Last week, the elementary principals and vice-principals took a little field trip and got to go to the Apple Canada offices here in Richmond. We spent a good deal of our time there "oohing and aahing" over things like the cool coffee maker, the floor to ceiling white board walls (is he really going to write on the walls??) and the two 103" plasma screens in the main classroom. We were also impressed that they would do FREE afterschool sessions with staff and/or parents and to think of their facility as an extension of our schools.
I appreciate Apple's efforts to help and I try not to be too cynical about this effort ie. they just want us to buy more stuff. They do make really great, creative products that we will be using for many years to come, and the people we met were enthusiastic about what their products can do for us and for our students. If they are truly the only game in town and they provide something we want and perhaps need, then let's play. Let's also talk to our students about the fact that Apple may be at the forefront, and may make things that kids feel they can't live without, but that they are a business with a ton of money to put into advertising to convince us that we are not complete without an iPad. I guess this topic leads us into what it means to be a digital citizen... My musings for a Monday morning.
PS I also finished the Steve Jobs biography yesterday. Great read and certainly gave insight into the man and the company. Let's put it this way, I would still drink the kool-aid if he handed it to me.