An All iPad Classroom.

The University of Notre Dame is testing a new iPad-based class model. The course is part of an ambitious study undertaken by the University on the impact of “e-learning.” Students in a Project Management class will not only use the devices in place of traditional paper books, but they will be encouraged to use the i Pads for all their daily information activities as well.

“While the iPad is more than just an e-reader, allowing students to do a lot more with not just the ebook but with searching for articles and other information as well, the Notre Dame course professor, Corey Angst, wants to make clear that the iPad is part of a bigger kit of resources for students. No one device has come close to being a catch-all for students, but Apple is hoping to inch closer to the iPad being one tool that can’t be left out of any classroom. Whether or not the use of e-readers in classrooms makes a difference on the environmental footprint of scholastic is yet to be seen. While thousands of paper books can fit into one device, reducing the number of trees sacrificed to the printing industry, the embodied energy of electronics, let alone their e-waste at end of life, creates a massive footprint for the devices.”