iPad problems

 

iPads are still relatively new in the world of technology and their value in the classroom is becoming recognised more and more.  With the more recent release of the iPad mini these child friendly mobile devices are being snapped up in bulk by many schools around the world.  The small problem here is that when Apple invented this wonderful device it was designed for personal use – one person with one iTunes account.  I don’t think apple even foresaw the interest that schools would show.

The iPad really is an all singing, all dancing piece of kit, but as with most technology it needs to be well managed, updated regularly and have software (apps) installed manually.  Whilst this isn’t an issue for a small number of devices, once a school has a large number of them the manageability becomes problematic.

The main issue for schools is the organisation of iTunes accounts.  In some parts of the world Apple now have Volume Purchase Program (VPP) for Education that does make things a lot easier, but is limited to a few countries around the world. Without it schools are left with a massive headache and financial conundrum - the biggest problem for schools being legality.

We met recently with representatives from Apple Education who came up with a number of options for us, however I was somewhat shocked that every solution they gave didn’t provide anything that we ourselves hadn’t already considered.

Option A

Create one image on one (master) iPad and clone the other devices. 

Apple made it very clear to us that option A was not an option!  Many schools had started down this route and Apple were insisting that this changed immediately.

I don’t think anyone could argue with this – it’s certainly not fair to app designers, and schools would want to stay legal anyway.

Option B

Create an iTunes account for each iPad and use them as you would use personal devices by purchasing what you need on each device each time.

Personally I see this as a ridiculous solution.  Has anyone ever really tried doing this with 50+ devices!  And…who’s credit card would be used for this?

Option C

Create iTunes accounts for every device, but only use one account to purchase from and then ‘gift’ the apps to all the other accounts.

A couple of major issues pop up here.  One is that every iTunes account must have its own email address.  This can be solved by using a ‘+’ sign when creating the accounts which emails will bounce past to the main account.  For example, myschoolipad@gmail.com is the master account and myschoolipad+1@gmail.com myschoolipad+2@gmail.com can all be used.  Email servers will ignore everything after the ‘+’ sign and send everything to the master account.

The second issue is that iTunes will block a credit card if it used for multiple purchases in a short space of time, so schools would have to contact apple to let them know their planned purchase dates to ensure they don’t block the creditcard.  The whole process is still massively time consuming and schools would need to employ someone to do this tedious job.

We asked if it would be possible to buy the apps in bulk and not bother with the gifting.  Although their could be ways to do this with the help of Apple HQ it was felt that if the apps weren’t gifted then they hadn’t actually been used as such.

There are other issues at play here too - which iTunes store to use, who’s credit card to use, giftcards not being available in all countries.  All of these elements leave schools with a bigger and bigger headache.

OK, I accept that the volume purchase program is coming, but it may not be available in all countries for a few years.  Until it is schools have this issue to contend with on a daily basis.

Oh yes, and to top it off, once the VPP is in place, any purchases made before hand will be lost.  For some schools this could amount to thousands of dollars!

I can’t say I really know the solution to this, but I can’t say I blame schools who take the risk of operating illegally and choosing option A whilst waiting for the VPP to be put in place.

The best solution in my opinion is to accept the iPad for what it is - a personal device.  Opt for a BYOD (bring your own device) program, or even if you provide the iPad for staff and students, let them manage their own device and iTunes account.

If not, insist that your school employ someone to manage them, or alternatively expect some very long hours for you and your technical team every time an update is released and every time someone asks for new apps to be installed!

Comments below please!

Countdown timers can be fun to use in class

A great way to use countdown timers is to find a website that generates the HTML code for a timer and get the students to create their own.  Possibly count down to the end of term, holidays, birthdays or special events.

The HTML code can easily be added to a blog or class webpage.