ABLET
PC's have been around for almost two years now, and while they have not yet
proved to be the revolutionary change agents that they were billed as in
November 2002, they are starting to carve a niche for themselves in certain
corners of the digital world.
Industries like health care and insurance
have embraced tablet PC's, which can speed the processing of records and forms.
While tablets, which account for only about 1 percent of the market for notebook
computers, are still generally more expensive than laptops with comparable
specifications, prices have started to fall. And last month,
Microsoft released an updated version of its Windows XP Tablet PC operating
system that offers improved handwriting recognition, addressing one of the chief
complaints about the earlier version.
But perhaps the most promising area
so far is in the classroom, a setting in which portable devices with handwriting
capabilities would seem to make sense. Educators at a handful of schools, many
of them private high schools, are pressing ahead with plans to issue students
tablet PC's for use in English, foreign language, math, science and social
studies classes.
At some schools, the hope is to do away with paper
notebooks, on the way to eliminating as much paper as possible. In that vision,
students would take tests electronically, read their textbooks online and send
their homework by e-mail. Proponents say the devices can improve interaction
among teachers and students and increase opportunities for critical thinking by
cutting down on busywork.
One factor that favors educators is that
students seem to like tablets, especially the pen-based interface that takes the
place of a mouse and keyboard.
"That was undoubtedly the best and coolest
part," said John Stanton, a senior last year at Cathedral Preparatory School in
Erie, Pa., who took part in a pilot program to test the devices.
Mr.
Stanton, 18, was on the school's debate team, and he used a tablet PC to take
notes and prepare responses during debates. He said the tablet kept pace with
swift handwriting and was useful because he could quickly call up his writings
from earlier rounds.
Administrators at Cathedral Prep had initially
considered laptops, but switched to tablet PC's after early testing by staff
members. "We did not want to get caught up with the novelty of this thing," said
the Rev. Scott W. Jabo, headmaster at Cathedral Prep. "The more we were using
it, we saw a lot of practical uses."
Cathedral Prep issued tablet PC's to
160 ninth graders when they started classes this month, with the goal of
eliminating paper notebooks and centralizing study materials on a device linked
to the school's wireless network. The device chosen by the school, a model from
Acer, has a 10-inch screen and weighs about three pounds. Like most consumer
tablets, it includes a standard keyboard and can function as a laptop when the
screen is repositioned.
School officials said they paid $1,350 per
device, which included volume and education discounts. Students will be charged
a technology fee, to be added to tuition over four years, to cover the cost of
the device plus warranties, software and a book bag.
Tablet PC's run
essentially the same Windows-based programs as other computers. But instead of a
mouse, there is a stylus, or pen, that can be used for navigation by touching
the screen. The pen also can take the place of the keyboard; users can handwrite
directly in programs, using an on-screen input panel, or by tapping letters and
numbers on an on-screen keyboard. Programs designed specifically for the tablet
PC, like Microsoft's Windows Journal, enable freeform handwriting that can be
converted to text or saved in the original "digital ink" format.
Beyond
using them for taking notes and reading, some schools have developed detailed
plans to integrate tablet PC's into their curriculums. At the Benjamin School, a
private day school in North
Palm Beach, Fla., eighth graders tested the devices last year in history and
English, while teachers had their own units so they could explore ways to
integrate them in all subjects.
This year all ninth graders at the school,
about 100 students, will be using their own tablets, a model from Gateway with a
14-inch screen, in all of their classes. The school has a new campus with a
wireless network; students and teachers will have access to collaborative
software, interactive whiteboards at the front of the class and classroom
management tools, as well as the Internet and personal file-storage space.
