I might as well contribute my .02 as well...
Personally, I feel if the school requires this as part of the rental agreement than you should do as asked. If it's only a short flight than it shouldn't take you more than a few minutes and is great practice. "Use it or lose it." If it's a longer flight it still shouldn't take long and may really come in handy at some point.
By all means take your iPad along and use it for a backup and an additional source of information.
Don't become a pilot who can't figure out a holding pattern entry given at the last minute because they can't program the FMS quickly enough or a fuel burn because the GPS isn't telling you. There will be times you need to know how to fly with basic information available to you.
I still fly departures and approaches in the Airbus whenever possible with just the raw data ILS and RMI needles but then I always enjoyed being a pilot and using the skills that I learned whether it was old school or new school.