. In Pen versus keyboard the other seven schools an external party (the LEA, Where Tablet PCs were for staff, the schools usually their ‘partner school’ or the project they were involved supplied keyboards (five schools used convertibles; in) determined the make and model of the (initial) two used slates with external keyboards; one school machines. The decision about whether to go for slates provided one staff slate-style Tablet PC without or convertibles seemed to depend on four key factors: keyboard). Where schools were providing students cost (slates were perceived as cheaper); reliability with Tablet PCs, these tended to be slates (seven (several schools thought the pivot mechanism would schools out of 10). Of these schools, five did not provide be too flimsy and the slates more robust); versatility external keyboards or docking stations for students. (convertibles offered ‘the best of both worlds’); vision Even where keyboards were available, most schools claimed that the pen was the predominant mode of use by students and by staff when using the Tablet PCs during lessons – and our observations generally “The Tablet PC is particularly useful in subjects like maths and confirmed this. Staff tended to use the keyboards outside lessons, and students used them for longer science where the use of a pen has considerable advantages over pieces of writing and to log on or enter URLs. Even a mouse. Diagrams can be annotated more easily. Templates can where keyboards were being used, the pen was be filled in which saves the students time in copying diagrams. It is usually the main means of navigation. When the Tablet PCs were being used ‘on the move’, such as in PE possible to insert whole past papers into Journal which students lessons, or being passed around as part of a whole- can then directly work on. The technology allows accelerated and class lesson, they were almost always used in slate more independent learning.” mode, with the pen as the means of input/navigation. Deputy Head, Invicta Schools tended to provide keyboards for staff Many of the schools used their Tablet PCs and slates (without keyboards) for children. for art activities and/or used the drawing Staff used the keyboards for preparation and facilities when taking notes, but used audio administration, but used their own Tablet PC in facilities less extensively. There was a lack of slate mode in the classroom. Children software that took full advantage of Tablet predominantly used pen input, even where PC features, and schools wanted more keyboards were available, except for longer (independent) advice about software. The pieces of writing. However, handwriting range of ‘negative features’ of Tablet PCs recognition was not used extensively in identified related to their screens, battery most cases. life and problems with pens. 10 5 Handwriting recognition There is a significant difference in handwriting- Talking about using handwriting recognition, recognition facilities between the original Tablet a teacher reported that “the children felt that operating system and Tablet 2005 (for more details, even the mistakes look neat” and “even when see What is a Tablet PC?, p1). Most of the case study schools did not know which version of the Tablet PC rushing it looked neat.” system they were using or what the differences were Teacher, Engayne between them. Seven of the schools were using the original Tablet operating system, three were using Tablet 2005, and two were using a mixture of the two systems on different machines. Nine of the case study schools reported little or no use Diagrams and symbols of the handwriting-recognition facility. The remaining Eight of the case study schools explicitly mentioned three schools, all of which were using the original and/or provided evidence in their portfolios of using Tablet operating system, made some use of it. In one their Tablet PCs for art activities. This included six of case this was focused on improving children’s the seven primary schools. In this context, pen input handwriting. In both the other cases it seemed to be a was seen as representing a significant advantage over matter of student choice about whether to use a other input devices, and particularly over the use of a keyboard (external or onscreen) or handwriting mouse or track pad. recognition. In two of the schools which reported little or no use, there were specific individuals who did Seven schools identified that they made some use of make extensive use of the handwriting recognition. In the ability to add diagrams and symbols to notes or one case this was a member of staff who used it when pieces of work. In three schools this use was on a course or at meetings to take notes, which she widespread. These three were all schools in which the subsequently converted to text (using Tablet 2005). In students had ownership of their Tablet PCs and made the other school, a child with motor control difficulties extensive use of them in all of their lessons. In one made extensive use of the handwriting-recognition other school, a member of staff reported making facility, and this was seen as having transformed her extensive use of diagrams and symbols in his teaching access to the curriculum – improving the quality and of maths, using a Tablet PC and data projection. quantity of her writing as well as improving her handwriting on paper (using the original Tablet Specific software operating system). Nine of the schools specifically mentioned using Journal, which is supplied with Tablet PCs. Two mentioned using OneNote. Seven schools mentioned ‘Tablets offer an extremely powerful multi-sensory learning using Office 2003, which provides (handwritten) experience, stimulating different parts of the brain. Pupils can see, annotation facilities that take advantage of pen input when used in conjunction with Tablet 2005. Several hear and touch their work as it progresses, becoming completely schools mentioned art packages, which had been absorbed and fascinated in the results of their own actions.’ adapted to take advantage of pressure-sensitive screens (and/or graphics pads). Two schools Headteacher, Green Lane (Toshiba 2004) mentioned using one or more of the Tablet PC PowerToys, which can be downloaded free of charge from Microsoft [http://www.microsoft.com/ Several schools commented that they did not use the windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/tabletpc.mspx]. handwriting recognition because it was not good The PowerToys include a range of utilities and enough. All of these schools were using the original applications that enhance and/or take advantage of Tablet operating system, and some of their specific the features of Tablet PCs such as Art Tool, Calculator, criticisms (such as that you could not tell whether a Drawing Animator, Hold Tool, Ink Screen Saver, Physics word had been recognised or not in the input panel) Illustrator, My Font Tool, Power Paint Tool, Snipping have been resolved in Tablet 2005. Tool, Music Composition, Writing Practice and a range Several of the primary schools commented that of other applications, including a collection of games. handwriting recognition was something that they Schools mentioned a wide range of other software, wanted to explore in more depth. A member of the but this all appeared to be ‘conventional’ PC software, senior management team in one school said that she and was not designed to take advantage of the was not unhappy that they had not yet made as much features of Tablet PCs. The shortage of specific use of handwriting recognition as she had expected software that takes full advantage of the features of because she did not want the Tablet PCs to be seen as Tablet PCs was raised by several schools, as was lack of ‘limited to writing things down’. access to ‘unbiased’ advice about suitable software. 11 5 Audio facilities “When you’re writing on the screen you Six of the case study schools reported making some use of the audio facilities built into their Tablet PCs. have to stop and pick it [the Tablet PC] up Half of this use involved ‘feedback’ in the sense of so you can read your writing.” having text that the children had written spoken back Student, Wylde Green to them. In two other schools the children recorded themselves speaking and/or making music. In two schools the children used the recording and playback facilities, combined with the mobility of the Tablet PCs, The Tablet PCs’ small size made it easy to incorporate to record information. For example, children kept an them into normal classrooms. Used in slate mode, they audio diary during a school trip. were seen as being very portable, which was a particular advantage when using them with a wireless Most of the use of audio facilities could have been data projector as it meant that the Tablet PC could be replicated on a desktop or laptop machine with passed to children. Schools commented on the more microphone and speakers, and running the same natural interaction between children and the software. However, the convenience of having all of computers in slate mode: children could use them on the audio facilities integrated into one mobile unit their laps, on the table or, if they were standing up, appeared to be an important facilitating factor. held in one arm. Schools identified several negative features of Tablet Other features PCs. The schools were using a mixture of 10.4” and Size and form factor were universally seen as 12.1” screens. While most schools felt the size of the important features. All but one of the schools which Tablet PCs was about right, two felt that the screen provided staff ownership of Tablet PCs chose size (12.1”) was too small. Lack of screen brightness convertible models, as they regarded the keyboard as and problems with glare were issues in half the essential for staff use. In most cases, convertible-type schools, particularly when the Tablet PCs were being machines were considered preferable as they offered used outside or where internal lighting was very maximum versatility, providing the best of both bright. Some schools felt that this was largely worlds. Nonetheless, where schools were providing overcome by the ability to angle the screen. machines for students, they tended to provide slate Most schools considered battery life too short. models. This may have been because slates are While some indicated that their Tablet PCs lasted the generally cheaper than convertibles, but in at least whole of the morning or afternoon session, most one case it was in order to ensure that students reported battery life of roughly two hours (give or utilised the features of Tablet PCs fully and did not just take 30 minutes). use them like laptops. Problems with pens were reported in several schools, either because they broke (two schools) or were lost too easily (in the case of Tablet PCs where the pen was “The size and shape of the Tablets encourage empathy with not tethered). the machine; the children ‘wrap themselves around them’.” Two schools wanted weatherproof Tablet PCs, while a ICT co-ordinator, Queensbury third had overcome this problem by using their Tablet PCs inside see-through plastic zip wallets. ‘Tablet PCs free up other school resources. … Students can use their Tablets in any classroom.’ Field notes, Invicta 12 6 Complementary technologies It was clear from the case studies that there were certain infrastructural requirements and other technologies that significantly enhanced the value of Tablet PCs and/or facilitated their effective use. We explore these here. Wireless networking projection with their Tablet PCs, in one case because the class teacher preferred to use her personal laptop Ten of the 12 case study schools were using their instead and, in the other, because there were technical Tablet PCs with a wireless network. All ten of these problems getting the Tablet PCs to work with the data schools considered that wireless networking was projector and so staff were using their laptops instead. essential and that using the Tablet PCs without it In several schools the children’s Tablet PCs were would render them ineffective. In the two cases where connected to the data projector so that everyone wireless networking was not available, the schools could share their displayed work. All of the schools were making good use of their Tablet PCs, but were had experience of using data projectors (with or aware of limitations that this imposed. The wireless without interactive whiteboards) with wired networks were used to access the internet, school connections to desktops and/or laptops. servers and printers, and to install software. A data projector plus Tablet PC was generally seen as being better and more cost effective than either a Memory sticks laptop and data projector or an interactive Memory sticks were considered essential by one of whiteboard, particularly where there was a wireless the schools which did not have a wireless network, as connection between the Tablet PC and data projector. well as by two other schools (for staff use in one of The advantages of a Tablet PC with wireless these). Nine of the case study schools used memory connection to a data projector over an interactive sticks to some degree. They were seen as a failsafe for whiteboard included that the teacher could move when there were problems with the wireless network. around the classroom rather than having to stand at In one school, children used them to share what they the front; the Tablet PC could be passed to children (in were doing with their peers. a way that would not be possible with a laptop), which caused less disruption than children coming Data projectors out to the whiteboard; everyone could see what was happening as there were no problems with shadows Eight of the case study schools thought that having on the whiteboard; and you did not have to worry so data projection with the Tablet PC was essential or much about where you positioned the whiteboard very useful. Six of the schools had experience of using (because accessing it was not an issue). One school data projection with a wireless connection to their also found the touch screen on the Tablet PC far more Tablet PCs. Only two of the schools did not use data sensitive than the interactive whiteboard. Children in one school explained why they In another school children defined a Tablet PC preferred using a Tablet PC and data projector by saying “A Tablet PC is a little interactive than the interactive whiteboard: whiteboard.” Year 3 pupil, St Peter’s “Its easier to write on than the whiteboard, nicer feel.” “Wireless operation [with the Tablet PC] was the dream option for the short time that it “There’s no big shadow on the Tablet like there worked. … Interactive whiteboards rank is on the whiteboard when you write on it.” second – they work faultlessly and are “People can’t see what you are writing on the inspirational for the children. Data projection whiteboard until you are finished cos you are and screen offer useful visual aids but lack the in the way.” magnetism of the interactive function.” Year 6 pupils, Wylde Green Headteacher, Green Lane 13 6 Other ‘peripherals’ Five schools saw a CD drive as a useful alternative means of accessing resources and/or saving work, for example when the wireless network was not working. Four schools had docking stations, although we saw them in use in only one school, which explained that they were used either when the Tablet PCs’ batteries were running low or to physically connect to the network when the wireless connection was not working. One school mentioned the importance of having stands which their (slate-style) Tablet PCs could be placed on to overcome problems with screen glare. In two other schools we saw children using pencil cases or books to achieve a similar effect. Five of the schools explicitly mentioned having charging trolleys. These seemed to be seen as essential in those schools where classes shared sets of Tablet PCs. A small number of schools used digital cameras with their Tablet PCs and felt that this added value. “Teachers can prepare lessons more easily, making use of the internet and by sharing and storing resources on the school network. Electronic resources and good software are cost effective as teachers are realising that they can find many resources on the internet thus reducing the need to purchase physical resources like reference books and posters that can easily become out of date.” ICT consultant, Engayne 14 7 Thresholds We asked schools to identify the minimum and optimum levels of resourcing for Tablet PCs to have an impact. Staff use was sufficient if being allocated to a specific individual as part of their SEN provision. There was general agreement across those schools that commented on resourcing levels for staff that staff For those schools where student ownership was not ownership was essential in order to enable preparation seen as being essential, there was general agreement and to maximise ‘familiarisation opportunities’. In that the amount of time that each student spent addition, these schools all agreed that a critical mass of using a Tablet PC needed to be enough so that they staff needed to be involved.This might mean all the staff did not to have to relearn how to use them each time. in a primary school, or all the staff in a department in a However, respondents were generally unclear about secondary school. This was seen as important not only how much time this might mean: while several so that staff could support each other and share ideas, schools thought that it would need to be at least an but also to maximise the value of shared planning, hour a week per child, others seemed to think the record keeping and other administration systems. figure should be considerably higher than this. Number of schools Student use – optimum level Minimum number of Tablet PCs schools thought Primary Secondary One primary school thought that having eight Tablet PCs were required to have an impact (including special) was best, as this would allow each child in a withdrawal 6–8 (enough for a whole group to have one each) 3 0 group working with a teaching assistant to have their own. All the other nine schools that provided Tablet PCs Enough for half the class to have one each or for for student use thought that each child having their own the whole class to use them if working in pairs 3 0 Tablet PC, when they were being used, was the ideal. Enough for the whole class to have one each (plus spares) 0 2 There was a split between those schools which thought student ownership was optimal (three Student ownership for all children in one class 1 0 secondary and one primary) and those which felt that Student ownership for all children in one year group 0 1 this was unnecessary because students could not and/or should not use them all the time (five primary). These Student use – minimum five primary schools wanted one or more class sets, though several of them also expressed a wish to have resourcing levels additional machines in order to allow for spontaneous Perhaps not surprisingly, schools’ views on the use, repairs, home use and community involvement. minimum level of resourcing generally reflected the level of resourcing that they themselves already had, except in one case where they felt that they needed “Yes, this [staff ownership] is crucial because more Tablet PCs in order to reach the minimum we have to do the lesson development in threshold for impact. The table above summarises the responses from the 10 schools that provided Tablet our own time so need to have access.” PCs for student use. Two of these schools, one primary Teacher, Coleshill and one secondary, also indicated that one Tablet PC There was general agreement that there While many of the schools found the notion needed to be enough Tablet PCs for a whole of having too much resourcing rather odd, group (which might mean a small group several of the (primary) schools said they within a class, a whole class, or a whole year would not want children working on screens group) to be able to use them at one time. for too much time “…because a variety of However, some thought students needed one approaches to learning is essential.” each during the sessions where they were Teacher, St Willibrord’s using Tablet PCs, while others considered that Student ‘ownership’ was seen as being optimal the machines could be shared between pairs in one primary and three secondary schools. of children. 