Today, public schools in the U.S. provide at least one computer for every five students, putting in over $3 billion annually towards digital ed tech. Last school year marked the first time that electronic state standardized tests for elementary and middle grades outweighed the old-school pencil and paper kind.
The biggest benefit that school managers foresee from adapting a “smarter,” more tech-connected school is its impact on the students: Better engagement and a more personalized education. But developing a smart school is easier said than done.
Schools Need Systemic Change to Become “Smart”
After surveying 612 different schools — mostly across North America, with a few respondents from the Asia Pacific and Latin American regions — Extreme Networks was able to report an exhaustive list of smart devices already at work in school environments.
The list appears to be a pretty even split between devices, seen here:
Cameras and video
Tablets and eBooks
Multi-touch tables
3-D printers
Interactive whiteboards
Electric lighting/ maintenance
Smart podiums
Athletic bands or wearables
Temperature sensors
Virtual and augmented reality
Robots
…And more complex, interlocking systems like these:
Student ID cards
School bus tracking
Smart HVAC system
Supply inventory tracking
Motion sensing and tracking devices
Attendance tracking
Airplay and Smart TV Devices
Wireless door locks
Adaptive learning systems
Parking sensors
Facial recognition systems
iBeacons
School supervisors overall seem to be better at individual devices then in overhauling entire coordinated systems: Their top currently used smart technologies are interactive whiteboards, cameras and video, and the fabled tablets/ebook readers.
Schools seem intent on developing with the times. As the same survey linked above found, 46 percent of K–12 and higher ed IT managers believe smart technology in education will “have a major impact over the next one to two years.” But in order to follow through on that commitment, school systems will need to adapt to more change than just adding tablets to each classroom.