Blog entry April 2010

A New York Times article quotes " Young children think with their fingers and the "Toy of the Year" award goes to the iPad".   

The iPad's intuitive interface is truly a winner among kids. There are about 140,000 affordable software which include some tried-and-true children's options. Anyone who used iPod or iPhone screens to sketch/draw, Brushes is an app adapted for the larger screen iPad to let children develop their artistic skills.Reading stories becomes an experience when Dr.Suess or Mercer Mayer interacts with your child through the iPads page size screen through the eBooks. And the list goes on...

The iPad's long battery life (approx. 10 hrs) is another plus! Kids do not have to panic about the device dying while taking a test at school or using it in an interactive classroom session. 

Nowadays, Parents are always looking for electronic babysitters like iPhone so they can do their work or prepare a meal. For tweens, these devices are replacing TV/ DVD for entertainment because kids can choose to watch what they want. The iPad is no exception and is an ideal gadget for tweens and teens.

As an educational/entertainment gadget, kids can accidentally get exposed to harmful content on the internet. By wrapping the device with a CIPA-compliant( Child Internet Protection Act) filtering service like Mobicip, parents and educators can have peace of mind by making sure the harmful internet content is filtered before handing out the device to the kid. As the need and the desire for these devices are ever increasing, Mobicip for iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch ensures safe online experience for your entire family.

Kids deserve to use these mobile internet devices but in a safe manner! 

We are happy to announce that Mobicip's Safe Browser app for iPad is now available. Click here to download it from the iPad App Store. Tutorials, videos and demos for the iPad are coming soon!

Mobicip CEO, Suren Ramasubbu, in his article published in Huffington Post, talks about Apple's decision to police the App store, how ipod touches are adopted by schools as learning devices in K-12 education and Mobicip's key role in being an integral part of mobile learning.

Here's an excerpt:

"Apple's App Store is a runaway hit. At the same time, Apple has been labeled, for its mercurial and opaque App Store approval process, as "a joke", "inconsistent hypocrite", and "notorious for doing things on a whim without an explanation". The issue really hit developers when over 5000 apps with questionable and suggestive content were unceremoniously removed one fine day. Steve Jobs recently declared with characteristic flamboyance: "We do believe we have a moral responsibility to keep porn off the iPhone. Folks who want porn can buy and [sic] Android phone!"

To read the complete article, go to http://huff.to/asw5ke

Ann Jeanette Patton, a Comal Independent School District Teacher and an ELL and exploratory Spanish teacher at Mountain Valley Middle School in Canyon Lake, TX, gave a spontaneous and unsolicited testimonial about Mobicip's safe browser app!  Ms. Patton has over 30 years of teaching experience and we appreciate her taking the time to share the importance of educational institutions taking responsibility of their iPod Touches and iPhones educational programs so their students can safely use their mobile devices to learn.  Mobicip’s dynamic content filtering allows kids and teens to safely learn, love and use the mobile web - anytime, anywhere.

Ms. Patton shares: “I would like to comment on the importance of a restricted internet service, not parental controls, but Institutional controls on what students can get access to. Had we not had a restricted internet service like Mobicip, I wouldn’t have allowed them in the room as a tool, because of the monitoring that would have had to have occurred and plus they couldn’t have taken them (iPod's) home. So, I very much strongly affirm that Mobicip is an integral part of this process."
 

Today, the iPod Touch has been accepted as the device of choice for mobile 1:1 learning in K-12 education. This device can do most of what a child can do with a computer and anytime, anywhere is its biggest advantage.

Will the newly launched iPad attract educators to use it for 1:1 learning, despite the higher price point? With the larger screen, it is easier to create presentations,spreadsheets or documents. For students who have a vision/hearing impairment or have a physical/learning ability, some iPad features like screen reader and support for playback of closed-captioned content helps. iPad version of several books can be purchased through iBooks.

From our interactions with schools and from online forum discussions, educators seem to like the iPad for the following reasons:

* - Ease of use and intuitive UI

* - Ability to create content and print

* - It’s faster than any interaction with iPhone or iPod Touch.

* - Good battery life

* - Keynote’s ability to place a simulated red laser pointer where you touch

* - Availability of CIPA-compliant filter like Mobicip

* - More than 30,000 eBooks at launch. Every publisher is adding more. and many more!

In summary, in response to the demand from users for a device that can create content in addition to consuming it, we believe that Apple has a winner in the iPad.

On Friday, April 23rd at 1:45 pm (PST), Suren Ramasubbu and Jennifer Wivagg will be presenting in the Learning Sharing Online Conference on the following topic: Individualized instruction and learning using the iPod Touch, to attend the session go here: http://knowevents.ca/course/view.php?id=11

During their presentation, they will also be reviewing how Mobicip's safe browser app helps parents take responsibility of the iPod Touches and iPhones so their kids can safely use their mobile devices.  They will also briefly review, Mobicip’s dynamic content filtering which allows kids and teens to safely learn, love and use the mobile web - anytime, anywhere. 

