Two Nipissing profs named Apple Distinguished Educators

Two Nipissing University professors, Tina Benevides and Ken Waller, have been named Apple Distinguished Educators (ADEs), out of only 50 named in Canada. Both Tina and Ken will attend the 2013 ADE Institute in Austin, Texas from July 13 – 19, 2013.Benevides and Waller, both professors in Nipissing's Schulich School of Education were named to the prestigious list based on their work at Nipissing University, integrating Apple technology into an educational setting.
Only one other Canadian university faculty member was named to the list of ADEs.
"The university is tremendously proud of Professor Benevides and Professor Waller and their designation as Apple Distinguished Educators," said Dr. Sharon Rich, Dean of the Schulich School of Education. "This designation underscores the quality of the Schulich School's faculty and their expertise and leadership in enhancing teaching and learning through technology integration."
Benevides is researching the effectiveness of using iPads in elementary classrooms. The idea behind her research is that iPad technology has the potential to increase student engagement and motivation for students in reading and other literacies. As part of the project, each student is given an iPad to use for the academic year. On the iPad, students have access to books and graphic novels, the Internet, as well as applications for other subjects like mathematics and science. Preliminary results are very promising. The research, which began at one Northern Ontario school in 2010, has grown to encompass multiple school boards and over 200 children. Benevides also uses her findings to assist students in the Schulich School of Education to understand how technology can be integrated effectively into their future classrooms.
Waller has been instrumental in the integration of technology in the Schulich School of Education at Nipissing, teaching future teachers and leaders how to best utilize new technology in their classrooms and careers. The Schulich School of Education has built a reputation as a leader in the effective use of technology in a classroom setting and Waller has helped build that reputation. He played a large role in the education program offering a dual platform for students to be able to use either Mac or PC computers; as well as being a collaborative co-author of the Apple Research Project, Catching the Train, that studied the change dynamics experienced by Nipissing students, staff and faculty when transitioning to an Apple computer environment. Waller introduced Flexible Fridays, professional development opportunities that outline various forms of educational technology and how to adopt them in a classroom. He has researched how Wiimotes can be applied with Whiteboards as interactive educational devices, and is collaborating to introduce the TPL2GO Project (Teacher Professional Learning To Go), focused on exploring teacher professional learning and technology integration with educators from regional school boards.
In honour of Tina and Ken's achievements, the Nipissing University Alumni Advisory Board will be awarding a suite of Apple products and software to an Ontario elementary or secondary school. Full contest details will be announced in the fall.
About the Apple Distinguished Educators Program
ADEs are part of a global community of education leaders recognized for doing amazing things with Apple technology in and out of the classroom. They explore new ideas, seek new paths and embrace new opportunities. That includes working with each other - and with Apple - to bring the freshest, most innovative ideas to students everywhere.
ADEs advise Apple on integrating technology into learning environments - and share their expertise with other educators and policy makers. They author original content about their work. They advocate the use of Apple products that help engage students in new ways. And they are ambassadors of innovation, participating in and presenting at education events around the world. Being part of the ADE community is much more than an honor - it's an opportunity to make a difference.
There are now more than 2,000 ADEs worldwide, from the United States to China, New Zealand to Turkey. And they gather every year at ADE Institutes and education events around the world as well as online in the ADE community to collaborate on solutions to the global education challenges of today and tomorrow.