Sam Oliver
The district has bought $15 million worth of iPads for use in 340 classrooms this fall, according to San Diego`s 10 News. The money has come from a voter-approved funding program known as "Proposition S," which sets funds aside for up-to-date technology in the classroom.
The district has bought iPad 2 units that retail for $400, but a $30 education discount from Apple means the district will save hundreds of thousands of dollars on the purchase.
The district has not indicated exactly what software students will use, though a likely candidate would be Apple`s own iBooks software, which was enhanced for digital textbooks with the release of iBooks 2 early this year. The iPad 2 units will be utilized in 5th- and 8th-grade classrooms, as well as some high school classes.
San Diego`s investment in the iPad was first noted by Apple`s chief financial officer, Peter Oppenheimer, during his company`s quarterly earnings call in April. At the time, the district had purchased a total of 10,000 iPads, and was planning to secure 15,000 more — a purchase that has now become finalized.
Oppenheimer noted that Apple`s U.S. K-12 customers had purchased twice as many iPads as Macs during the March quarter, despite the fact that the company also set a record in Mac sales for the quarter.
"iPad continues to open doors for new customers with whom Apple previously had no relationship," he said. "As we enter the K-12 institution buying season, we`re hopeful that iPad will be a popular choice."
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82 Comments
A while back (i think at AllthingsD )Both Jobs and Gates were quoted as surprised that technology had not helped(or large affect with U.S) education so far. It would be interesting to know before after results for this case. The latest new thing is 'flip the classroom'; using Kahn Academy videos or similar. Also would be curious to know the breakage/theft rate of the iPad in schools. In any case... Dats allota iPads!
This is the wave of the future. Most schools will have a tablet of some kind, mostly iPads.
Now, that's what I'm talking about. That amount is a fairly decent number. I know there aren't many school districts throughout the country that can afford iPads in that quantity, but it's a nice start. Apple is the one company that has the money to grow production capability to keep up with demand. Sweet. We say it's a lot of iPads, but what does Wall Street say? Probably not so much even though the potential may be there for really high sales.
We need to move in this direction much, much faster to succeed in the Information Age. I still see computers relegated to a computer lab in schools rather than in every classroom.
And do they have funding for the ongoing IT infrastructure required? Do they have a curriculum strategy? Are they providing training for the teachers?
Sorry, but color me skeptical. Shiny toys are nice, but schools (at least in my area) are consumed with drilling students to pass the standardized tests. Actual education is secondary to assuring the kids can pass the tests.
- Jasen.