To Netbook or not to Netbook? That is the question.

In the fourth chapter of their book Brooks-Young talks about Netbooks.  If you are unfamiliar with these devices a netbook is a small-size, lightweight mobile computing device designed to easily access the Internet using a built in wireless capability.  This technology was introduced about 3 or 4 years ago and they were a hot item, mostly because of it's small price tag and portability.  The original concept was so that computers would be accessible and made durable enough for children to use.  The simplicity and smallness of the design made children a perfect consumer group for this product, but it quickly turned into an item that adults were interested in as well.  These computers are designed to do simple word processing and internet browsing.  Some of the complaints that have come up by older consumers were the fact that the screen is too small and that the keyboard is not large enough so typing can be difficult.

Thinking to classroom use, while I like the idea that the size and price make them great for elementary school students, I am not convinced that they are reliable enough to be worth the fee you pay initially.  I wonder if there limited capabilities may not be worth the one-to-one computing abilities.  Being able to load software onto a computer helps to make it more conducive to learning and enrich the learning of your students.  Depending on your environment the netbooks might be a great resource especially if you were in a poorer country overseas, that kind of technology could be more than they would have access to otherwise.  But if I was given the choice I would prefer that my students have access to some sort of tablet in the classroom.  A tablet such as an iPad allows the teacher or student to download applications that could be very helpful in enriching learning and also allow for internet browsing.  It is not necessarily the most efficient for typing or doing reports, but there are ways to work around that.  Simply having a system that is efficient even when not connected to the internet because of the applications that are on it, far outweighs the netbook which is to be used simply for internet browsing and word processing.