Tablet Program: January 2012

• February
• 5

9:04 am Tablets

The winter tablet program winner is Mike Donovan for his proposal to use a tablet during science explorations outside the classroom. His complete proposal is below the fold.

Most of the time, high school science classes work on things inside the classroom.  My background as an environmental scientist was spent doing science outside – sampling terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and determining  what was living there, how the organisms were doing, and what the future would hold for these organisms under various man-made or natural changes.  I would like to be able to expose my classes to more outside science, and a tablet would be a wonderful way to collect and disseminate data quickly by using the portal and STJLabs.

I plan to make myself available as a resource to others.  Every science teacher here at STJA feels as I do – we do not spend as much time on real world (outside) investigations because we don’t have the time to set up and implement outdoor labs.  If I can set up the system, others can and will use it.

Data collection and dissemination is always a problem.  Taking notes on paper can be messy in damp weather, and the copying and distribution of the material is always slower than we’d like.  With a tablet, students could have almost immediate access to data, and then be able to work up that data as part of a homework assignment.  Using the data you collect immediately is a real benefit to holding a student’s interest and connecting field work to classroom work.

My knowledge of the portal and STJLabs is limited, but I know it would be a great help to my students in doing real science.  If I receive a tablet, I will make sure to learn the intricacies of the portal so I can use it well.

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