So Far

Research Paper

Introduction

As time goes by technology is becoming more and more prevalent in our everyday lives. We are incorporating technology into every aspect of our lives such as having tickets on our phones as opposed to the paper printouts, and being able to send emails directly from our phones; why not incorporate this wave of technology use into our world of academics? Rebecca M Sullivan shows just how the use of the technology in a classroom can benefit a student's writing. The technology that she focuses on is the iPad. Because in my own college experiences I have had my iPad there to use as a tool for my writing process I was curious to see how Sullivan's article would apply. How does my own experience compare to the experience of students in a classroom? Well I have found similarities and differences along the way but it seems that I experience some of the same benefits and distractions that occur with the students in the secondary learning level classroom.

Literature Review

The most important thing that I noticed about Rebecca M Sullivan's article, The Tablet Inscribed: Inclusive Writing Instruction with the iPad, is that this article was written very recently; it was published in January of 2013. The iPad is a very new technology and the recency of the article is something that shows a new form of writing in a more modern classroom. Rebecca M Sullivan shows the integration of technology of the iPad into the secondary learning level classroom in order to compose writing with the tablet technology. Sullivan mentions that there have been debates as to whether or not technology was a good thing to integrate into the classroom setting because of the distractions that it may bring to the learning process. In the classes where the iPad has already been integrated they have added and deleted different applications that would be helpful to the class and a distraction to the class respectively. For example, the Music, Calendar and App Store applications were removed from the iPads because these were felt to be intended for the single-user as opposed to the sharing use in a secondary level classroom. As an instructor herself, Sullivan faces the potential problem of distraction by providing covers for the iPads and gives a clear instruction during her classes when the cover on the iPad is to be closed in order to provide her, the instructor, with the students' full attention.

When the students are working they are writing more efficiently and at a higher level of quality work when they are composing their work on an iPad. The students are able to track their writing process more easily on the iPad that they use on a more frequent basis in their class. Also, the use of discussion is a major part in the writing process and the use of the iPad allows for an easier connection with others to initiate this discussion. Things that initiate this discussion that is used in the study is a Google Doc. The entire class can now view, edit and give feedback to a paper that is posted. The iPad also allows for an easy connection to online databases and a variety of other resources that are literally in the hands of the students while they are writing. The ease of accessibility is what leads to the better quality of paper.

The student's writing in a classroom setting is improved by the use of an iPad. It was my goal to see if any of the occurrences that happened in the study that Sullivan refers to would take place in my own experiences.

Data Analysis

I have been keeping track of the my use of the iPad over the course of nine weeks and I have seen just what I have used it for. My iPad is something that I use for all of my school work. I compose each of my papers, no matter the length, on my iPad. I order to type up my paper I have a Documents application which is available in the apple App Store as a free application. The touch screen is convenient for me and when I type I hold the iPad horizontally so the the keyboard is wide enough for my hands to touch the 'keys' with ease. When I compose my writing I typically am not at a desk, I carry it around with me in my bag wherever I go. I will sit in my room on the floor or in my bed in order to write a paper or I will compose papers in my car between classes. In all of the places that I use my iPad for academic writing there is no music or any other outside source of any kind around to serve as a distraction, no food or drinks, nothing. Typically when I am in my car I do not have access to an Internet connection which allows me to focus on my work as opposed to navigating away from my paper. When I am at home I will even turn off my wifi in order to avoid distractions. I have seen that I typically navigate away from my paper when I am using a source on the Internet. I will go between the two applications of Documents, where I compose my paper, and Safari, the Internet server that is on the iPad. When the Safari is open and running I have a tendency to travel to other websites and lose focus on my paper.

Although I may lose focus on what I am doing within the different applications when I use the iPad I focus on it solely. This undivided focus is a benefit to my writing because it allows me to focus on the topic of my paper and allows me to produce a better quality of work. When I only keep the applications open that pertain to the work that I am doing it makes it a lot easier for me to focus. I also noted that I have taken a screen shot, or a picture of any image that is on the iPad screen that gets saved to the photo application, of the Internet windows that I am using so that I can use them at a later time. These screen shots allow me to access the information from a website without needing access to the Internet. This helps with my wondering when I am doing a paper. When I am not connected to the Internet it also allows me to better my focus because I am not receiving any text messages to my iPad that would tempt me to answer them.

From the data that I have collected and noted on from my behavior I can see how Rebecca M Sullivan relates iPads to composing writing. Obviously the study is different because she focuses on the use of the iPad in a classroom and the classroom alone while I travel with my iPad and use it in a variety of settings. The iPads that are used in the secondary learning classroom that Sullivan refers to have also been programmed specifically for a class and all of the distractions that I deal with on my iPad have been removed from the iPads that these students used. However, the benefits of using the iPad are something that I share with the students in Sullivan's classroom. I am able to connect with the Internet and databases for sources all from one device and I am able to connect with other people in order to gain more ideas in my writing, even though I admit that sometimes I sway off topic and get distracted. Overall, what I have seen is very similar to Sullivan's article although it talks about iPad use on a larger scale than just one person the uses are similar and the benefits correlate.





Conclusion ?
Choppy?
Connections that still need to or should be made?
Anything!

Data

iPad Data

Class work
Homework in the car
- no music
At home in room
- in bed
- on floor
Holds iPad long ways to type
Uses documents app
Emails papers to desktop
Reformat paper on desktop
Easier to text when doing papers
Unknown length of papers
I think it is ironic that I'm taking notes for data on my iPad
I don't take notes in class on it usually
I use safari for researching
Check emails
Keep it in my purse at all times
Use it even with no Internet access
Make online purchases on it
I never let anyone really use my iPad
When I am writing on the iPad I go into my own zone and I tune out the rest of the world
I hate the fact that it autocorrects and yet I like that it auto corrects
My hands hover over the keys and I don't like this because its like a carpel tunnel type of feeling
Easy to navigate from one app to another

Data in Class

I am currently working on my data in class.  I will post it as soon as I am done today.  I hope.

Things I Still Need to Do

Ok so for this research project I have a lot of work to do to continue on the right track.  In class today we talked about the grading and the values given to the different sections.  Because I now know what I kind of need to be graded well I am going to list the things that I still have left to do.

So far I have been collecting data, or basically taking notes on myself, to see what my personal habits are in regards to my iPad.  This is a good start to my data but I am continuing to add to these notes because I want to have as much information as possible.

I still have to:
- take the data that I have collected and thoroughly analyze the data that I have collected,
- I have to discover exactly what others have said about the use of iPads or I might have to broaden it to technology because there may be a lack of research on the use of iPad,
- I have to relate or disconnect my own idea that I have about my research to this previously researched ideas,
- I also have to set up how I am going to present my ideas in the actual paper itself,
- I am going to try and present my purpose of my research in a clear way so I need to think about how I can be clear to the audience

I think that this looks like there is not too much left to do but I realize that there is a lot of work that goes into each one of these sections and I am in for it.