15 8 Support In examining the data, it was clear that ‘support’ was a significant issue. Three distinct areas were evident: start-up issues; on-going technical support; cost issues. (We discuss training in 9 – Staff and student development, p17.) Start-up issues support, had increased considerably – though several of them also acknowledged that this was at least in Eight of the schools specifically mentioned the part due to the overall increase in the number of difficulties associated with setting up the Tablet PCs. computers. Two schools, where there were large Two of these schools identified the amount of numbers of machines and where staff and/or children planning and preparation that they had needed to do had ownership of their Tablet PCs, said that immediate before the machines were rolled out to staff and or just-in-time support was essential. Several schools students. The other six had extensive problems, most mentioned the time taken to repair or update of which were not specific to Tablet PCs and which machines as an issue, while others highlighted the appeared to relate to configuration issues, wireless need to have replacement Tablet PCs available. networking and/or connecting to servers. In several schools these problems carried on for months, and Tablet PCs do seem to have particular on-going had a serious impact on the ability to use the Tablet support issues, many of which are related to their PCs as well as on staff and student morale. mobility (and which thus may also apply to laptops). For example, two primary schools talked about the need for a teaching assistant or ICT technician to set up the equipment in the classroom. Others talked “Storage of this equipment needs careful consideration. We spent about issues of battery management. A number of about 20% of the total budget on security measures including schools commented on the unreliability of (early) lockable trolleys, shop front shutters for cupboards, Kensington Tablet PCs, although one other school thought them more robust than laptops. Several schools mentioned locks, screaming alarms for projectors and CCTV – all of this in what the cost of replacing damaged or lost pens. might be considered a relatively low-crime area. It is vital to have safe storage and effective staff training on being vigilant about Cost issues looking after the equipment. Engraving of equipment prior to Tablet PCs are more expensive to buy than laptops of distribution is necessary…” an ‘equivalent’ specification and this was a major ICT consultant, Engayne barrier to their uptake. While all the schools said they would like to extend their use of Tablet PCs, which they all seemed to feel were better than laptops, every school identified price as being an issue and, because Several schools mentioned the need to budget for the of this, four have already bought or would in future cost of software, training, security and peripherals for Tablet PCs. The last two issues seemed to be buy laptops or desktops instead. Five of the schools particularly important, because of the portability and thought that Tablet PCs were cost effective. Two desirability of the schools’Tablet PCs, and the fact that schools felt that they were not currently taking full they did not have features such as internal CD drives. advantage of the potential of Tablet PCs, but that the machines would be cost effective once they were exploiting them fully. Three others did not think that On-going support their Tablet PCs were cost effective at present. Buying Nine of the schools identified that the level of a Tablet PC and data projector was seen by many of technical support required, particularly on-site the schools as cost effective. “I’d say that Tablet PCs are 50% per Tablet more expensive to purchase and maintain – but we are now getting some returns. They are very much more cost effective as they offer a very flexible solution worth the extra money compared to laptops or desktops.” ICT team, Engayne 16 9 Staff and student development We looked at the staff and student development that had been provided in the case study schools and how easy or otherwise staff and students found using the Tablet PCs. Many of the issues raised in relation to staff Staff or students who were already confident users of development were those that would be raised in computers found using Tablet PCs intuitive and connection with any change in practice or adapted to them very rapidly. In three cases the technology: teacher(s) concerned had little or no explicit training and learned how to use the Tablet PC quite easily on • It needs to be related to the level of their own. Six of the schools commented on how competence/confidence and needs of the users quickly and easily the students learned to use the • It should focus on how to integrate the technology Tablet PCs, which they thought more intuitive than into practice, not just how to operate the software other PCs. However, training was needed on how to manage the equipment. This was particularly true • There needs to be sufficient time to practise, where the Tablet PCs were shared and routines experiment and share ideas and resources. needed to be established for issuing them, battery In many of the case study schools, the training issues management and so forth. were not related to the Tablet PCs themselves but Five schools said that staff needed more support or to how to use the school servers, local area network time to experiment in order to understand the Tablet or software. PCs’ potential. Several schools would have liked to be given examples of how other people were using them. One school mentioned the importance of “Would you buy a £250,000 Bentley and never teach the person having ‘champions’ who were given extra time to experiment and then cascade ideas to other staff. The how to drive it properly? Well the same goes for the Tablet PCs. importance of ‘champions’ was also evident in many of Effective training for staff at our school has been given a solid the other schools. Two schools identified the need for foundation by three CPD days focusing on software awareness, a critical mass of staff to be involved in using Tablet PCs, as this led to peer-to-peer support. curriculum application, the pedagogy of Tablet PCs and presentation technologies…” Teaching assistants or ICT technicians in at least four schools provided regular support to staff and students ICT consultant, Engayne in the classroom. Two schools explicitly mentioned using students (‘expert users’) to support their peers and, sometimes, staff. Staff in two other schools acknowledged learning to use the Tablet PCs ‘alongside the children’, which appeared to mean that they learned from the children. “It’s not the Tablet use itself – it’s the need to “After initial training we realised the save to the networks [the Tablet PCs were set enormous potential of using Tablets in all up so the children couldn’t save to Tablet]. You curriculum areas. … Time was needed to need to train them to save work at intervals play and explore.” and keep a check on the network connection. ICT co-ordinator, St Mary’s … I used the Tablet with the interactive ‘Intuitive for some but difficult for others, whiteboard to demonstrate – children copied especially using the pen.’ on theirs.” Field notes, Invicta Teacher, St Francis “If familiar with ICT, not much training is needed. The pen is easier than the mouse.” Teacher, Queensbury 17 10 Comparison of mobile devices Where the case study schools had experience of using laptops as well as Tablet PCs, they were asked to comment on the relative pros and cons of Tablet PCs in relation to laptops. Convertible-style Tablet PCs were seen as being more versatile than laptops – providing the best of both “It’s important to see Tablets as a different worlds. While slate-style Tablet PCs are less flexible kind of device from a laptop. … We made a than convertibles, they were recognised as having a number of advantages over laptops. These advantages deliberate decision not to provide of Tablet PCs (in slate mode) included: keyboards for students.” • taking up less space in the classroom SMT, Cornwallis • being more mobile, both in terms of being easier and quicker to pass around and also for writing ‘on the go’ • providing a ‘more natural’ way of working, both in • the lack of a CD or floppy drive, although one terms of the pen/screen interface and greater school identified this as an advantage, as it made it flexibility about the positions in which they could more difficult for students to install their own be used (on your knee, on the desk, in one arm) software (and viruses) • using a pen being more intuitive, and easier than a • and, most importantly, the cost differential – Tablet tracker pad PCs being significantly more expensive than laptops of similar specification. • being more robust (although several schools had problems with early models). Inevitably the lack of keyboard on slate-style Tablet PCs was seen as a disadvantage by some schools, while others saw it as a positive benefit, as it meant ‘The college has a specific view of teaching and learning which is that children were not ‘distracted’ by trying to type. to emphasise the role of teachers as facilitators, to encourage Most of the schools seemed to think that Tablet PCs independent learning by ‘empowering students’. The use of Tablets had more to offer than laptops. This appeared to be fits nicely into that perspective.’ related to the feeling that the Tablet-specific features such as pen input and enhanced portability combined Field notes, Cornwallis with other features such as wireless networking, and audio recording and playback, meant that they were at the very least an ‘enhanced laptop’. There was a However, a number of disadvantages of Tablet PCs general feeling that their use was qualitatively compared with laptops were also identified. These different from the use of laptops or other computers. included: This was not reflected in much of the practice that the researchers observed, but several of the schools • that screens were smaller and less easy to see explained that this was because they were just • that battery life was not as good as expected starting to understand the potential and experiment with different ways of using them. “It’s a lot easier to move around with Tablets “The machines are robust and a reasonable than laptops – I would worry more about weight and size, and this makes them ideal for sending them outside unsupervised. Laptops transporting in the children’s own bags. This is seem more fiddly, easier to damage.” important for security as the students only Teacher, St Francis have to carry one bag, and do not attract attention by carrying a bag that looks like it is designed for a laptop.” ICT co-ordinator, Queensbury 18 11 Learning spaces We explored the impact of Tablet PCs on the physical and temporal spaces within which staff and students worked – when and where learning took place and the extent to which virtual spaces were utilised. Two different types of impact on where learning took • rearranging furniture, for example to allow for place were evident. charging trolleys Firstly, there were changes in the use made of existing • increasing security such as secure cabinets spaces, which included: • adjusting lighting, for example by installing blinds • freeing up rooms which had previously been ICT and/or more flexible lighting. suites (two schools) Another school was part of a ‘Classrooms of the • using ICT in spaces where it had previously not Future’ project, which involved designing the learning been used, such as: environment from scratch, incorporating features to classrooms (Tablet PCs were used in ‘normal’ support the use of Tablet PCs. classrooms in all 12 schools, although in some cases All but two of the schools made use of wireless one or more computers had previously been located in networking to provide staff and/or students with the classrooms) access to internal school servers and the internet. Five the school field, the gym, and other spaces which of the schools specifically mentioned that they had lacked desks or other classroom furniture (five schools virtual learning environments, though in at least two explicitly stated that they used Tablet PCs in one or cases these were in the early stages of being more of these locations, and two others implied this) implemented. The Tablet PCs in conjunction with wireless networking provided an interface between • extending learning outside the school, including the physical learning spaces and the virtual ones. enhancing learning on field trips, as well as in the However, there appeared to be only three schools children’s homes (mentioned as happening in where Tablet PCs were used from outside school to three schools and desired by six others). access the school’s resources, and even in these cases Secondly, seven schools identified changes that were there was limited evidence of any significant use of needed to the design or organisation of the the Tablet PCs in this way. classrooms. These included: There was some evidence in a small number of • rewiring rooms to make power points available at schools that the Tablet PCs did affect when learning all desks or tables took place, by extending learning outside formal teaching sessions. This was linked either with the provision of homework clubs (in the case of one school with a small number of Tablet PCs) or personal “Where a pupil has a Tablet and takes it home this often impacts ownership (in the case of three schools). The Tablet PCs were also seen as loosening timetabling on the family and we find that other siblings use the Tablet in the constraints, in terms of staff not having to worry about home environment. In some cases parents use them too.” the availability of the ICT suite and, but less frequently, ICT co-ordinator, Cornwallis in moving towards a more personalised or project- based approach to learning. “There are no restrictions on time or place, ‘The Tablets have generated a spare other than special curricular activities like classroom and they support the way the swimming.” school is organised rather than controlling it Teacher, St Francis … without having been a Pathway school for access [they have lifts and hoists in the four “As a multi-site school the mobility had really level building] we couldn’t have gone for strong appeal as the Tablet PCs offered Tablets as without the lifts we couldn’t have anytime anywhere type use.” got the Tablet trolley to KS2 classes.’ SMT, Engayne Field notes, St Peter’s 19 12 Lessons learned We explored the lessons learned from using Tablet PCs and what teachers wished they had known before they started using them. The schools identified a range of unexpected positive outcomes. For example, there were generally positive views of the robustness of the Tablet PCs (other than “A teacher with limited knowledge of how to for some early models), which in at least one case use the Tablet has serious stress level increase allowed them to be inconspicuously transported to as she waits for the log on stage only to find and from school. The absence of keyboards, which the internet is down, or work completed at could be seen by many as a restriction, was in fact reported as sometimes being positive because it home hasn’t synchronised yet.” encouraged the use of Tablet-specific facilities such as Teacher, Coleshill handwriting input using the pen. The flexibility of digital ink in allowing teachers and students to add handwritten notes, pictures and diagrams to work was also seen as being very valuable. There was almost • The need for training universal agreement on the motivational aspects of This was described as essential, though it appeared Tablet PC use for pupils, with improvements in that the issue was often less to do with using Tablet concentration, self-esteem and communication skills, PCs per se and more to do with learning new software and the development of researching and recording and how to use the local area network. One school skills. The only exceptions to this appeared to be commented that three days’ training had not been related to technical obstacles, which created enough, and that it needed to be targeted better with frustration and reduced enthusiasm. input from teacher specialists. ‘The children generally found the use of the Tablet PCs easy, • The importance of confidence building In addition to providing appropriate training, adequate enjoyable and motivational.’ support and a reliable infrastructure, schools Field notes, Wylde Green suggested that it was important for teachers to build their confidence by sharing ideas and resources, or starting smaller projects to allow them to try out ideas and experiment. There was a consensus on the importance of planning to ensure best use of Tablet PCs. Issues raised were as follows. • The importance of management/security issues Several schools mentioned the need to have proper procedures and routines in place for issuing Tablet PCs • The need for the development of a good to students, tracking where they were, recharging infrastructure batteries, saving work, collecting in equipment, dealing Original purchasing decisions needed to include with repairs and so on. Schools often underestimated adequate and appropriate peripherals. The location of the time and resource necessary for this. Storage and wireless network points needed to be considered; and security need careful consideration. One school networks, servers, and Tablet PCs “need to be recommended spending 20% of the Tablet PC budget compatible, reliable and sufficiently robust” (St Peter’s). on security. “Tablets open up new ways of working. “When I was given it [the Tablet PC] I took it In particular they can encourage different home and just played with it. It was really teaching styles and support different easy to use. I was surprised how you could learning styles.” do everything on it that you can do with a ICT co-ordinator, St Mary’s real computer.” Year 11 student, Queensbury 20 12 • Reliability “Order more pens!” Once they had been successfully set up, Tablet PCs (except in the case of some early models) were ICT co-ordinator, Queensbury generally perceived as being as reliable as other mobile computers. Battery life was considered too short, and this was seen as problematic in five schools. Despite being perceived as unreliable in several • Visibility of screens schools, wireless networks were still seen as essential Two schools mentioned the need for larger screens by all ten schools which were using them. and around half mentioned problems of visibility due to lack of screen brightness and/or glare. • The need for support The importance of sorting out technical problems was • Other issues recognised. Nine schools mentioned the importance A primary school working on an outreach programme of, and increased demand for, technical support. This with its local secondary school commented on the support was regarded as particularly necessary at the positive impact of inter-school working, highlighting early stages of implementation, to avoid staff that the loan of equipment allowed the possibility of becoming discouraged when technical issues trying out equipment before purchase and extending dominated. Two schools used student ‘expert users’ help and support. both to resolve technical issues and to encourage Tablet PCs were recognised as having an impact on collaborative working. Several schools commented on practice by opening up new ways of working and, the time taken to install and/or upgrade software on when used in conjunction with the internet, allowing the Tablet PCs. access to a wider range of resources. The use of Tablet PCs was considered to have enhanced the pace of • Time lessons, but also to have led to the need for more Several schools reported insufficient time for staff to classroom support. As learning support assistants prepare resources and lessons and/or to configure the often provided such support, Tablet PCs were seen as Tablet PCs or provide staff development and ongoing increasing the range of skills demanded of these staff. support for the Tablet PCs’ use. Some comments were made about the importance of fit between the school’s ethos and implementation • Logistics for managing student working plan, for example in terms of the personalisation of Students need locations for saving their work and if learning and the personal ownership of Tablet PCs. this is done via a wireless network they need to save regularly and while connected. Several schools Some comments suggested a gradual introduction of highlighted the importance of memory sticks, which Tablet PCs to selected groups of staff and/or students were often seen as a failsafe in case there were – perhaps starting with the most experienced, who network problems. One school highlighted the could then share ‘good practice’. The importance of benefits of saving versions of work, allowing teachers avoiding preconceptions about how Tablet PCs should to build up a profile which could be useful for be used was noted, in order to allow individuals to assessing progress and for parents’ evenings. experiment and find out what worked for them. Many of the schools recognised that they needed to explore how best to fully utilise the potential of the Tablet PCs. “If we were starting to introduce Tablet PCs again we would begin more modestly with a phased introduction, perhaps issuing to one group and then when established increasing the number of groups using them. This allows the process to be more easily managed and supported.” Deputy Headteacher, Invicta ‘The strengths of Tablets are as note takers and presentation developers which are easily personalised to meet individual student and teacher needs.’ Field notes, Cornwallis 21 Research conclusions This section summarises the key research findings emerging from the case studies. There was a strong feeling in the schools that Tablet All of this assumes the provision of a robust ICT PCs have the potential to enhance learning and that infrastructure, including wireless networking, reliable this goes beyond what is possible with other servers, (immediate) technical support and technologies. On the basis of the evidence collected, pedagogically focused staff development. this does indeed seem to be the case. However, in Many schools highlighted the advantages of using a many instances this potential was not being fully Tablet PC with a data projector, especially if connected realised, and much of what we observed could, in the wirelessly. They saw this as a better solution than researchers’ view, have been achieved with computer and interactive whiteboard. conventional laptops. The contexts in which the potential of Tablet PCs seemed to be most fully The importance of staff and student motivation realised were ones in which: should not be underestimated, and it was clear that Tablet PCs had a very positive impact in this regard • teachers and students had encouragement and (only diminished when there were technical time to experiment and be innovative in the ways problems). Students appeared to relate to Tablet PCs they used the Tablet PCs (this was closely differently from the way in which they related to other associated with ‘ownership’ of the equipment) computers. This may have been due to the more • there was a sufficient critical mass of Tablet PC use, ‘natural’ way in which they could physically interact although there were differing views on how many with the Tablet PCs, in terms of variety of position (on Tablet PCs this meant and how long each child their knee or held in one arm, for instance) and also needed to spend using them each week the immediacy and intuitive nature of using a pen on the screen. There is significant potential for the • staff and students were encouraged to share their development of software that makes use of these experiences, ideas, expertise and resources features of Tablet PCs. • the school wanted to integrate ICT across the curriculum and/or wanted to free up space by replacing their ICT suite with a class set of ‘The school vision is about ‘putting learners Tablet PCs first’ – a move to independent learning • the school wanted to move to more personalised with teachers as facilitators. Tablet PC plus and creative ways of working, in which independence, research and collaborative working wireless network plus access from home all often played a significant role combine to make this possible.’ • the school wanted to stretch the boundaries of the Field notes, Cornwallis classroom to include field trips and the home. “Being able to work at a desk while browsing “Their [the children’s] researching has greater web pages is an enormous advantage. The depth as they now consult a wider number children find that using the Tablets in Tablet of sources … learning is more in the [slate] mode, and navigating around pages classroom and less in the ICT suite and is using the pen, is faster then using the touch more ‘hands on’ – that is not just listening to pad. They also seem to find it more natural. or watching teacher presentation – learning Having the large screen and a data projector is more multi-sensory and kinaesthetic. … makes it possible for me to demonstrate There is much greater use of ICT and they clearly what I want them to do. I can also are certainly more competent and confident show the children’s work to the whole class ICT users but it’s a bit early to say about via the projector.” other areas.” Teacher, Engayne Teacher, St Willibrord’s 22 Further research These case studies have suggested that Tablet PCs do have the potential to enhance learning. However, that potential is not currently being fully realised. Further research is clearly needed. Handwriting recognition Inclusion and gender differences While handwriting recognition is one of the key In a small number of the case studies there was clear features that attract schools to Tablet PCs, particularly evidence of Tablet PCs being of benefit to children where they cater for younger children, it is currently with special educational needs. There is scope for not used extensively. It would be valuable in the short further work to explore where Tablet PCs might be of term to investigate in more depth the use of particular benefit in providing access to the handwriting recognition, particularly with the release curriculum for children who might otherwise be of Tablet 2005 and in relation to other types of input excluded from it. devices. This should include looking at its impact on The case studies did not provide any clear evidence in both handwriting and also the wider issues of relation to gender and the use of Tablet PCs. However, composition and literacy. given the apparently more personal and intimate nature of Tablet PCs, it seems reasonable to surmise that they might represent a less gender-dominated “Some children don’t like writing on the Tablets and prefer the form of computer. Indeed the researchers are aware of tactile feel of paper. We are investigating attaching mobile a limited amount of anecdotal evidence that suggests that Tablet PCs help to overcome some girls’ notetakers to the Tablets which will allow for paper to be used but reluctance to use ICT. still retain the notes in an electronic form. This will also help support when a Tablet is forgotten; the notes can still be made and Thresholds for use placed onto the Tablet at a later time.” In a context in which most schools will not be able to ICT co-ordinator, Cornwallis provide ownership of Tablet PCs for all their students, it would be valuable to investigate further the thresholds for Tablet PC use required for optimal benefits, given different deployment models. Comparisons with interactive whiteboards Exploring the potential Many of the schools highlighted the value of using a In the short term it would be valuable to provide data projector with Tablet PCs, and there was a opportunities and mechanisms for further sharing common view that a Tablet PC and data projector was ideas about Tablet PCs and experience of their use in better and more cost effective than a laptop or ways that leverage their unique potential in education. desktop and interactive whiteboard. More work is In the longer term, as schools have more time to needed to explore this area, looking for example at the explore Tablet PCs’ potential and they become more importance of wireless data-projection solutions, the embedded, further work will be needed to identify the use of docking stations (with Tablet PCs and laptops) ways in which they are being used and the impacts and other input devices (such as wireless mice and that these uses are having on pedagogy and learning. keyboards, or graphic pads) used with a desktop PC and data projector. “We would really like class sets for use with A child with dyslexia and Asperger Year 1 and 2 pupils as I believe they could syndrome, who had problems with ‘words really help with handwriting.” flying off the page’, set his Tablet PC with a Headteacher, Wylde Green green background to act as filter, and he also changed the font colour.“His spelling was very poor last year and he didn’t write much. This year, with the Tablet PC, his writing has shown improvement.” Teacher, St Francis 23 The case studies These case studies offer an insight into the different ways in which Tablet PCs are being used and highlight a range of issues related to the use of Tablet PCs in schools. They represent a brief snapshot of a subset of the practice in each of the schools and are not meant to provide a full or representative description of the full range of uses of Tablet PCs that these schools were making. Case study index grid Tablets for staff students Tablet type Organisation Page Primary St Mary’s 4 Slate Shared – small school, cross curricular 25 Green Lane 8 Convertible Shared – withdrawal groups 28 St Peter’s 15 Slate Shared – timetabled (replaced ICT suite) 30 St Willibrord’s 1 14 Convertible Shared – bookable 32 Engayne Most 60 Convertible Shared – 4 sets timetabled 34 St Francis 1 32 Slate ‘Owned’ by students (plus keyboards) in classroom of future 36 Primary – outreach from secondary Wylde Green 1 30 Slate On loan for half a day per week 38 Secondary (special) Queensbury 1 10 Slate ‘Owned’ by individuals; (keyboard for staff ) ‘projects’ – home use 40 Secondary Invicta All 180 Convertible for staff ‘Owned’ by Year 8 Slate for students students 42 Cornwallis 92% 200 (approx) Convertible for staff Shared sets, plus Slate for students ‘owned’ by 2 classes 45 Coleshill 34 sets Slate, wall-mounted Allocated to PC and data projector teaching rooms 48 Wilmslow 12 Convertible ‘Owned’ by all staff in PE department 50 24 Case study 1 St Mary’s RC Primary School Overview of school At the time of the case study, this rural primary school had 79 pupils on roll, from 12 surrounding villages. Three of the four classes had mixed year groups. The building is semi-open plan, with classrooms, ICT suite and activity areas off a central hall. St Mary’s was a member of Northamptonshire’s Rural Schools Group Tablet PC project. Description of ICT resources Using the Tablet PCs in literacy in the Year 2/3 class Overall resources The ICT suite had six networked computers with Using a storyboard template internet access. There were four further computers A literacy/story-writing lesson was centred on the located in the classrooms and three laptops for story of Plop in ‘The owl who was afraid of the dark’. teachers. A data projector was available for use in the The common chapter format was recapped as a class classroom with laptop or Tablet PC. Additionally there group. Next, in pairs, the pupils discussed whom Plop was a digital camera and digital video camera. might encounter next and what reason this person might have to like the dark. Tablet PCs and associated peripherals Four pairs of children were selected to use the Tablet The school was provided with four slate Tablet PCs PCs with the teaching assistant. A storyboard template about nine months before this case study, as part of with prompting questions was available through the Northamptonshire Rural Schools Group Tablet PC Journal and also on paper for the remainder of the class. project. The Tablet PCs were running the original Tablet PC operating system. Much of the software was the same as on the desktop PCs (for example Office 2003, Clicker and My World) but with extra software, including Journal, RM WindowBox, Audacity and Compose. There was one wireless network access point, located near the ICT suite. External CD drives enabled use of other resources. Work was saved to the server over the wireless network so that it could be accessed from the school’s other PCs. Although children could work anywhere in the school building, they needed to move within range of the wireless access point for internet access or to save work to the fileserver. Children had a floppy disk or CD on which to save their work and occasionally needed to save on the Tablet PCs’ own hard drives. The Tablet PCs were already on tables with mains The Tablet PCs were kept in the headteacher’s room power connected. The teaching assistant reminded on a trolley and taken to classrooms, where they were the children how to open the file which they then did charged for use as needed. They were timetabled in unaided. The displayed document was fairly small on the afternoons for ICT use by each class and were screen, so the children suggested that they enlarge it, bookable for the remaining time. One was made and increased the size to 130%. available for use by an individual child as part of their The children used the pen to write in the boxes, some Individual Education Plan (IEP) provision. There was a printing and some joining their letters. Each pair actively lot of flexibility in the use of the Tablet PCs. Overall discussed what to put in each box, remaining on task for they were in use for between 25% and 50% of the the duration of the time – about half an hour. One of the time, but this was increasing. Some classes used them pairs writing ‘flying cabbage’ put ‘cabbiage’. This didn’t more than others: look right to them and they tried alternative suggestions • Years 1–6: literacy, art, humanities, ICT before arriving at the correct one. At the end of the activity they needed to save the file, using the onscreen • Year 2: science keyboard, and print it out.The wireless network did not • Years 2 and 3: music reach into the classroom so they needed to move within reach in order to save their work. • Years 5 and 6: design and technology. 