[Phys-L] Re: suudent problems wireless in class

[mungan at USNA.EDU (Carl E. Mungan)]

> Actually that gives the laptops a bit of an advantage in a
> computerized classroom. If they have monitors in front of them, they
> can hide behind them and there isn't much the teacher can do, but
> with laptops, you can make them close the lids and keep track of the
> status of the lids easily. So having laptops can be an advantage. It
> gets harder, though, if they are taking class notes on their laptop.
> I rather think that that is not the best way to take notes in a
> science class, though (hard to do pictures and equations quickly on a
> computer), so students shouldn't be using their laptops for that,
> anyway.

For the reasons Hugh nicely outlines above, there has been some
discussion in the department to make a move toward "tablets" (PC
"slate" style) in at least some electronic classrooms. If you have
not seen these, they are small (so don't hide the student and can be
put down flat on the table so no one else can copy during an e-quiz),
battery operated (so no cords to drag around), and you can write on
them with a pen (so can draw pictures and equations). They are a bit
pricey, especially with wireless connectivity options, and vulnerable
to being dropped or stolen.

example website about tablets in classrooms:
<http://www.nitle.org/rsrc_issues_tabletpc.php>

I've not used them much, but some profs in the dept are very keen on
trying them. Since it's a significant financial investment, I wonder
if others have tried them? Carl
--
Carl E. Mungan, Asst. Prof. of Physics  410-293-6680 (O) -3729 (F)
       U.S. Naval Academy, Stop 9C, Annapolis, MD 21402-5040
mailto:mungan@usna.edu       http://usna.edu/Users/physics/mungan/