No More Pencils, No More Books: School Only Uses iPads

We're one step closer to the days portrayed in science fiction movies where students use futuristic devices in schools instead of the traditional textbooks and spiral notebooks. A school in Scotland has decided to use the Apple iPad as the main method to learn and study.

Cedars School of Excellence, a Christian school in Scotland, has converted to the iPad for its entire curriculum. All 105 students, ages five to 15, will receive lessons, study learning material, take notes and do homework exclusively on the iPad.

"We wanted to give each of the pupils an opportunity to use the best equipment available," Computing teacher Fraser Speirs told the Daily Record. "Each of the children will have their own iPad, which is hooked into the school's wireless network and from there they will use the computers for learning in different subjects."

Students will only be able to access approved websites, and obviously curricula will not include Flash-based content. However, the YouTube app will allow them to watch educational videos , and the students will take advantage of the other myriad learning tools on the Internet.

Speirs is documenting the whole experiment on his blog. He also talks about the technical hurdles of using iPads in the classroom, such as finding the right apps for students and keeping the network intact. The school is already two weeks into the new iPad curriculum, and appears to be doing well so far.

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