25 Case study 1 The children gave the following advantages of using Examples of Tablet PC use by the the pens on the Tablet PCs. Year 5/6 class • It’s better than the keyboard – it’s easier to write. Using the Tablet PCs for ‘explicit’ ICT • Doesn’t make marks so you can change it. • You don’t have to use a keyboard or a mouse so it’s For the class teacher, the four Tablet PCs provide much needed additional computer resources for her class. I quicker. watched them in an ICT lesson using the desktop • When you work in pairs it’s easier to swivel to be in computers in the ICT suite and the Tablet PCs to front of each person to take turns. design and create pages for a school website. The The class teacher identified the following advantages activity was replicated on both types of computer. of using Tablet PCs for this activity. The children worked in pairs and had previously • Finished work is legible, clear and neat. created a paper design/notes for their chosen page. Their page was then worked on in Publisher. The • Ideas can be changed easily. children chose to use the Tablet PCs in a fairly vertical • The children are motivated by using the new position, resting them on metal stands – this, they said, technology. made it easier to see the screen. To enter text, three of The only disadvantage identified was having only four the four pairs used the onscreen keyboard with the Tablet PCs, which meant that some children were pen, which they said was quicker than using the disappointed because they had to work with pencil handwriting recognition, as that took longer to and paper. correct. They also expressed a preference for the desktop computers as it was easier/quicker to enter Hunting for adjectives text with a physical keyboard. A second literacy activity involved an adjective hunt. In design and technology Each child had five minutes to find as many adjectives as they could. They then wrote their list on the Tablet The Tablet PCs were used to create the designs for a PC in Journal, together with their name. This activity slipper using Colour Magic. involved a feedback session with the teacher using each Tablet PC with the data projector to discuss the words chosen. The teacher identified the additional benefits of this as being able to validate and feedback to the children quickly. It also helped her to correct any misconceptions and identify the need for further work. As part of SEN provision (SEN and literacy) One Tablet PC was sited in this class every morning for the use of a child with an IEP. He used it to practise spellings and also used Journal for writing. For example, he performed the same task as the other children, writing a myth and also recording five facts about a god or goddess which had been researched on the internet. The teacher believed that there was some improvement in both his handwriting and motivation that might be attributable to using the Tablet PC and pen input. Further literacy work Between my two visits to the school this Year 2/3 class did other literacy-related cross-curricular work on the Victorians, using Journal on the Tablet PCs to: • write an account of Emmeline Pankhurst • create a flow chart showing how washing was carried out in Victorian times. 26 On a field trip Case study 1 The previous summer a small group of Year 6 children had taken the school’s newly acquired Tablet PCs on a school visit to the Isle of Wight. They used their Tablet PCs with the audio recording program Audacity to record their diaries each night. They also used Journal to make notes. The teacher remarked that keeping diaries had become an activity they enjoyed rather than a chore, as is so often the case on school trips! On their return to school they were able to use their sound tracks and notes to compile a multimedia presentation for their parents. Key lessons learned • Tablet PCs opened up new ways of working. In particular they could encourage different teaching styles and support different learning styles. • It took time for staff to acquire the skills to use the Tablet PCs and the confidence to exploit their use in the classroom. • Teachers did not have time to experiment for themselves, so training sessions incorporating both skills development and ideas for use need to be planned into the school year. • Charging Tablet PCs’ batteries and the locations of wireless network points could affect classroom usage. These needed to be considered early in deployment. • The role of learning support assistants changed – they needed to gain skills in using the Tablet PCs. • Tablets could be motivational for teachers as well as for children. • You needed to think about how to take advantage of the features of Tablet PCs when you were planning. The staff were enthusiastic about the potential of the Tablet PCs, only wishing they had more of them and more time and opportunity to explore their potential. 27 Case study 2 Green Lane Infant School Overview of school At the time of the case study this infant school in a deprived area of Leicester with wide cultural diversity had 300 pupils, for 95% of whom English was their second language.The school received a very positive inspection report in 2003. Description of ICT resources The children were allowed to print their work to the colour printer, which they did using the standard Overall resources Windows ‘save file’ and ‘print’ options. Most were able to do this unaided. There were 34 PCs, each class having a computer centre with three PCs on the school network. All the The same software was available on the desktop PCs teaching staff had a laptop. There was one interactive and the teachers said the children had quickly whiteboard for shared use in the arts studio. transferred their skills to use it with the mouse. This group of children had a good grasp of ICT language Tablet PCs and associated peripherals and had influenced ICT use in the classrooms by sharing their skills with both the teachers and the Eight convertible Tablet PCs, all with the original Tablet other children. PC operating system, were available for use by staff or pupils. There were six docking stations and three During an afternoon activities lesson I observed a hardwired data projectors. Part of the school had a second group working with the classroom assistant wireless network which was used by the Tablet PCs to to illustrate the story ‘The three little pigs’. First the connect with the school network, the internet and the building material for each of the pigs’ houses was printer. recapped by the teacher with the whole class, with the aid of physical samples of materials. A variety of Tablet PCs were chosen because they ‘offer an extremely activities had been prepared. Four children were powerful multi-sensory learning experience, stimulating chosen to work with the Tablet PCs, which were different parts of the brain. Pupils can see, hear and positioned in slate format ready for use, two to a small touch their work as it progresses, becoming completely table. These children had not used the Tablet PCs absorbed and fascinated in the results of their own much, so they were guided with questions such as: actions’ (Headteacher, Green Lane, in Toshiba (2004)). ‘Which package should we use?’ and ‘How do we get The Tablet PCs were kept in a converted office, and the pen?’ After the software was opened for use they used as a group resource by Years 1 and 2. ICT skills were asked ‘How do we fill in the picture?’ were developed using Revelation Art software which was also available on desktop machines. Tablet PCs were also used during creative writing and for independent exploration of the internet to collect information relating to projects. Gifted and talented children used the Tablet PCs as a selected group withdrawn from class. Examples of use with Revelation Art Revelation Art was used with children from Years 1 and 2 both as part of Tablet PC familiarisation and to develop pupils’ achievements in art, by carrying out an activity such as painting using physical paints and paper, and then repeating the activity on the Tablet PCs. The children chose their own tools. They used the wax I observed the gifted and talented group working crayon tool, which for drawing and colouring-in most with the headteacher using Revelation Art on the closely resembles paper and crayon, or the Cromar Tablet PCs. Given a free choice of tools and subject, the tool – a bit like a small sponge-headed lollipop – children were quickly at work. They had established which results in very loose colour cover, but is good favourite tools: some opted to draw with pens and for shading in. brushes; others selected patterns from a range Three of the four were very confident and worked available. Some of the features they used included independently, but the fourth sought reassurance colour mixing, using fill or brush to colour in the from time to time. They all worked quietly for over 20 outlines of Rangoli patterns, the starburst and minutes, with occasional questions for each other and symmetry tools, and shapes. The children were the classroom assistant. They seemed undisturbed by confident in the use of the menu bars and the various the children in the role-play area and water activity drop-down lists and tool bars, and were not put off by nearby. wrong selections. 28 Case study 2 Handwriting and handwriting- recognition use by gifted and talented group A group of eight children from Year 2 was withdrawn two or three times a week to work with the headteacher using the Tablet PCs. These were the first children to use the Tablet PCs in the school. The lessons took place in a narrow room with a workbench along one side and chairs on the other. The children chose either to work with Tablet PCs flat on the bench or sitting with them on their laps. They prepared the Tablet PCs for use themselves with I observed the children were encouraged to use Word minimal guidance. They showed enthusiasm and with handwriting recognition. They were writing engagement in the task, whether demonstrating the messages to their parents in preparation for sending range of features available in Revelation Art, exploring an email message using Email Detectives. The only web pages, or writing in Journal or Word. difficulty they had was correcting errors. Some deleted the whole word and rewrote it, not always correctly, Between case study visits these eight children also whereas others used the pen with the onscreen carried out the following written activities: keypad to select and replace letters. Converting handwriting into text in Word Key lessons learned The children each wrote about whether they liked using Tablet PCs. Their replies were presented in a • It is important to have a reliable wireless network: mixture of fonts and colours, including highlighted there were problems with signal strength, which text. They included the date in their document. Here caused things to crash or malfunction. are some of the things they wrote: • Having Tablet PCs meant that more support was • I can use the laptop [meaning Tablet PC in laptop needed – both technical and classroom. mode] • They needed to plan activities to allow for the fact • it is fun and my favourite is Art that the batteries would last only two-and-a-half to three hours, but could be charged very quickly. • I like the Starburst in Revelation art • Starburst is my favourite tool • Tablet PCs could be very disruptive in class because all children wanted a go. Using a small • I like changing the font room for children withdrawn from the class had better results. • I like to go on the E-mail detectives. I learn about computers and I like to right with the laptop • It was not easy to share the Tablet PCs, as pupils [meaning Tablet PC in laptop mode]. needed to be ‘head on’ to the screen. Handwriting in Journal • While the screen displays were good, it helped to work in a dark environment. The children wrote a list. This was saved as their handwriting. • Teachers needed to feel confident and be trained in order to make full use of the Tablet PCs’ potential Converting handwriting into text in Word across the curriculum. The children wrote about writing with the pen on the Tablet PCs. Some expressed a preference for using them in ‘laptop’ mode, which they referred to as ‘Laptop(s)’, while others preferred using them as a slate, which they referred to as ‘Tablet’ or ‘Tablet PC’: • It can read my writing and when I’m using the Laptops it is hard • I can use the special pen • I like using the Tablet because I can write with the pen • I like to write on the Tablet PC because it is much more fun and the writing pad can read my writing • I like the Laptop better than the Tablet PC’s because it doesn’t read my writing very well. 29 Case study 3 St Peter’s CE (C) Primary School Overview of the school Located on a busy road in the attractive village of Yoxall, the school building – part Victorian, the rest more recent – has four levels. At the time of this case study St Peter’s had five classes with about 140 children on roll. The school was part of a small schools cluster group. Description of ICT resources install the new infrastructure and Tablet PCs, and signed up for the highest level of support from their Overall resources LEA. They were prepared for certain things – for example that logging-on and uploading or St Peter’s had four desktop computers in the former downloading video might be slower over a wireless ICT room (which had been freed up for other network. Indeed they had been assured that these purposes) and two in the library connected to the would be the only difficulties. However, when the new network. The school had a broadband connection. Two equipment was installed they were disappointed by classrooms each had a stand-alone desktop PC. In the the high number of technical problems they Key Stage 1 area there were three more stand-alone experienced. It proved difficult to identify the causes desktops. Each teacher and most of the teaching of these problems and then to resolve them. assistants had a personal laptop to connect up to the Understandably St Peter’s felt that these initial problems interactive whiteboards. The ICT co-ordinator was a had damaged staff and pupil confidence with the Tablet full-time class teacher and the only technician support PCs. Throughout this period the senior management was for one day a fortnight. They felt that more team (SMT) in the school remained confident that technical support was needed. everything would be satisfactorily resolved. Tablet PCs and associated peripherals Despite the initial problems, the use of ICT at the school increased following the introduction of the St Peter’s had 16 slate-style Tablet PCs running the Tablet PCs. The SMT felt that the decision to replace original Tablet operating system – 15 for pupil use and the ICT suite with a set of Tablet PCs had been one teacher Tablet PC. The Tablet PCs could connect justified: not only had they freed up desperately wirelessly to the school’s local area network. This class needed space, but also the Tablet PCs in the set of Tablet PCs was used on a timetabled basis. classrooms were used a great deal more than the St Peter’s also had five interactive whiteboards, which desktops in the former suite had been. In addition, could be used with the Tablet PCs or staff laptops; nine staff were exploring and developing the pedagogical printers, one of which was specifically for use with the potential of the Tablet PCs and new infrastructure. In Tablet PCs; one scanner; one digital camera; and a the light of these successes, the SMT were already charging trolley. Staff could use the teacher Tablet PC planning to acquire a further set of Tablet PCs. at home, but most used their personal laptops for administration and preparation. Using the Tablet PCs with a mixed Year 1/2 class Replacing the ICT suite with Tablet PCs A Year 1/2 class teacher, whom we will call John, described how his class had the Tablet PCs in the When St Peter’s were reviewing their four-year-old ICT mornings for one week in every five. During these suite, they decided to replace it with Tablet PCs. The times he used them in literacy and numeracy school decided that changing to Tablet PCs offered a whenever possible in order to support and extend more suitable solution that would be less disruptive to the lesson objectives. On one afternoon each week pupil experiences. At the same time it freed up a John’s class used the Tablet PCs for ICT skills and classroom for other purposes and provided more cross-curricular thematic work. opportunities for maximising ICT use in an integrated way. Tablet PCs were seen as providing flexibility and Using Journal to write up information found on the support for teaching and learning in line with the way internet (Year 1/2) the school was organised, rather than controlling how things could be done. The school took great care in the advance preparations they made for simultaneously installing new servers, a wireless network and the set of 16 Tablet PCs. They consulted appropriate sources of expertise, employed a reputable firm to supply and 30 Case study 3 John described Tablet PCs as ‘doing all that any computer would’ but fitting in better with his and new server, the children commented that they thought it was annoying, just when you were nearly classroom management and organisation. He felt that finishing, to be afraid that all your work could go. having the Tablet PCs with the printer on the trolley in Chloe said she liked the Tablet PCs better than the ICT the classroom worked well, enabling the integration of suite “because you can carry them around and you ICT across the curriculum:“it’s all there in the room.” can’t move computers with wires and the wireless connection is really good.”When asked how they The children sometimes worked in Journal and kept would describe a Tablet PC, one of the children said,“a their handwriting as digital ink. For example, when quick definition – a Tablet PC is a little interactive they were working on characters and feelings they whiteboard.”They all said that everyone loved having used the pen to draw big hearts and then handwrote a go on the interactive whiteboard, adding “so their feelings inside them. The children enjoyed being everyone loves having a go on the Tablet PCs.” able to record their thoughts in this way, and particularly being able to make changes without An example of a mind map in Journal (Year 3) leaving a mark on the ‘paper’. These children had used the Tablet PCs in a wide The children loved using the Tablet PCs and this made range of different curriculum areas, including literacy, them very motivating. John said that this was especially numeracy, history, design and technology, and art. valuable for encouraging reluctant writers in creating Their teacher felt that, when the technology ideas for writing. functioned well, the Tablet PCs enabled effective When writing, the children mostly used the on-screen integration of ICT in class and across the curriculum. keyboard as John had found that using handwriting She felt that, used in this way, the Tablet PCs had a recognition needed ‘a bit of getting used to for huge impact on the curriculum and in making lessons children at this stage of their writing development’. more successful. The Tablet PCs fitted comfortably on However, John wanted to develop the use of the tables and, because everyone and everything was handwriting recognition as he felt that this was going in their usual place, lessons could be more relaxed. to be the most valuable aspect of Tablet PC use. Another member of staff who felt that for ‘reluctant Key lessons learned writers’ who found handwriting practice less than exciting,‘getting the computer to recognise your • Having a reliable and efficient infrastructure was writing would be seen as something of a challenge’. expensive, but essential. • Wireless network access was essential