Teaching with a Tablet PC

When it comes to technological teaching tools it's hard to go past the Tablet PC. When discussing the Tablet PC, the author includes laptops and tablets that have touch capability with both finger and pen. One type of Tablet PC, (and the one which the name Tablet PC was derived), is a fully capable laptop with a screen that can swivel and fold down face up so that it doubles as a tablet. Today the laptop version is being replaced by tablets with attachable keyboards such as the Surface Pro®. The screen of an ideal Tablet PC allows both multi-touch with the fingers and interaction with a pen. This allows one to do anything that can be done with a tablet and it allows precision writing with a pen device. If we add a web cam and some screen recording software we have a very flexible package indeed. This is a system that will allow one to record lectures, to prerecord videos and even assignment marking to be done in a quick and efficient manner. With this system there is no need to have a lecture recording system such as iLecture® or Echo360® in a classroom. All that is required is a data projector.

Using a Tablet PC for the classroom or lecture hall is becoming more and more common. (R. Anderson et al., 2003; R. J. Anderson, Anderson, VanDeGrift, Wolfman, & Yasuhara, 2003; Gill, 2007; Hulls, 2005; Mock, 2004)

The uptake of the laptop style Tablet PC still seems to be slow. Anecdotally, this is due to a perceived effort to learn a new system. However, if an increase in productivity is seen, a faculty will be willing to spend time on the Tablet PC’s introduction to the faculty. (J. E. Anderson, Schwager, & Kerns, 2006) This has been alleviated with the new Surface Pro® tablets which have seen a much larger uptake.

Various studies have been undertaken that show that the student productivity and interaction does indeed increase with the use of the Tablet PC. (Koile & Singer, 2006; Willis & Miertschin, 2004).

Understanding that the Tablet PC can enhance student productivity is well and good, However,  for the most effective use, that the students each have a Tablet PC.