The launch of iPhone8 is slated for next week. This will bring along the new iOS11 for download as well. Although it has been in its beta version since earlier in the summer, when iOS11 officially launches, it will impact those who have grown to love some of their favorite elementary music apps.
“This app will not work with iOS11…”
Earlier this year, the following message appeared when launching certain apps on the iPad and/or iPhone: “This app will not work with iOS11. The developer of this app will need to update it for compatibility.” This means that if you update your iOS to version 11, those apps will most likely stop working.
What elementary music apps will be affected?
I recently went into my iPad Pro to see how many of my apps that are on my iPad would stop working with iOS11. I clicked on Settings>General>About>Applications. The number of applications that will currently slow down my iPad and will not work with iOS 11 (according to the statement at the top of the page): 314. 314 apps will stop working once I update the iPad Pro to iOS11. Now, I will be honest and tell you that they are not all elementary music apps. In addition, some of the apps on the list are music apps that are only available in other countries because they are no longer available in the US iTunes Store (Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra and Percussive apps are examples of these). However, with all that said, a good portion of these apps are popular music apps.
Below are five pages of pictures of apps that will no longer work in iOS11 or have left the US iTunes Store in the past year or so.
Some apps that make me sad because they will no longer work:
- Blob Chorus – UPDATE! It works!
- Singing Fingers
- Tellagami
- Songify
- Monkey Drum
- Rain Rain Go Away (The Rain Rain Story App)
- DoReMi 123 – UPDATE! When you update to iOS11, delete the app off your iPad. Then go to the app store and search for DoReMe123 and there is updated version to upload to your iPad!
- MadPad
- Timpani
- TuneTrain
What’s Next?
There are some options. The developers might be updating the apps as I write this. Or, those who want to see those apps continue, could contact the developers and ask them to update them. This could encourage the developer to update the app. However, if the app is not helping the developer in their goal, then they might not find it an effective use of their time to update the app.
Rise of the Chromebooks?
iPads started appearing in the school systems back around 2011. There were initiatives to create 1:1 classroom environments where every student had an iPad to increase learning in the classroom. Since that time, research has shown that “Chromebook’s share of the U.S. education market was 49 percent last year, up from 40 percent in 2015 and 9 percent in 2013, according to IDC figures released this week.” (Jesdanun, 2017).
Chromebooks are cheaper to make, cheaper to purchase, and only require wi-fi to use, which can be found in a majority of school systems. And with many Chromebooks now being able to access Google Play apps, they are becoming more useful in the classroom. This is one reason we are seeing the fall of iOS apps. Another reason is that apps are used more for creativity that support our current educational trends of project-based learning. Apps that support drills are being used less than they were in the past. Apps that support creativity and integration are used more by IT and educators. They tend to be more subscription-based instead of a one-time payment (think Explain Everything, Book Creator, etc). This helps their longevity.
More Accurately…The Rise of Google in Education?
“Between the fall of 2012 and now, Google went from an interesting possibility to the dominant way that schools around the country” teach students to find information, create documents and turn them in, said Hal Friedlander, former chief information officer for the New York City Department of Education, the nation’s largest school district. “Google established itself as a fact in schools.” (Singer, 2017)
It will be interesting to see where 1:1 schools will be in five years. However, no matter what the technology trends are, the educational trends are, and what comes and goes, the most important item is that teachers are using the tools that they need and feel most comfortable with so that they can help their students succeed in the present and the future.
Resources:
Jesdanun, A. (February, 2017). How Google Chromebooks conquered schools. Retrieved September 4, 2017 from https://www.apnews.com/41817339703440a49d8916c0f67d28a6
Singer, N. (May, 2017). How Google Took Over the Classroom. Retrieved September 4, 2017 from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/13/technology/google-education-chromebooks-schools.html