in every Children’s perspectives on Tablet PCs classroom and other areas where you wanted to use the Tablet PCs. In the Year 3/4 class, three children, who wanted to be called Mark, Chloe and Fred, talked about all the things • A high level of technical support was vital. they had used their Tablet PCs for in class, as well as • Battery life was around two hours – not the four their experiences of using other computers at home hours predicted by the suppliers – which had and in school. They had all been using the interactive implications for timetabling, planning and whiteboard and even, sometimes, their teacher’s classroom management. laptop. They liked the Tablet PCs. Chloe said she liked Journal because it was a lot easier to write than use • Having a safe and secure place to keep the Tablet PCs was essential, because they are so portable. the keyboard as sometimes finding the letters on it [the keyboard] takes longer and slows you down. Mark • Additional support in the classroom, for example agreed with her, saying:“you really don’t need a from a teaching assistant, was valuable in order to keyboard on Journal – it’s faster to write than to type help ensure the most effective use of the Tablet PCs. … on Word you have to type.” Fred said that he liked the handwriting recognition best:“it transforms your • Using Tablet PCs instead of an ICT suite had increased the level of use of ICT and enabled it to writing but it has to realise what you are doing first,” be embedded across the curriculum. adding that he really liked the Tablet PC “when it worked, but hate it when it goes wrong.” Alluding to • Staff commitment was the most important factor. the serious ‘setting-up’ problems that the school had • Even given the difficulties, the children loved using been having with the Tablet PCs, wireless networking the Tablet PCs. 31 Case study 4 St Willibrord’s Primary School Overview of school At the time of the case study this was an Education Action Zone school, close to major urban renewal projects. There were 220 on roll, including the nursery, and 58% of pupils were eligible for free school meals. Description of ICT resources accurate to cope with the transfer to text and children find it frustrating to have to make so many ‘corrections’.” Overall resources However, the school still hoped to develop their use of handwriting recognition in the future. St Willibrord’s had an ICT suite of eight PCs, as well as four other PCs for staff and eight for pupils. There were A Year 5 teacher, whom we will call Mary, thought that 20 laptops and six Pocket PCs for pupil use. There was the Tablet PCs had been excellent in providing wireless networking throughout the school. The ICT increased opportunities for ICT use to all pupils, suite and each of the Key Stage 2 classrooms had especially in Key Stage 2, where the wireless an interactive whiteboard, with two interactive connection offered extended and valuable access to a whiteboards in the Key Stage 1 area. There was an ICT range of more independent research work in all club one night per week to support children who did subjects. Mary described how the Year 5 pupils had not have access to the internet at home. The ICT used their Tablet PCs to research their own choice of facilitator was a full-time higher-level teaching ‘eminent Victorian’ in order to present a class assembly assistant, who provided classroom as well as to the school. This had only been possible because, technical support. when using the Tablet PCs,“ICT comes to the classroom and the pupils and not the other way around.” Mary felt that without the Tablet PCs and the Tablet PCs and associated peripherals wireless network the opportunities for pupils to There was a class set of 14 convertible Tablet PCs become truly independent and confident learners, (with removable keyboards) for pupils and one setting and researching their own questions, would convertible (twist-style) Tablet PC for staff use. These have been curtailed. They also enabled her to run the were stored in an ICT room and used in the homework club, which would otherwise not have classrooms and adjoining areas. The Tablet PCs were been possible, and this made an important running the original Tablet operating system and the contribution to equity and to combating the ‘digital only additional software was an office suite. Each class divide’ within the school. was timetabled to use the Tablet PCs and teachers Mary described how the Tablet PCs, with the wireless could arrange for the ICT facilitator to be available for network, enabled the pupils to “learn in a much in-class support. greater virtual space,” and allowed the whole class to be involved at once in “more hands on learning… more multi-sensory … kinaesthetic learning . . .” which “The big advantage of the Tablets [compared with laptops] is their simultaneously increased their confidence and ICT size and portability. They make the management of classroom skills. This combined with the fact that the Tablet PCs were attractive to the children, who were highly space much easier. If a table of four children are each using a Tablet motivated to use them. there is still room on the table for workbooks etc. The detachable slate on the Tablets is also a useful feature.” Facilitating collaboration and a ICT facilitator sense of audience One pupil described how he and his partner had been carrying out research on Alexander Graham Bell. He Developing the use of the Tablet PCs explained how using the pen was so much easier than moving things around with the ‘mouse ball’. Earlier in St Willibrord’s obtained their Tablet PCs two years prior the lesson he had demonstrated how quickly he and to this case study as a result of an Education Action his partner had been able to log on and begin Zone initiative. The school, strongly supported by the searching for the information they required and how parents, saw this as a valuable opportunity to further careful they were in checking the key facts on one site enrich their use of ICT in teaching and learning. They with those on a different one. They were very excited initially intended to use the Tablet PCs to explore and called their teacher to see when they found a site writing and handwriting but, as staff realised the that matched their requirements perfectly…and even potential of the Tablet PCs when used with the wireless went further to give additional relevant information. network, their use was extended considerably. Staff also They ‘bookmarked’ their site and gave the details to found that the handwriting recognition did not work another pair of pupils researching a different person. well, particularly for young children:“it’s not sufficiently The teacher commented later on how frequently 32 Case study 4 pupils were able to find out much more useful information than she would have anticipated and how beneficial she felt it was that children could collaborate with not only their working partner but with others in a positive way. The ICT facilitator described how Year 6 pupils had used PowerPoint to prepare ‘stories’ suitable for younger children. He explained how activities like this provided learning opportunities that helped pupils in developing their understanding of narrative structure and the syntactic and semantic aspects of language. The ‘sharing’ aspect of this work offered both a real audience and purpose for the composition and an opportunity to develop confidence in presentational skills. It also developed ICT skills in an integrated way and in a meaningful context and, not least, all the participants enjoyed the experience. He felt that the portability of the Tablet PCs with the wireless network, and the ability to use them with a data projector, added a great deal of value to this kind of task and enhanced the experience greatly. Key lessons learned • More funding for additional software and peripherals as part of the original Tablet PC provision would have increased the school’s ability to make full use of their potential. • It was important to budget for higher maintenance costs. • All the ICT equipment (network, server and Tablet PCs, for instance) needed to be compatible, reliable and sufficiently robust for the purposes for which it was intended. • Training and ICT support were essential for both understanding of the full potential of the Tablet PCs and also developing and sharing professional and pedagogical practices, and this training and support needed to be ongoing. • The Tablet PCs were much more useful than the Pocket PCs, owing to their versatility and extended functionality. • The Tablet PCs were very motivating for pupils and had great potential. 33 Case study 5 Engayne Primary School Overview of school At the time of this case study, Engayne was a three-form entry school of 610 pupils, situated in a suburban area of mixed residential housing. The extensive grounds included a playing field and outdoor swimming pool. All classes were mixed ability and the backgrounds of pupils reflected a broad social and ability range. The school was a SCITT provider. Classes were located in three separate buildings and in September 2003 an administrative area (staff room, offices and reception) was added. Description of ICT resources pupils’. The senior management team respondent was clear that for her there was “a passion that drove me to Overall resources realise this dream” underpinning the Tablet PC initiative. Engayne had an ICT development team (associate To avoid continually ‘playing catch up’ in the new headteacher, ICT consultant and ICT technician) who school, they also felt it was time for a strategic re-think met weekly to review and improve the use of the ICT and for considerable investment. Tablet PCs, they felt, resources. The technician was available for four days a had enough of ‘a future model about them’ without week and the ICT consultant was a full-time member being too far ahead to be compatible with existing ICT of staff who supported this school and was available knowledge, confidence and competence. Tablet PC to other schools and authorities on a consultancy basis. mobility had really strong appeal to them as a multi- site school:‘offering anytime, anywhere type use’. They Engayne had 32 desktop PCs for staff and 20 for pupil also had some uncertainties about the suitability of use, plus 10 laptops for each of these groups. There interactive whiteboards for their purposes, but needed were also two PDAs for staff use. The school had a this type of functionality. The team stressed the 2Mbps broadband connection and a wireless local importance to them of doing extensive research and area network, with wireless access points placed around of seeking a range of advice before making the school – both inside and outside the buildings. procurement decisions. Each class and both halls had hardwired data projectors permanently fixed to the ceiling. Each member of staff Tablet PCs were used in every class and for every had a memory stick for personal use, and the school curriculum area, each class using them on a rota basis was equipped with 26 printers, two scanners, six digital for two half days a week. still cameras and one digital video camera. Most In addition to their extensive fact finding, the team equipment was accessible to both staff and pupils. planned and piloted an ‘action research’ approach in their phased introduction stage. A number of models Tablet PCs and associated peripherals of organising and managing the Tablet PCs were trialled using ‘champions’, members of staff who were Engayne had 88 convertible Tablet PCs: one for all but willing to act in this role, located in various parts of the two members of the teaching staff and 64 for pupils. building, in different phases and different curriculum The pupil Tablet PCs were organised into four sets of areas. Staff views were collected on the test strategies approximately fifteen, which were placed strategically before the school settled on one approach. The ICT around the school. Each set of Tablet PCs was stored development team recognised that as major change on a charging trolley, with each trolley serving five was anticipated, which would have an impact on classes. Wireless access points were included in each practice right across the school, there was need for a Tablet PC trolley to provide additional wireless planned approach to staff training. Inset,‘phased over capacity. The software on the Tablet PCs closely time so no one felt overloaded with technology’, was matched that available on the other computers in the therefore dedicated to exploring the Tablet PCs and school, and included an office suite, presentation their potential. software for use with a data projector and whiteboard, and a wide range of ‘curriculum software’. At Engayne they felt that careful preparation had got them the ICT provision that really suited their needs The ICT development team and that offered everyone much greater opportunity to use technology. For teachers this was in all aspects Engayne was formed as a result of an amalgamation of their professional life, but especially in teaching and and the team felt it was time for a move towards a learning. For pupils it meant far greater access in terms more integrated and visionary use of ICT at the school. of the physical and virtual spaces in which they could The ICT team saw the introduction of the Tablet PCs as learn, and more time to develop their ICT skills in the a truly effective way of ‘bringing the world to the meaningful context of a full range of curriculum areas. 34 Tablet PC use in a Year 6 class Case study 5 Santa got stuck up the chimney (Year 3) A Year 6 teacher and subject leader, whom we will call David, used his personal Tablet PC extensively for planning, preparation and in almost every lesson for teaching. With the pupils he used a class set of Tablet PCs during the two timetabled sessions each week to support learning in every subject area, including PE. His class were also eager to have any additional time on the Tablet PCs, should it become available unexpectedly. David commented that he was particularly impressed at how rapidly the pupils’ ICT skills were developing in response to there being so much more time for embedded, implicit teaching – saying that he thought there was a danger of the programmes of study for ICT in Year 6 becoming redundant. “It’s so much easier for me to prepare on my Tablet and give the children access either on their own Tablets or our whiteboard ... I find we are watching more things that are live and so much more engrossing … there are more opportunities for pupils to use more varied forms of research … and have access to rich and varied resources … they learn in more collaborative and more As one of the ‘champions’ and as a subject leader, visual ways… .” David led sessions for colleagues on the Inset days. He took them through some familiar software and some Year 6 teacher new applications for different age groups – modelling the various stages in the processes of accessing, implementing, customising and saving activities on David felt pupils were 100% engrossed in what they the pupil and staff workspaces. Advice, suggestions were doing in lessons where they used the Tablet PCs and new ideas emerged and were incorporated as and that these made a significant contribution to everyone found their way around their own Tablet PC. motivation and self-esteem. He produced a portfolio They saw the sharing of experience of ‘what goes of work, which showed how Year 6 pupils had used wrong and how to fix it’ as a significant part of the the Tablet PCs over a few days. They used the Tablet implementation process, which complemented the PCs in literacy for web research on authors, and then ‘more professional’ sharing of teaching strategies and to enter the information into a prepared Publisher curriculum applications. They were considering template and finally to make book jackets as part of getting rid of the ICT suite and distributing its their work on biographies. They also used a resources in clusters around the school. spreadsheet to record results in science and to work on test scores, turning the data into a bar graph and formatting the graph. Their very first exploration of the Key lessons learned Tablet PCs had involved using the pen to create art work with Revelation Art. They had also watched video • Careful research was essential; this needed to include looking into the type of Tablet PC, clips in history, PE and RE and had fun (and valuable adequate wireless networking, compatible server practice too) playing maths games. space and compatible software. With the convertible Tablet PCs that Engayne had, • Procurement of adequate peripherals was pupils used the pen and keyboard intuitively and, important to make use easy and flexible. although David might have suggested using one or the other, pupils chose whichever best fitted the task. • Planned implementation, careful phasing in of new equipment, trialling and reporting back of Having both was a valuable asset. David felt that the alternative management and organisation systems pen was engaging and the wireless web link was worked well. invaluable. He had anticipated that the Tablet PCs would be used extensively in science and English but • Staff training in software awareness, curriculum had found them valuable everywhere, especially in application, the pedagogy of Tablet PCs and history, geography and RE. presentation technologies was very important. • Adequate and ongoing funding for initial purchase and subsequent maintenance (battery replacement, repairs and so on) was vital. • A dedicated, named project manager from the provider and a well worked out service agreement was invaluable. • Availability of skilled technical support was crucial. • Senior management support was very important. 