LA Board of Education approves $115M deal to bring iPads to 38 more campuses

[RaduTyrsina]

United States’ second-largest school system, the Los Angeles Board of Education, has decided to approve the $115 million deal that will bring iPads to 38 more campuses throughout the school district. Apple is expected to ship between 40,000 and 70,000 tablets to classrooms for use by students with a special role in spring-scheduled standardized testing. Howard Blume from the Los Angeles Times publication said the following:

The goal of the $1-billion effort is to provide a computer to every student, teacher and administrator in the nation's second-largest school system. Board members approved a $115-million proposal that removed entirely a cap on how many iPads the district could buy for standardized testing scheduled for the spring. But they insist the number will be well below the 67,500 tablets the district staff had recommended.

It’s interesting to observe that the district will pay $768 per device but the high price is caused by the fact that it includes network upgrades to the schools and iPad-specific curriculum for the classrooms, as well. Officials from the LA Board of Education are apparently trying to negotiate a deal with Apple to get discounted prices for those iPads that are meant only for student testing and don’t include curriculum.

Source: LA Times

 

[s2mikey]

This might not be a popular opinion but I feel this is sort of a waste of taxpayer money. Schools already spend a boatload of money on students, like more than anywhere in the modern world and the results are never there. They just keep throwing money at schools and the end product is NO better. Seems like a ploy to get a bunch of free iPads for everyone.

Sorry but I just don't like this kind of thing.

 

[AdmiralAdama]

It's like any tool; it depends on how it's used.

AA

http://www.ctvnews.ca/health/ipads-...pros-and-cons-of-high-tech-learning-1.1438691

Sent from my iPad using iPF

 

[zstairlessone]

Well, they started this last year and the first batch that went out had a lot of issues, kids bypassing security and theft being the top two. A friend's wife teaches here in the LA County system and they have given up pay and benefits last year while going through layoffs. She is a little upset at the iPads in the classroom initiative.

That being said, the iPad is a good learning tool and this is a great way for underprivileged families to gain benefit from out of reach technology