Ok. I will be honest – this story really freaked me out.
Last night on World News with Diane Sawyer there was a report about infants and toddlers using iPads. You can watch the piece and read it here.
Essentially, the students that will be arriving in 10-15 years will have grown up with an iPad or tablet. The story showed a young child who could not even navigate a regular magazine **with pages**; she was trying to move the pages with her hands along the “tablet.”
While we can’t really understand what the students will be like in the next 10 years — we are still coming to terms with what they are like NOW — they will be even more digitally connected than they are now. I wonder if they will ever have read a “real” book. This piece shows toddlers learning to read on their tablets, and not with a “Pat the Bunny” book.
I have an iPad and am still getting used to the whole idea. The last post here was about students who in five years will be arriving who CREATE apps while I am just learning how to use them.
This next generation will be even MORE connected to technology and digital access to information.
That said, I would like to give a plug for two important discussions coming up in November:
Tuesday, November 1 (11:30-12:45): Discussion of the Information Literacy Plan distributed via email by Hoover Library Director Jessame Ferguson. (Details have already been emailed)
and
Tuesday, November 15 (11:30-12:45): the third part of our 3-part series on “Who Are Our Students and How Can We Meaningfully Engage Them?” We will be talking about technology and teaching at this discussion. More details to follow.
What do you think about Infants and Toddlers with iPads?
Center for Faculty Excellence at McDaniel College 
Not sure how I feel about the toddlers, but I will share this story. A few years ago my nephew suffered a serious head injury, causing permanent damage. At five, he is still not verbally communicating, and at times has trouble walking, he also started kindergarden. In his public school, which was recently main streamed, he attends class with “normal” students and then gets some special IEP time. They’ve given him an Ipad. Further, when he gets fussy he LOVES toys that make noise… and now playing games on the Iphone. The AMAZING thing… he knows how to find the game, and how to make it work on the tiny IPhone device. I can only imagine how much this will help him with communication wants he masters the IPad. We’re a book loving family, he’ll always have books to read from us. I am impressed by the use of technology to help those that need it, and by the child’s ability to make it work…
I’ll second that. My partner Scott teaches at the Kennedy Krieger school (k-8), where most of the students are on the autism spectrum. Many of the students have started to use iPads to great effect especially with the nonverbal kids. iPads are easier to use than the more traditional communication aids for many of them.