35 Case study 6 St Francis RC Primary School Overview of school St Francis RC Primary School is in a multi-ethnic inner-city area. At the time of the case study it had 320 children, including those in the nursery. Tablet PCs were chosen for use solely by children in the Classroom of the Future (Year 5) with the aim of creating a ‘paperless classroom’. Description of ICT resources database attributes. This was followed by searching on specific fields and combinations of fields to find Overall resources specific records. The school was well equipped with ICT resources. It had two ICT suites, the more recent of which had 30 networked PCs in a modern laboratory/teaching area. Each classroom had a networked PC and there was also at least one stand-alone PC in every classroom. Each teacher had a laptop and there were eight interactive whiteboards. Each ICT suite had two printers. Tablet PCs and associated peripherals For the Classroom of the Future, the school bought 33 slate-style Tablet PCs and USB keyboards; these connected via the wireless network to the school network and the internet. There were three printers The children had two electronic worksheets on their in the Classroom of the Future. When not in use, the Tablet PCs to complete and after this they worked on Tablet PCs were kept on charging trolleys, but these a PowerPoint presentation. Children worked in groups were not left on overnight. In the morning the of two or three. teaching assistant or teacher turned the power on. There were various logistical tasks to be done as part Monitors logged the Tablet PCs onto the school of this, such as saving work to the correct area and network. Work was saved to folders on the server. opening the second worksheet and renaming it by The Tablet PCs were used: putting their own name at the beginning of the existing one. Most children had no problem with this, • by the 28 children in the Classroom of the Future although one child with an IEP needed support. • for approximately 75% of the available time A few children needed to work on the docking • for all curriculum subjects except maths (for which stations as their Tablet PCs had flat batteries or children were divided into sets), especially for network connection problems. Other groups moved researching and recording to separate areas within the building to work, and all • in the various areas within the structure of the were quickly on task and stayed focused until it was Classroom of the Future and the area around it (but time to leave for swimming. not in the rest of the school or at home) Between my two visits there were many other • with external keyboards for extended writing, examples of use of the Tablet PCs. Here is a selection which was approximately 30% of the time when from different subject areas: they were in use • English – writing in Journal – listing homophones • with pens, using handwriting or the onscreen • English – using Word – finishing off a fable and keyboard (approximately 70% of the time when listening to the Tablet PC reading it out to them they were in use). before editing Researching using a database • maths group – internet – interactive maths program The class were studying Greek gods and goddesses. • science – internet – BBC interactive science quiz and material-sorting activity They had been using Information Magic and a database of Greek gods. The teacher used the • history – internet – researching battle of Marathon database displayed on the interactive whiteboard and they recapped the terminology and meanings of the • history – Publisher – writing newspaper article on battle of Marathon. 36 Case study 6 Children talking about the Tablet PCs What if there were only eight Tablet PCs for the class? Children were able to select any work they needed to • Not as good, as we’d need to share. complete. I sat with a girl, whom we will call Helen, • Writing in books makes me tired. and a boy, whom we will call Henry. Helen and Henry had created portfolios of work to illustrate the ways in • I don’t think it would be as good if we didn’t have [our own] Tablets. which they used the Tablet PCs. They continued working on individual presentations while they talked Both children selected PowerPoint presentations from to me about the Tablet PCs and showed me the work their portfolio as the work they liked best. They had in their portfolios. each researched on the internet for material, which they had written about in their own words. How do you feel about using the Tablet PCs? Helen had found images on the internet and • When you use the pens on Tablets it’s better than downloaded them to her pictures file. Henry had on paper as your hand gets less tired. found pictures inside Office. Both of them had • I like using them, but it’s a bit slower than a experimented with colours for background and font. [desktop] PC for PowerPoint, internet and Publisher, Henry had included some background sounds. and sometimes they don’t work. How do they compare with a desktop PC? Key lessons learned • They are smaller and you use a pen. • A reliable wireless network connection was • It’s easier to use the drawing tool in Word. important. • It’s better for drawing than a PC – when you • Support requirements increased, particularly at the handle the mouse it’s much harder to control. start. • If you draw on paper it’s easier and then you know • Planning the management of the logistics was where the colours are. It’s harder on the Tablets. important (for example charging the batteries and Also on paper it’s easier to draw any shape. where children saved their work). • The double click on the PC doesn’t make bad • Bigger screens would make it easier to see the things happen, not like on the Tablets. display. And what about writing with a Tablet PC? • The Tablet PCs improved motivation, concentration and communication skills. • Sometimes for notes we use the pen. • In Word we use the [USB] keyboard if it’s a long • It was important to utilise the system fully – for piece of work. If it’s short we just use the pen. example getting children to save more of their work to build up a profile, which was useful for • With handwriting recognition sometimes the word parents’ evenings and for monitoring progress. comes out wrong. • Electronic marking was very effective. • With the [onscreen] keypad we have to find where the letter is and this is slower. Image © Copyright www.offwell.info 37 Case study 7 Wylde Green Primary School Overview of school Wylde Green Primary, in the north of Birmingham, was built in 1840. At the time of the case study, in early 2005, considerable building work was going on. Each year the school could admit 60 children into reception and there were six infant classes and eight junior classes. The school had 360 full-time pupils from reception to Year 6. The proportion of boys and girls was similar, and approximately 80% were from a white ethnic background, with the rest coming from a wide variety of backgrounds, but with no single group predominating. Some 15% were entitled to free school dinners and 11% had ‘a significant learning need’. Description of ICT resources have wireless networking and was unable to connect the Tablet PCs to the school network in the classrooms Overall resources where they were used, so no access to the internet was available via the Tablet PCs. The school had an ICT suite with 15 desktop PCs and an interactive whiteboard. There were a further 21 Each Tuesday for seven weeks two ICT technicians desktop PCs for pupil use in the classrooms – two in from Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School delivered 31 each of the Year 5 and 6 classrooms and the SEN Tablet PCs to Wylde Green Primary School and stayed room, and one in each of the other classrooms. This with the machines to support the two staff in the gave the school a below-average ratio of about one school. The two Year 6 classes in Wylde Green used the computer to 10 pupils. The school had a 2Mbps machines. Prior to the loan period the pupils had no connection to the internet via the Birmingham Grid experience of using Tablet PCs, although they all had for Learning. Most classrooms had interactive experience of using desktop PCs and some had used whiteboards fitted. Years 3 and 4 were in temporary laptops. accommodation during the building work (due for The use of the Tablet PCs was broadly similar in each completion in June 2005), but will have interactive of the two classes. The pupils stayed in their own whiteboards in their new rooms. Six laptops were classroom and the machines were brought to them. available for staff use. One stand-alone PC was The class teacher had support from the two available for DVD production. The school had an ICT technicians from Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School and technician whom they called on as and when needed a student who was on teaching practice at the time. (there were no set hours per week for technical support). For the first three sessions each child was given a Tablet PC, while in the final four sessions pupils shared the Tablet PCs one between two, to foster and enable “The children enjoyed using the Tablets so much that they really collaboration on their projects. did not want to be absent on a Tuesday.” Familiarisation with the Tablet PCs Class teacher The aim of the first session was to introduce the pupils to the Tablet PCs and how to use them. Initially the Tablet PCs pupils were allowed to play with three of the PowerToys applications – Maze Game, Puzzle Game The machines detailed below were loaned to the and Tic Tac Toe. The objective of these activities was to school by Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School for one familiarise the pupils with the use of the Tablet PC’s morning a week for half a term. Bishop Vesey’s is a pen for opening programs and interacting with them. Language College and part of its role is to support its The second half of the session made use of Journal feeder primary schools. This loan included support and was aimed at familiarising pupils with the use of from two technicians usually based at Bishop Vesey’s. handwriting in digital ink on the Tablet PC, and then Wylde Green were loaned 31 slate Tablet PCs (without converting their handwriting to text. keyboards) running Tablet 2005. The software installed on these machines included Office 2000, Kar2ouche, The pupils were very quick at familiarising themselves Tablet PC PowerToys and a range of other software with the use of the pen and showed high levels of suitable for secondary schools. Wylde Green did not motivation and enjoyment with the exercises. When 38 Case study 7 the children were interviewed, they remarked that Using the Tablet PCs to they found the pen easy to use, some saying it was as support literacy easy to use as a normal pen. Others, however, noted difficulties of control – staying on the line when The final four lessons made use of Kar2ouche (role- writing in Journal and getting the angle correct on the playing software) from Immersive Education. The pen. Some children liked the fact that they could put context used was Macbeth and the version used was the Tablet PC on their knees and write on it. However, marketed for Key Stages 3–5 (ages 11–18). The pupils some found that to read their writing they had to stop had never used Kar2ouche before, but they were and pick up the Tablet PC. studying Macbeth, so it seemed appropriate for them even though they were at the lower end of the age Using a spreadsheet in maths range for which it was intended. The pupils were initially introduced to the program using a Tablet PC and science and a data projector. They were then asked to produce The second and third sessions had aims relating to the a storyboard for a short scene from the play. The maths and science curriculum. A spreadsheet was pupils used the pen to navigate, and the pen with used on the Tablet PCs to create graphs using data onscreen keyboard to enter text. Neither of these from a previous science lesson. Both classes had processes caused any great difficulty. However, some previously used a spreadsheet on desktop PCs. Using of the pupils found the actual task rather difficult and the data projector connected to a Tablet PC, the one pupil with a special needs statement started to teacher first reminded the class how to use a make up her own story using the characters from spreadsheet and instructed them how to use the Macbeth. The class teacher took on board this idea onscreen keyboard. They then opened a spreadsheet and allowed the pupils to create their own stories with on their own machines, entered data, and chose the the characters, rather than reproducing Macbeth. The appropriate type of graph to display their results. The children used sound files and also recorded their own third session was similar to the previous session in as voices for the characters using the audio-recording much as the children had to use a spreadsheet to facility on the Tablet PCs. The pupils then shared their enter their own data and then create a pie chart to stories with the class using the Tablet PCs connected show their results. to the data projector. Most of the children appeared to cope with the onscreen keyboard for the data entry, but two pupils Key lessons learned in one of the sessions realised they could use • This form of co-operation between a secondary handwriting recognition for entering numbers and school and one of its feeder primary schools was text and shared this with the rest of the class. A few very valuable, not least because it gave the primary pupils had problems with using the pen for the opportunity to ‘try before you buy’. highlighting the cells to be graphed. When the pupils were interviewed, several commented that they • The support provided by Bishop Vesey’s Grammar School was essential for the success of the project. thought the letters and numbers on the onscreen This support included moving the machines keyboard were very small, and also they were never between classrooms and ensuring that the sure that they had actually selected a letter – “A beep machines were fully charged at the start of the day. each time you choose a letter would be good.” Ancillary support for these tasks is essential. • The children generally found the use of the Tablet PCs easy, enjoyable and motivational. 39 Case study 8 Queensbury School Overview of school Situated in the North East of Birmingham, Queensbury School is a locally managed secondary school for pupils with moderate learning difficulties. At the time of the case study the school had provision for 240 pupils, with 30 students in Years 12 and 13. As a special school, its class sizes were quite small, with an average of 15 pupils per class. Some subjects were blocked, so four subjects were taught to three classes – reducing class sizes to 10. The school had subject classrooms for the core and foundation subjects of the National Curriculum, including specialist teaching areas for design and technology, science and life skills. It also had its own playing field, a recently refurbished library and sixth-form block with teaching rooms and a self-contained flat for independence training, and a speech and language room. Description of ICT resources school's local area network, and the Tablet PCs were not connected to the local area network or the Overall resources internet. Each Tablet PC ran the original Tablet PC operating system and an office suite. The only other Queensbury had a hardwired curriculum network with non-standard software added to the machines was at least two network points and two networked PCs in Wordshark from White Space. As and when each classroom. There were two computer suites – appropriate the teacher Tablet PC was used with a one with 11 and another with 16 machines. For pupil data projector, to which it was connected wirelessly. use this gave a total of 69 desktop PCs, most of which ran Windows XP Pro. All desktop machines had access During the two years that the Tablet PCs had been in to the internet via a 2Mbps link to the Birmingham use at Queensbury they were used in a variety of Grid for Learning. Five classrooms were equipped with different subjects and modes, two of which we interactive whiteboards, and six with data projectors. describe briefly below. One of the Tablet PCs was on All students had a double lesson of ICT in an ICT suite long-term loan to a student who had motor control each week. Fifteen teachers had laptops running problems (hand tremors). Use of the pen and Journal Windows XP Pro. The ICT co-ordinator and a part-time allowed her to write on the Tablet PC and then technician (three days per week) provided technical convert her writing to text. support. Improving literacy Many of the students at Queensbury had difficulties “When I was first given it [the Tablet PC] I took it home and just with literacy, which had an impact across all areas of played with. It was really easy to use. I was surprised how you the curriculum. Indeed all but two of the Year 9 could do everything on it that you can do with a real computer.” students (aged 13–14) who took part in the ‘experiment’ described here did not have reading ages, Year 11 student as the tests do not recognise reading ages under six. These students also tended to have a poor self-image and lacked confidence as they saw elements of their Tablet PCs and associated peripherals work as inferior to that of their peers. The 12 students were divided into two groups with similar standards of As part of Birmingham LEA’s Anytime Anywhere literacy, and members of one group were each loaned Learning project, the school received: a Tablet PC, while members of the other were each loaned a laptop. This was to enable a comparison of • one slate Tablet PC with external keyboard and the two mobile technologies, as well as an evaluation USB mouse of the potential of the Tablet PCs. Parents were written • 10 slate Tablet PCs without keyboards. to, as the pupils would be taking the hardware home, Queensbury did not have wireless access to the and they also came into the school to see the pupils using the equipment before taking it home. 40 Case study 8 Unfortunately, the parents of two students did not Using Tablet PCs in art want their children to take the machines home, as they envisaged family arguments over its use. Another A group of Year 11 students had just started using set of parents decided after two weeks that they did Tablet PCs to support their work in art lessons. As in not want the equipment at home owing to the project described above, to allow them to disagreements between the children in the family. continue their work away from the school some of the students had been allocated machines that they could Wordshark software combines computer games with take home. No special software was purchased for this the task of learning to read and spell. It has 36 work: the students used Paint and Journal as supplied different games, which use sound, graphics and text to with the machines. The students used the facilities teach and reinforce word recognition and spelling. available to them effectively to produce work showing Wordshark comes with a number of wordlists but the perspective. They found it easier to draw the teacher can add others. Once the teacher has chosen guidelines for perspective using the Tablet PC and pen the wordlist, the pupils can choose the game to play than using paper with a ruler and pencil. Indeed the with the particular wordlist. Students were expected use of the pen for drawing was seen as a positive to use at least two games with each wordlist (see advantage over both the touch