The afternoon Apple launched the iPad, my cell phone lit up. It
was a text from one of my fellow technology facilitator in our
district. She wanted to know what I thought about the device. I
replied with a text smiley face. Then my Assistant
Superintendent called. The topic was no surprise. You guessed
it- iPad.The question was one that caught me scratching my head-
“could we possibly implement iPads in place of netbooks in an
upcoming 1:1 learning program”. I had to give this device some
time for my mind to wrap around the idea. The key to making the
choice is to have a firm understanding of the purpose of digital
technology in our schools. Much has been written about skills
and the future. In my school, it is all about empowering the
students to learn how to learn and prepare them to be successful
in college.Teachers regularly have to figure out why their PC
desktop computer is running incredibly slowly, or why it won’t
print, or any of the million other random things that happen
when people who don’t live