There is more information about the presentation below and here: http://knowevents.ca/user/view.php?id=77&course=1

Comal ISD in New Braunfels, TX, has implemented a 1:1 learning program using the Apple iPod Touch for its English language learners. Middle school students who participate in the program are each given an iPod Touch that contains apps, music, documents, presentations and instructional videos that allow the students to learn on their own time outside of school hours. Participants in this session will get an inside view of the program, how the program evolved from concept to reality, cover acceptable use policy, security and deployment management, and anecdotal evidence of the benefits derived by students participating in the program.

On Thursday, April 15th at 2:40 pm (EST), Lynne Goodhand and Susan Wells will be presenting in Second Life on the following topic: Education in Hand - Innovation with iPod Touches, to attend the session go here: http://conference.unctlt.org/program/index.php?sort=date&date=2010-04-15#1228

During their presentation, they will also be reviewing Mobicip’s dynamic content filtering which allows kids and teens to safely learn, love and use the mobile web - anytime, anywhere.  And how Mobicip helps parents take responsibility of the iPod Touches and iPhones so their kids can safely use their mobile devices.

There is more information about the presentation below:

The educational use of iPod Touches through school-wide implementation at our school has served as a catalyst for collaboration and discussion between and among students, educators, and other community members. Discussions about applications and the implementation of this new technology have opened new doors to dialog about teaching and learning across disciplines. The iPod Touch provides instant access to the internet and forces conversations about appropriate, engaging, educational resources available when planning and carrying out lessons. Initial conversations as to how one uses the iPod Touch in the classroom have shifted to more specific, focused questions. Conversation now centers on which apps and sites are used to reinforce each discrete objective in the curriculum. Students benefit daily from collaborative opportunities as they enjoy inquiry based learning. This session explains our journey from planning phase, through our present place where each student carries an iPod touch each day every day.

Rick Broida, a technology writer for nearly 20 years, has written another article about Mobicip Kids-Safe Browser on CNET blog. Mobicip safe browser is one of the five must-have iPhone apps for parents. Thank you Rick! Here is a link to the original article: http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-19512_7-10471386-233.html

Here is the article:

You know what they say about parenting: It's the hardest job you'll ever love. Of course, you might love it a little more if it weren't so flippin' hard all the time. So let's hear it for all the iPhone apps designed to make parents' lives a little easier.

There are dozens, if not hundreds, of such apps in the Store, but I've rounded up five that I consider essential--starting with one that can make injuries and illnesses a little less scary (for you, anyway):

1. Kid Care Your toddler is running a fever of 103. Should you call your pediatrician? Head for the hospital? Wait it out? Kid Care offers medical advice for dozens of common symptoms--everything from bee stings to headaches to wheezing. Based on proven clinical protocols, the app provides symptom definitions and images, care advice, medicine dosage information, and helpful reading material such as "Fever--Myth Vs. Facts." There's also a handy dial-your-doctor button and a location-aware emergency-services finder. My only wish is that I'd had this incredible app at my fingertips when my kids were younger. Amazingly, it's free.

2. Tales2Go A new favorite in our house--make that our car--Tales2Go streams on-demand audiobooks for kids. The collection now exceeds 1,000 titles, including such well-known series as "American Girl," "The Boxcar Children," "Diary of a Wimpy Kid," and "Junie B. Jones." The app is free, as is a 30-day trial of the service. After that, you pay $24.99 for a year of unlimited listening. As someone who's spent that much on a single audiobook CD, I consider that the bargain of the century.

3. Dr. Seuss e-books (and others) Nothing beats reading to your kids, but that's a little tricky when you're behind the wheel. Or don't have a book on hand. For those and other times, I can't recommend Oceanhouse Media's Dr. Seuss e-books highly enough. Priced at $2.99 each, "Dr. Seuss's ABC," "The Cat in the Hat," and "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" are animated, narrated, and wonderful. I consider these "best of breed," though you may also want to check out Paco Bongo ($1.99), Sesame Street: The Playground ($1.99), and the new movie tie-in title, How to Train Your Dragon (99 cents)--to name just a few.

4. Mobicip Safe Browser Are your kids old enough to use Safari? If so, they may accidentally (or, let's face it, purposefully) land on some of the Web's seedier sites. Mobicip Safe Browser ($4.99) blocks inappropriate URLs and search results, and lets you implement filters based on your kids' age levels. It's a smart, effective replacement for Safari, one I highly recommend.

5. iRewardChart Good behavior should be its own reward--but that's a hard concept for kids to grasp, and even harder for parents to enforce. iRewardChart adds incentive, allowing you to award stars for various behaviors (sharing, picking up toys, not interrupting, etc.). Eventually, the kids get to redeem their stars for a reward (a new book, an hour of TV, etc.). You can customize everything: tasks, rewards, stars required per reward, and so on. The app even lets you tweet your child's accomplishments. $4.99 may seem a little steep, but if iRewardChart encourages and ultimately achieves better behavior, well, it's a small price to pay.

Fellow parents, now it's your turn: What child-rearing apps have you found indispensable? Hit the comments and list your favorites.