pad on a laptop and below). The program also has a report area, where the the mouse on a desktop PC. The use of the Tablet PC teacher can see what games the students have played also allowed students to experiment, as they thought and what mistakes they made. of the work as more provisional than on paper; they could experiment with colour and, if they didn’t like the result, could erase it. The use of the Tablet PCs definitely motivated the students and raised their self- esteem; they became keen to show their work to their peers and staff. Wordshark image © Copyright White Space The ICT co-ordinator, who was also the form teacher for the pupils involved in the project, worked closely with the Head of English who used the equipment in Key lessons learned some of her lessons. The ICT co-ordinator supported the students in the selection of wordlists, encouraged • The Tablet PCs were robust and easy for the the students, and tested their reading abilities. Once students to carry to and from school in a way that the project had started and pupils were familiar with did not attract unwanted attention. the software, they mainly used the Tablet PCs at home. • Even though a wireless network would have been Registration periods and short meetings between the an advantage, the Tablet PCs were used effectively form tutor and individual pupils were used to monitor without this facility. progress and discuss concerns. • The Tablet PCs in this school did not have The results of this project, though obviously not keyboards, and though this limited their utility in statistically significant or able to be generalised, some respects it meant that the Tablet-specific showed increased reading ages for eight of the 12 facilities were used. pupils. Of the four who did not improve, three were those who did not take the equipment home. More • The pen appeared to be extremely easy to use in most respects – it was easier to use than either the interesting was the pupils’ reactions to the technology. touch pad on most laptops or the mouse with All students were generally positive and motivated towards the use of the equipment. The students desktops. showed a sense of pride when they talked about how • Students using the Tablet PCs seemed to have they showed members of their family how to use it. greater focus on the tasks set and closer involvement in them. Interesting comparisons between Tablet PCs and laptops emerged. The students using the Tablet PCs found the pen far easier to use than the touch pad on a laptop. Observations showed greater engagement with the Tablet PCs, with the students ‘wrapped around them’ and using them ‘as a more personal item’. The Tablet PC users also seemed keener to show what they had done, perhaps owing to the greater mobility of the Tablet PC. The Tablet PCs proved robust and students could easily slip them into their own bags. 41 Case study 9 Invicta Grammar School Overview of school Invicta Grammar School is situated on a five-hectare site on the edge of Maidstone, Kent. At the time of the case study it had 1,275 pupils on roll. A new £2.1-million block is due to open during 2005. The school maintains a high profile with strong university and business links. Description of ICT resources Using Tablet PCs in maths In this Year 8 statistics lesson, the teacher used an Overall resources ‘electronic worksheet’ to provide practice in measures Wireless networking was available throughout the of average. This was one of a sequence of lessons on site, providing access for students and staff to 733 this topic. The problem sheet was also used as part of computers, of which 480 were portable. The school’s a test set as homework and later marked by the eight servers supported a management information teacher. The students wrote their responses on the system encompassing a student database and finance sheet by hand, using the Tablet PC pen, and the software, as well as providing email and internet teacher marked them in the same way, with access. Students and teachers could also access the handwritten annotations. network from home. Tablet PCs and associated peripherals The school had three types of Tablet PC: convertibles with detachable keyboards running the original Tablet PC operating system; convertibles with twist/pivot- type keyboards running Tablet 2005; and slates running a mixture of the original Tablet PC operating system and Tablet 2005. Staff mainly used the convertibles, while 180 students in Year 8 used the slates. Most of these machines were purchased in 2003. Data projectors were available in most classrooms to link with Tablet PCs or laptops, and memory sticks were widely used by students and staff. Tablet PCs with a data projector were seen to address the need for whole-class presentation, as an alternative to interactive whiteboards. The level of technical support was increased so that it was readily available throughout the school day. The early models used proved not to be robust and screen damage predominated, but recent models were more reliable. The school’s preference was for the ‘convertible’ design, which they felt offered greater versatility. However, the greater cost of convertibles over slates and Tablet PCs over laptops was a major barrier. “We decided to purchase laptops for our current Year 7. This was due to price and weight. If there was a similar lightweight Tablet for the same cost, this would be my preferred option as they are more versatile.” Deputy Head and Director of ICT Strategy The school was also investigating the use of wireless data projectors, which would enable greater student Tablet PC interaction in whole-class settings. 42 Case study 9 A familiar element of whole-class maths teaching is working through examples of this kind with a class, usually using a presentation device such as an OHP, whiteboard or even a chalkboard. The school used this same approach but with the Tablet PC and incorporated its use in lesson planning. Again following a whole-class introduction and discussion, during which the teacher annotated and modified the shared resource, students then worked individually on that modified material. This approach was especially useful in being able to represent mathematical notation easily. “The Tablet PC is particularly useful in subjects like maths and science where the The Tablet PC pen enabled the teacher to easily use of a pen has considerable advantages modify what was being taught, in the light of over a mouse. Diagrams can be annotated students’ progress during the lesson. The technology allowed the teacher to discuss examples of classwork more easily.Templates can be filled in which with a group and incorporate agreed comments on saves the students time in copying diagrams. the assignment page, which individual students could It is possible to insert whole past papers into then work on further. In an additional activity, using Journal which students can then directly the Tablet PC and data projector like an interactive whiteboard, the teacher developed simple number work on.The technology allows accelerated quizzes with the class. and more independent learning.” Deputy Head The school also created its own video teaching sequences which were intended for revision or in situations where a student had missed a key lesson. These could be downloaded from the network by students. “If we were starting to introduce Tablet PCs again we would begin more modestly, with a phased introduction, perhaps issuing to one group and then when established increasing the number of groups using them. This allows the process to be more easily managed and supported.” Deputy Head 43 Case study 9 A student perspective Teachers used Tablet PCs for registration and to update student information at any time across the school site. A common feature of practice at the school was the use of Tablet PCs to annotate students’ work. For example a teacher could provide a commentary on a student’s critical writing, using the pen to add highlighting and margin notes to the text. “The nice thing here is being able to use the features of Word to write in Spanish. Using the Tablet pen it’s easy to add diagrams into the text. This is much better than using a mouse.” In German lessons, a similar approach was adopted, making use of the pen to annotate work on improving conversation, with handwritten corrections, reminders and other notes. A Year 8 student, whom we will call Sarah, used a slate- style Tablet PC with a USB keyboard. She took it everywhere, and was enthusiastic about it, saying: “I like the Tablet PC because it is lightweight and so easy to carry around. I enjoy using it. I can take it out of school and plug it into my computer at home. The only difficulty I had was when I lost a lot of work because of a computer virus problem. This taught me to backup files more regularly on the school network which I now always do more frequently.” Sarah explained that her coursework regularly required the use of ICT, and provided examples from the previous couple of weeks, which principally involved processing text using Word and Journal. In science, following a whole-class discussion, she first downloaded teaching notes from the school network into Journal. The teacher developed the topic by “Using the Tablet means I can easily find work I did some setting additional questions. Further text-based work time ago and revise or make any changes. It also means had included an evaluation of rock-and-roll music, a I don’t have to carry too many books around the school!” study of tourism in Kenya in geography, a case study of women priests in the Church of England in RE, a report on public sanitation in the eighteenth century Key lessons learned in history and an essay on ‘A Christmas to remember’ in English. Much of this work could have been written • Additional technical support was required to sustain the use of the Tablet PCs. on a conventional laptop computer, although the use of Journal provided extra features. Additional • Early models proved not to be robust. investigative work set by the teacher also involved the • The setting-up process took a considerable time to use of the internet to access outside information ensure that the appropriate ‘image’ was installed. sources, which Sarah easily achieved using the wireless network. • Using Tablet PCs, teachers and students were able to add handwritten notes, pictures and diagrams to In modern languages Sarah made use of the pen to text which made assignments more lively and include drawings and mind maps in the text. interesting. This proved to be a popular feature. 44 Case study 10 Cornwallis Technology College Overview of school The Cornwallis Technology College occupies a site of approximately 40 acres on the outskirts of Maidstone, Kent. At the time of this case study it was a large, non-selective 11–18 high school with over 1,600 pupils. Description of ICT resources operating system. Students in two Year 7 classes were each provided with a Tablet PC which they could The college maintained a high profile nationally in its choose to take home or leave in school. Class sets of use of ICT in teaching and learning through well Tablet PCs were provided for use in maths, English, developed partnerships with major IT companies, science, modern foreign languages, history, geography resulting in regular participation in research and and RE. The student Tablet PCs were all slates running leading-edge projects. An evolving ICT strategy was the original Tablet PC operating system and with intended to promote an environment of independent either 10.4” or 12.1” screens. Technical support, learning, with teachers adopting a facilitating role. increased to take account of Tablet PC needs, was Where students had a strength in ICT in a particular available at all times during the working day. area, they were encouraged to use it and become ‘experts’, providing help for their classmates. Using Tablet PCs in science Anytime, anywhere access was provided via wireless networking, available throughout the site and A Year 10 class of 20 students were studying the topic supporting the college’s 800 computers, 300 of which ‘Being healthy’, which was planned over a sequence of were arranged in clusters in 15 areas. The remainder lessons. These lessons took place in a traditional were laptops or Tablet PCs. science classroom using six large square tables with electrics centrally positioned. These power supplies proved useful to support the Tablet PCs for each student, avoiding any ‘battery life’ problems. Since “It is often the case that adults looking at the Tablets will ask why these Tablet PCs had no keyboards, all text entry took not use laptop or paper instead of the Tablet when the task place using the pen and the onscreen keyboard. The appears to be a trivial one and the Tablet technology is not used teacher used a data projector linked to a convertible to its full potential, eg annotating what could essentially be a Tablet PC to introduce the topic. Sessions took place in a darkened room, so that the Tablet PCs’ screens were paper-based task. What is important here is to understand that the easily visible. Tablets allow the pupils a fresh start with their learning. A pupil After some core teaching had taken place, students may have failed with paper technologies and more paper-based were asked to demonstrate their understanding of the activities repeat the failure. The Tablet allows a new beginning topic, using mainly text processing, desktop where previous patterns of behaviour and learning can be broken. publishing, presentation and animation software on the Tablet PCs. For example, using PowerPoint, they Motivation thus increases, behaviour improves, and more children developed an electronic exercise book in which they are actively engaged in the learning process.” entered their findings. This contained some teacher- Advanced Skills Teacher/ICT Project Manager generated material which included questions, as well as ‘writing frames’ into which students could add their commentaries. The students used digital ink, handwriting on the slides with the Tablet PC pens, and Tablet PCs and associated peripherals creating drawings and annotations. The college had been using Tablet PCs since October The next task required them to investigate the 2002, with the main purchases taking place in the respiratory system and the links between exercise and summer of 2003. They identified portable technology keeping fit. They were provided with an ‘e-book’, each as being a significant component of their strategy of page of which set tasks such as annotating, drawing ‘Putting Learners First’. All staff were allocated a a diagram, labelling, taking notes electronically or convertible Tablet PC running the original Tablet PC using a prepared animation sequence (from a USB memory stick). 45 Case study 10 In another science lesson, adopting a similar approach, students created presentations on the life of the lion. Using the microphone on the Tablet PCs they recorded short audio clips to enhance their presentations, including the audio links on the slides. Students also developed wordsearch puzzles easily, using the Tablet PC pens and saving their handwriting as digital ink. Respiratory System image Copyright © British Broadcasting Corporation, 2000 http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/ks3bitesize/science/ biology/respiration1_2.shtml Sometimes they were required to create their own Flash animation to illustrate some action of the body, such as describing how we breathe. Some student ‘Flash experts’ helped those less familiar with Flash animation. The teacher had uploaded to the Science Faculty web pages some additional resources, which students could access in school – or sometimes at home as part of a homework exercise. At the end of a The students used the Tablet PCs to summarise the session, the students either saved their work on USB topic and take notes about key points during the memory sticks or on the server for the teacher to lesson. Work could later be displayed on the school assess later. All of these activities were considerably website, which was accessible by parents and other aided by the wireless networking. students and teachers. 46 Case study 10 Student ownership of Tablet PCs in Year 7 A Year 7 pupil, whom we will call Ali, was an enthusiastic Tablet PC user. He took his Tablet PC with him wherever he went, including his home. He liked its light weight and portability and its ‘extra features’:“The nice thing about Tablets is you don’t have to bring to school extra things like pens and paper. On the Tablet it’s easier to write on the screen and to drag shapes – more difficult if I’m using a mouse.” Ali was an ‘expert user’ and during lessons regularly helped other students find files or overcome some technical difficulty. This was much appreciated by fellow students and by teachers. He described some of the ICT-related class activities he had undertaken in the previous few days. In science he had investigated how microscopes were constructed, searching websites and taking notes, and had looked at digital cell images to investigate differences in the blood cells in humans and other animals. In maths Ali used the Tablet PC pen to write his answers to a numeracy test on an electronic worksheet prepared by the teacher. In English, the topic being investigated and discussed was using animal testing to cure diseases in humans, work derived from the National Geographic ‘Kids’ website. Handwriting recognition proved useful when diagrams were included on PowerPoint slides. Titles and labelling would be handwritten on a slide and then easily converted to text. Alternatively, he often saved his handwriting as digital ink. A history topic on the Gunpowder Plot resulted in creation of a short presentation for a year assembly, developed on the Tablet PC, describing events of that period. Ali enjoyed lessons in which ICT had a role:“Using Tablets makes learning memorable.” Key lessons learned • The college’s sophisticated ICT infrastructure provided a sound basis on which to integrate Tablet PCs into everyday practice. • Identifying student ‘expert users’ was an effective way of encouraging collaborative use and resolving technical issues. • Ensuring that there was enough ‘just-in-time’ technical support was important – especially in the early stages of implementation, when reliability proved a problem. • As with any new technology, staff could easily become discouraged when technical issues dominated. 