“Tablets within the English Classroom”

            Technology that is used outside the classroom recently allowed for me to have an eye-opening experience. As I was substituting in a High School a student had her Ipad on her. As she was engulfed into her screen I asked her kindly if this activity was appropriate for the classroom. She simply put that she needed her kindle application to finish her reading that was due. As I gazed at her screen I noticed she was reading “The Fault in our Stars”. This book had an over powering impact on my adult life in the last few years. This book made me ready for troubling instances, and conversations within the classroom. Before this post turns into a promotion of John Green, allow me to focus on this student. I took trust within her as a substitute to allow her to engage in possibly an outlawed device within her school. I read the handbook, and tablets were not on the list of objects not welcomed within the classroom. I was covering a “flex” period (study hall) and was just moved that she was taken the time to actually engage in her schoolwork.

            I literally took note of this in my notebook. Kindles, Ipads, and tablets are some of the newest forms of technology. Though these devices are easily prone for distraction, they connect the students instantly with endless amounts of information. Particularly when it comes to literature. I later learned that Wi-Fi is turned off within most public schools in the area. This allows the students to only access what is originally saved, prior to class. As a future English educator tablets allow for literature to be one click away for the students. Some schools only have a limited amount of hard copies. Tablets offer many free versions of literature (especially canonical classics). In college alone I have downloaded close to one hundred texts on my Ipad. The tablet has been a way for me to stay relevant within my classroom discussions. The student I confronted also showed me how she had each book from her summer reading list on her tablet.

            Though distracting, a tablet can be tremendously beneficial, especially in an English classroom. When a student is reading he or she may have trouble with a certain word in a text. When the text is in hard copy form they may look over the word and move on never fully understanding what they have just read. More importantly, they just past on an opportunity to grow academically. A tablet allows for the word in question to be defined immediately with one tap of the screen.

            Also, I promote reading with a pen in hand. Even when reading for leisure I do so to better myself. I scribble, underline, and comment as each form of literature is read. Students are able to highlight as they read just as easy with a tablet. While they highlight they are able to make quick notes and later these notes are easily accessible. They can search their notes and compare them to the world of readers who to have highlighted in the same text. I do not want to see a classroom full of distracting tablets in front of each and every student. I do however, believe tablets can and will be immensely beneficial for my future learners of literature. I love carrying a book. I love the feeling of turning a page. Tablets are just a way to connect a more technological society to the world of academics.