Sharing Learning Resources in Word between Windows and iPad

Posted by Paul Nisbet on the 13th May, 2014

Last week at the CALL Scotland RTC launch I presented a workshop on iPads and Dyslexia, and one of the topics we considered was sharing of learning resources between Windows and iPad. Many teachers use Microsoft Word to create curriculum resources, and so a fundamental question is “how can learners access my DOCX files”? (One might ask whether one should be taking advantage of more creative and exciting multimedia tools and formats available on the iPad to engage your learners, but for this blog let’s assume we are in a learning environment where files created in Word are the norm.)  

DOC & DOCX format

One approach is to save your Word file in a cloud storage such as DropBox, Glow, OneDrive or Edmodo, or email it to the student, who can then open it using an app that can read and edit Word files such as Pages, Word for iPad. Other apps are Doc², or CloudOn.

Pages is now supplied free with iPads and for older iPads costs £6.99. Pages is a great app and can import Word files, but the layout of files with elements such as floating text boxes and images may be altered when you open them in the Pages app. This may be an issue if you want to send files back and forwards between the iPad and a PC.  

Word for iPad is a new app from Microsoft, and is probably the best app for maintaining the layout and properties of the original file. To edit a Word file with Word for iPad you need a subscription to Office 365 either as a home user or through your school, college, university of business. Learners in Scotland now have Office 365 subscriptions through Glow and so Word for iPad should be a good option (provided your Glow account gives you access).

Sticking with DOC or DOCX is a good option for resources where learners will be editing or re-formatting the text, and for extended writing. However, for worksheets, assignments and assessments, PDF has some advantages.

PDF

PDF is a good format for booklets, assignments and assessments because the visual layout of your resource is maintained, and because learners can use apps like ClaroPDF or PDF Expert to add highlights, comments and drawing, type answers and insert photos and audio notes. Also, the latest Adobe Reader XI provides commenting tools that can be used on any PDF which means pupils can annotate, type in answers and record audio on a Windows computer as well. The use of audio notes is particularly helpful for learners with literacy difficulties because the teacher can record instructions or comments into the PDF, and likewise the learner can respond by recording their own audio notes. (Pages does not have a facility to record audio notes.)  

PDF is also cross-platform in that files can be opened on almost any device and operating system (Windows, MacOS, iPad, Android etc) and so if you are working in a ‘Bring Your Own Device’ environment, PDF will give some consistency. Lastly, teachers can save PDF files directly from Microsoft Word 2010 and 2013 (File > Save As and choose PDF from Save as type). 

So, a workflow for digital resources in PDF therefore looks like this:

1. The teacher creates the resource using Microsoft Word, saves it as a PDF and emails it or makes it available to the class via online storage.
2. Pupils then access the resource on Windows, iPad, Android etc and use commenting tools to insert answers or otherwise respond. The pupil emails or saves the file.
3. The teacher opens the students’ files using Adobe Reader XI on their computer (or uses ClaroPDF / PDF Expert / iAnnotate on an iPad), reviews the responses, and uses the commenting tools to mark the submission and provide feedback. The teacher’s comments can be typed, drawn or recorded as audio. The marked work is then given back to the pupil who can open it and read or listen to the feedback.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The participants at the workshop on Friday thought that the PDF option was the better option for learning resources where some sort of response is expected from the learner, because: the visual appearance is maintained; the student writes 'on top' of the PDF (there is no chance of accidentally or deliberately altering the assignment); it's possible to record audio into the PDF easily; and PDF can be read and annotated with almost any device.

There are many apps that learners can use to open, read and type or draw on PDFs, but I favour:

ClaroPDF (69p) because it has good, simple text-to-speech (e.g.. tap on text and it speaks); there is a Scottish voice (Fiona, costs £1.49 extra); you can tap and type anywhere; it has good drawing and annotation tools; it can be used to type into answer boxes on SQA Digital Question papers.

PDF Expert (£6.99) because is also has good text-to-speech, albeit slightly more complicated than ClaroPDF (and no Scottish voice); great annotation tools; and it can also access Digital Question Papers. PDF Expert can open and save files from a wider range of cloud services than Claro, and has better file management.