In lieu of distributing iPads to all first-year Ohio State students, the university created an iPad loner program in place for the 2022-23 school year. Credit: Jake Rahe | Lantern File PhotoDespite concerns from students and faculty regarding the discontinuation of iPad distribution, Ohio State is providing tablets in a new way.
Despite concerns from students and faculty regarding the discontinuation of Ohio State’s universal iPad distribution, the university is providing tablets in a new way.
After ending the popular Digital Flagship program that provided incoming first-years with iPads, Ohio State created a technology loan program for thousands of eligible students for the 2022-23 academic year, according to the Digital Flagship website.
Katharine Keune, chief communication officer for the Office of Technology and Digital Innovation, said in an email Ohio State’s student technology loan program makes iPad and Surface Go kits — including the pencil and keyboard — available to students who need them. Six thousand students qualified for the loan program for the fall semester, Keune said.
“Of the six thousand loaner-eligible students, almost half have picked up a loaner device,” Keune said.
Keune said there are two channels to eligibility for a loanee: enrollment in a course flagged as “iPad required” and referral to the loan program from an academic adviser or student advocate, such as program managers for student support programs and learning communities.
The technology loan program is needed to fill the void the previous Digital Flagship program left, Keune said.
The Digital Flagship program, which included collaboration between Ohio State and Apple was announced in 2017. It provided technology kits, including an iPad, case, keyboard, Apple pencil and Apple Care to incoming freshmen, beginning with the 2018-2019 class.
IPads are most often used to monitor emails, complete coursework and check Carmen, the online portal for class materials and grades. A 2020 Student Life survey found that 96 percent of students agreed or strongly agreed that the tablets “were useful for academic purposes,” and 90 percent of devices were active on a weekly basis. Ohio State also received national recognition for this program.
In January, department chairs and faculty expressed concerns about planning instruction in the absence of the technology, students working with older, less functional devices and the impact of the potential end of the program on low-income students.
Executive Vice President and Provost Melissa L. Gilliam said in an universitywide email April 26 that Ohio State would no longer provide iPads to incoming students as part of its Digital Flagship program April 26.
Keune said students can loan a tablet for one semester but can register to keep their devices for the entire year if they are enrolled in another course that requires an iPad. The devices purchased to create the loan program pool cost about $4 million and will be available for eligible students for the next four years, she said.
Second-years received fourth-generation iPad Airs in the last year of the program. According to prices from Walmart, Apple and Best Buy for the device, Apple Pencil, AppleCare and Magic Keyboard, each Digital Flagship kit is currently valued at roughly $1,000.
The new loaner program also gives out Microsoft Surface Gos, with the Surface Go 2 currently valued at over $300, according to prices from Walmart, Apple and Best Buy.
Ryan Debolt, a teaching assistant in physics administration and a 2022 graduate in physics, said in an email Ohio State’s Department of Physics, during the flagship era, embraced the iPads and created curriculums based on the assumption that students owned them. He said it did make “things” easier on teachers and students as a whole.
“Work could be turned in at any time electronically. The classes became paperless. Notability is very convenient for making diagrams and quickly writing out physics problems,” Debolt said.
Debolt said the physics curriculum does not require an iPad, and he has yet to make an opinion on the loaner program.
Keune said remote teaching and learning during the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated shifts in student needs and illuminated digital inequities among Ohio State students and communities. As a result, the university evolved Digital Flagship, transitioning away from the universal device program for undergraduate students and expanding the initiative’s focus on digital equity, skill building and workforce development, she said.
“Looking ahead, we must consider how to sustainably meet the new and unique needs of our students while remaining committed to digital access and instructional support,” Keune said.
This new approach includes expanding Adobe Creative Cloud access, providing students with degree-specific software and the opportunity to become certified in critical technology areas, Keune said.
“The new approach positions Ohio State to drive innovation and change through low-cost access and programming to lift the entire university community, gain required digital competencies, and provide access to future Ohio State learners with non-credit pathways for industry-recognized certifications,” Keune said.
