Young students had to buy iPads
By Wang Qingchu |
00:00 UTC+8 November 5, 2010
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Print Edition
Print Edition
PRIMARY school grade one students in a south China city were required to buy iPads to take Chinese lessons, stirring an online outcry over teaching methods and suspicions that the school made a profit from the group purchase.
A total of 88 grade one children enrolled for a Chinese reading and writing lesson, an extracurricular course, at Shenzhen Nanshan Experimental School in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, and were ordered to buy an iPad to take the lesson, China National Radio reported yesterday.
Online netizens and some parents doubted whether it was necessary to buy such an expensive gadget to learn Chinese, worrying it may actually distract them from studies as they use it to play games.
One opinion was that the teaching method was too risky as there was no precedent for using iPads in primary school education. "Using a tablet computer will affect the growth of children's spines and eyes. The iPad was designed for recreation instead of education," a netizen said.
Parents knew the teaching would be conducted by computer before signing up for the course, but they couldn't understand why they had to buy the high-end tablet computer instead of an ordinary type, a parent who didn't want to be identified complained.
The purchase of iPads was decided by the parents' committee. The school didn't make a profit from it, said Zhang Zuzhi, a teacher in charge of the primary school division.
The school organized a parents' meeting before the new semester, emphasizing that students were required to use computers to take the course and no objections were raised, Zhang said.
The majority of parents on the committee supported buying the iPad, with the parents of only six students out of 88 against the suggestion.
Using advanced technology in teaching can spark students' interest in learning, but it may cause economic burdens for families and children could be distracted by video games, said Wang Guoqing, dean of Shenzhen University's Adult Education College.
A netizen named Renshengwangshi welcomed the practice, saying the iPad can make learning more fun.
A 16GB version iPad without 3G and WiFi sells for 3,988 yuan (US$596) in Apple Stores on Chinese mainland.
A total of 88 grade one children enrolled for a Chinese reading and writing lesson, an extracurricular course, at Shenzhen Nanshan Experimental School in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, and were ordered to buy an iPad to take the lesson, China National Radio reported yesterday.
Online netizens and some parents doubted whether it was necessary to buy such an expensive gadget to learn Chinese, worrying it may actually distract them from studies as they use it to play games.
One opinion was that the teaching method was too risky as there was no precedent for using iPads in primary school education. "Using a tablet computer will affect the growth of children's spines and eyes. The iPad was designed for recreation instead of education," a netizen said.
Parents knew the teaching would be conducted by computer before signing up for the course, but they couldn't understand why they had to buy the high-end tablet computer instead of an ordinary type, a parent who didn't want to be identified complained.
The purchase of iPads was decided by the parents' committee. The school didn't make a profit from it, said Zhang Zuzhi, a teacher in charge of the primary school division.
The school organized a parents' meeting before the new semester, emphasizing that students were required to use computers to take the course and no objections were raised, Zhang said.
The majority of parents on the committee supported buying the iPad, with the parents of only six students out of 88 against the suggestion.
Using advanced technology in teaching can spark students' interest in learning, but it may cause economic burdens for families and children could be distracted by video games, said Wang Guoqing, dean of Shenzhen University's Adult Education College.
A netizen named Renshengwangshi welcomed the practice, saying the iPad can make learning more fun.
A 16GB version iPad without 3G and WiFi sells for 3,988 yuan (US$596) in Apple Stores on Chinese mainland.
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