47 Case study 11 The Coleshill School Overview of school This is a secondary school in a small country town close to a large conurbation. At the time of the case study it had 1,027 pupils and had recently been designated a Maths and Computing College. Some 70% of the pupils came from within the catchment area, with 30% from the nearby conurbation.The school buildings were mainly constructed in the late 1950s. Description of ICT resources On successive ‘turns’, £18 in coins was moved into Bill’s pile while £12 was moved to Jane’s. This was then Coleshill had around 165 PCs arranged in four main represented numerically. This demonstration was suites and satellite areas. It had three servers, wireless followed with a board exercise and pupils then and broadband access, two full-time technicians and completed exercises in their books. They were settled some laptops. and worked well. Tablet PCs and associated peripherals The lesson was not entirely typical: such a concrete representation would not usually be used with the top Coleshill was part of Warwickshire’s ‘We-learn’ project set. The strength of this use was that it enabled [http://www.we-learn.com/pfi/]. Teacher Toolkits physical movement or re-arrangement of number and provided by the project were installed in 34 classrooms. components – thus supporting moving from concrete Each Teacher Toolkit consisted of a slate-style Tablet PC to more abstract mathematical representation. It was running Tablet 2005, with USB keyboard; data projector an example of extending rather than supporting or and wall-mounted PC; wireless access; the use of transforming the curriculum (although uses by this remote control software (NetOp), a server and teacher in other classes were transformational). This broadband access. It also included a virtual teaching lesson could have been done on a laptop. However, environment (Kaleidos) together with other software the facility for drawing and handwriting was used a and a managed service that provided limited on-site lot, and examples were shown in response to support. The Teacher Toolkits were used in particular particular student queries, which could not have been areas of the curriculum at Key Stage 3. replicated on a laptop. It could also have been done using an interactive whiteboard, but this would have necessitated the teacher always remaining at the front of the class, whereas with the Tablet PC and wireless “The obvious problem is the time to switch on the Tablet and log connection he could move around the class during on twice in order to take control of the wall machine….If you are the lesson, which he felt helped with classroom in the same classroom the entire day and can leave the Tablet in control. Finally, real coins could have been used, but the there turned on then this wouldn’t be a problem. BUT…in the real very classes that this would help the most would get distracted and it would provide opportunities for many world, we have to move around from classroom to classroom…” off-task activities. The teacher had worked previously Humanities teacher with interactive whiteboards and this experience of what was possible influenced his approach to using the Tablet PC as part of the Teacher Toolkit. Using a Teacher Toolkit with the top Students’ use of a Tablet PC maths set in Year 10 As described above, much of the Tablet PC use was The Teacher Toolkit was used for projecting onto the for whole-class teaching by the teacher. During such whiteboard in a lesson about ratios. The lesson whole class teaching the Tablet PC could be passed showed how different allocations of physical objects around between students so that they could present (that is, how they are divided) are represented by their responses or ideas. ratios in maths. It enabled a quasi-concrete representation of money (shown as pound coins) and A Year 8 (mixed ability) geography class played ‘The Millionaire Game’. This lesson was a plenary of the demonstrated how this could be divided up in a ratio volcano topic from the ‘Natural hazards’ scheme of of 3:2. The problem set was that Bill and Jane win £30 work. The teacher used a PowerPoint template for a in the lottery and share the winnings in the ratio 3:2. version of the TV ‘Who wants to be a Millionaire?’ This was illustrated by a screen showing three ‘boxes’: game found on the internet (adapted by Mark one with £30 in coins in it, and one box each for Bill Damon) and developed questions from the students’ and Jane – initially empty. current work on volcanoes. He chose the first student 48 Case study 11 and then the Tablet PC was passed around from Key lessons learned student to student to see who would be the millionaire. The game included questions such as: A number of • Introducing Teacher Toolkits had made a positive impact in the curriculum areas involved in the volcanoes can be found along the Pacific Ring of: a) project. Fire; b) Flames; c) The Friendship or d) Friends. The ‘ask the audience’ and ‘phone a friend’ features • Using the Teacher Toolkits enabled access to a much wider range of resources and a move away from the TV game were used. Students were focused from textbooks. and found this activity highly enjoyable – and it also involved a sound use of subject knowledge. This • Using the Teacher Toolkits increased the pace of example of use would not have worked as well with lessons. laptops, which would have been much more cumbersome to pass around between the students. • The Tablet PC use supported and extended the curriculum and both the teachers involved in this Both the teachers who were the focus of this case case study saw how the technology had already study used this form of interactive whole-class transformed aspects of their teaching or could do teaching in which the Tablet PC was passed among so in the future. the pupils. They both found that the students were • Loading-up and synchronisation time can be excited and motivated by working in this way, and it problematic at the start of the lessons. engaged students who in other lessons were often easily distracted. For example, the maths teacher • Using the Teacher Toolkits required extra time for preparation of resources and lessons by teachers as developed lessons in Easiteach about number well as extra time for the ICT co-ordinator. patterns and formulae where the students used the Tablet PC to create and demonstrate number patterns: • Teacher ownership of the Tablet PCs would have their task was to drag squares and place them in been more efficient than allocating them to particular arrangements to produce a sequence of specific classrooms, as it would have facilitated numbers. teacher familiarisation and lesson preparation. Individual students also sometimes used the Tablet PC. The school was at an early stage of use; nevertheless For example, in another lesson a student with ‘severe in the areas covered by the project, Tablet PCs were special educational needs’ was finding it very difficult heavily used for whole classroom teaching. to draw the diagrams needed for a project. The teacher set up an Easiteach resource so that the student could use the Tablet PC to drag and drop elements to produce the required diagrams, which she found much less frustrating. 49 Case study 12 Wilmslow High School Overview of school The school is located in a country town. At the time of the case study its catchment area included a wide surrounding area which was predominantly medium to high income. The school had recently been awarded Sports College status, which resulted in many students entering the sixth form directly. Description of ICT resources Using the Tablet PCs for sports analysis Overall resources To support the evaluation and analysis of performance The school staff had use of 78 PCs and 77 laptops during teaching sessions, a digital video camera was and there were a further 380 PCs and 60 laptops for set up in the sports hall and gym. The digital images student use. Virtually all computers were connected to from the camera were fed into a Tablet PC and a a fast Ethernet network and to a 10Mbps broadband specialist program called Swinger Pro was used to link. A 54Mbps wireless network was available in many display the results on the Tablet PC’s screen. By using a parts of the school for use with the laptops and ‘delay feed’ option, the student could execute a Tablet PCs. complete performance or routine and then view the feedback, either individually or with the teacher. The Tablet PCs and associated peripherals camera could be set to record the performance at the The main motivation behind the school’s decision to same time, enabling it to be reviewed later in another purchase laptops was an Ofsted requirement to lesson or location. increase ICT usage. They wanted PE staff to be able to use IT continuously, both in the classroom and in Coaching the high, deep serve in Badminton sports activity areas. The PE department decided that A group of eight Year 10 girls were practising this new laptops were not suitable either for outside use or in skill in the Sports Hall. Their coach recapped the the gym and other areas where there were no desks. technique and stressed the need firstly to position the The PE department therefore decided to buy their body and feet correctly and secondly to follow the staff Tablet PCs that they could use standing up. stroke through. After some initial practice, the girls Several staff had poor IT skills and it was felt that a were split between two courts, each serving six Tablet PC would enable them to write instead of using shuttles across the net to the receiving court. The a keyboard. They would also be able to interact with Tablet PC and camera were set up to video the server the network wherever they were. on one court. Each girl was encouraged to study her The PE department purchased 12 convertible Tablet performance, identify strengths and weaknesses and PCs, running the original Tablet operating system, record them on a prepared paper template. for use by its staff to support administration, preparation and teaching of PE. These were allocated Focusing on straight legs during a to individuals in September 2004. PE staff were located gymnastics routine in several offices sited near the various sports teaching A class of 18 girls from Year 7, a ‘less able’ group, were areas, which had previously made direct practising their individual prepared gymnastics communication difficult. routines on mats in the gym. A group of mats was The Tablet PCs had access to the school network and positioned at one end with the Tablet PC and video the internet from within the school campus, using a camera set up to focus on this area. wireless connection in outdoor PE areas and classrooms, and a wired connection in offices. Performance mat At the same time as introducing the Tablet PCs, the PE department created a rich electronic teachers’ resource pack to support the four strands of the recently restructured sports curriculum: Health-related knowledge and understanding, Improvement and assessment, Tactics and composition application, and Skill development (HITS). This electronic resource pack Tablet Video for HITS was stored on both the server and the PC camera Tablet PCs. 50 Case study 12 The girls were asked to identify various requirements of the routine such as balance, straight legs or flow The focus of the lesson was the cardiovascular system. The teacher had identified a link to an online between positions. Following individual practice, girls crossword covering this aspect. Using the Tablet PC, who had not yet viewed their performance with the network connection and the data projector, he video and Tablet PC were allocated turns. They each displayed the crossword on the whiteboard. The performed their routine on the block of mats and students’ task was to answer as many of the clues as watched themselves afterwards on the Tablet PC. possible in a given time, recording their answers on paper. Students volunteered answers, and any This was a new experience for them and they were a incorrect answers or misconceptions were identified little self-conscious. However, with the teacher’s help, and explained by students or the teacher. they were able to identify the positive aspects of their performance and the aspects that needed practice. Key lessons learned The camera had also recorded the session and during the next lesson the video was shown to the group. • With a diverse range of initial ICT skills and The class analysed individual performances. Students confidence it was important to move slowly. were encouraged to focus solely on straight legs and • To build ICT skills they needed to engage staff in to identify movements in the routine which satisfied the use of ICT. this criterion. Then they focused on aspects where legs were not straight and, where they were not, were • Administration and preparation was a good place to start, as staff could soon see benefits. encouraged to analyse why. • A good electronic resource, such as the HITS teacher resource pack, proved to be of Use of the Tablet PCs by sports staff recognisable value. for administration, preparation and classroom teaching • The use of Tablet PCs was expanded by providing teachers with concrete examples of how they The new HITS resource pack contained details of could be used and by creating a bank of useful student/staff timetables which identified for every electronic resources such as video clips, images session the unit and lesson number. It also contained and internet links. lesson plans and a store of resources. The result of using Tablet PCs alongside these As soon as staff arrived in the morning they switched approaches was that staff had begun to expand their on their Tablet PCs to access emails and check their use of ICT into preparation and teaching in both teaching commitments for the day. Unless they were classrooms and sports areas. Previously much of the needed for teaching or registration, the Tablet PCs usage focused on the Tablet PCs’ wireless connectivity remained in position ready for use in spare time and and portability. With the advent of better weather and lesson breaks. the staff’s improved confidence in their use, they expected to expand usage to take fuller advantage of the slate orientation and features. In the four months they had been using the Tablet PCs, the major achievement had been to engage and excite the staff in using the machines not only for administration and planning, but also in some of their teaching. They were looking forward to expanding the use of the Tablet PC’s features, particularly those that distinguish it from a laptop. Covering staff absence At the start of the day a member of teaching staff phoned in sick. The timetables were checked on the Tablet PC and cover staff identified. Supply staff were provided with printed copies of the registers and lesson plans. Other PE staff were emailed details of their requirement to cover. An anatomy and physiology revision lesson One member of staff used his Tablet PC to check the HITS resource pack for information on the lesson and then search the internet for some visual material to use with his Tablet PC and a data projector in the classroom. 51 Benchmarking of the case study schools The case study schools were benchmarked in order to see if their performance was comparable to other similar schools in the 2004 academic year. Where comparable data was available, no significant differences in performance were found between the case study schools and their ‘matched’ schools. Procedure Key Stage 2 We drew up a list of comparator schools matched Each of the six target primary schools was according to the following measures listed in order of benchmarked using Key Stage 2 average point scores, importance. defined by the DfES as the points allocated to each pupil's results in each test, divided by the total number 1. Phase of education (primary or secondary) of eligible pupils in each subject. A between-subjects 2. Location (urban or rural) analysis of variance (Anova) was conducted with the type of school (target or comparator institution) as the 3. Acorn group type (demographic information on independent variable, and performance score as the the schools based on postcodes) dependent variable. No significant difference was 4. Sex (single sex or mixed sex) found between these two groups for performance in 2004. 5. Statutory lowest and highest ages of entry (including sixth form, where possible) Secondary schools 6. School size (total number of pupils) Secondary schools were benchmarked using the 7. Proximity (schools within the same LEA, average point scores per 15-year-old for GCSEs and where possible) GNVQs (calculated by dividing the total number of A comparator ratio of at least one target school to points achieved by students aged 15 by the number two comparator schools was employed and the of 15-year-olds on roll) and, where appropriate, using independent variable used to conduct the average point scores per examination entry for GCE benchmarking was school type (target or comparator). and VCEs (calculated as the sum of the points The dependent variable was drawn from a range of awarded to each 16–18-year-old student, divided by nationally available performance data from the 2004 the total number of GCE/VCE examination entries). academic year. Again, between-subjects Anovas were conducted with school type as the independent variable and performance outcome as the dependent variable for Infant school and special school both GCSE and GCE examinations. No significant These two schools could not be benchmarked difference was found between these two groups for owing to lack of available comparative institutions performance in 2004. and/or data. 52 References A companion publication ‘Tablet PCs in schools: A review of literature and selected projects’ SHEEHY, K; KUKULSKA-HULME, A; TWINING, P; EVANS, D; COOK, D and JELFS, A with RALSTON, J; SELWOOD, I; JONES, A; HEPPELL, S; SCANLON, E; UNDERWOOD, J and McANDREW, P (2005) is also available. Download from http://www.becta.org.uk/research/reports BECTA (2004) Technical paper – Tablet PC http://www.becta.org.uk/subsections/foi/ documents/technology_and_education_research/ tablet_pc.doc (Accessed 5 March 2005) TOSHIBA (2004) Tablet PC: The ultimate teaching and learning tool http://uk.computers.toshiba-europe.com/cgi- bin/ToshibaCSG/case_studies.jsp?service=UK&ID= 0000001325&theme=NONE (Accessed 25 February 2005) TWINING, P (2002) Enhancing the impact of investments in educational ICT http://kn.open.ac.uk/public/document.cfm? documentid=2515 (Accessed 30 March 2005) 53 British Educational Communications and Technology Agency © Copyright Becta 2005 Millburn Hill Road, Science Park, You may reproduce this material free of charge in any format or medium Coventry CV4 7JJ without specific permission, provided you are not reproducing it for profit, or for material or financial gain. 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