University of Minnesota Pilot Program Gives 450 Freshmen iPads in October

     All freshmen in the university's College of Education and Human Development will get iPads this month in what the university calls “the largest pilot of its kind at a major university."  Private donors are picking up the tab, estimated at "under $216,000."

     The official university news release says: “CEHD faculty...will research how iPad use relates to student retention, engagement, and learning outcomes. A broad spectrum of first-year undergraduate courses in the Department of Post-secondary Teaching and Learning will incorporate the devices.

     “The iPads will allow CEHD freshmen to access digital textbooks, which should offer them significant cost savings. At the University of Minnesota, textbooks average about $1,000 per year for undergraduates -- equal to eight percent of the cost of tuition/fees. Digital books often cost less than half of print equivalents. Providing iPads to the entire freshman class also expands access to those students who may not otherwise be able to afford the learning technologies that the device supports.”

     Students will get their iPads in late October, so the can get familiar with them in time for the Spring semester.

     The university says digital textbooks cost less than print versions, which run the typical UM student $1,000 annually.

     The Minneapolis Star Tribune quotes David Ernst, director of academic and information technology at the CEHD: “We won't simply say, 'Here's and iPad' and that's the end of it. It will be part of a coordinated, focused research agenda.”

"Mobile technology plays an increasing role in student life and student learning," says CEHD Dean Jean Quam. "CEHD faculty and students are eager to lead the way in exploring the potential of new technologies, like the iPad, in and outside of their classrooms. It's the kind of innovative research that is at the core of what we do in CEHD."