As 2013 wraps up, "tablet" in education is still all but synonymous with "iPad." In fact, Apple announced that its share of the education tablet market reached 94% at the end of its last quarter. Yet, the iPad-in-education story that often seems to garner the most headlines is not a happy one: Los Angeles is struggling with implementing its iPad rollout.
Might that leave an opening for competitors? What does that market share figure mean for the direction of tablets in 2014? Here are five issues facing the education tablet market in the coming year:
Schools must study Los Angeles — and learn from its mistakes
The Los Angeles iPad rollout was arguably the biggest education tablet story of 2013 and it's bound to be a big one in 2014. But remember that Los Angeles isn't exactly providing a case study of iPads in classrooms — after all, the devices are barely in the classrooms yet. What is being brought to light are the haste and missteps with which this program sought to bring tablets to the classroom. Any school that intends to implement a tablet program — iPad or otherwise — needs to take a look at what Los Angeles did and learn from their mistakes. That includes taking more time to create a program and spending more time training teachers.
The iPad will get more competition
Google, Samsung and Microsoft all have tablets released and more lined up. The question is whether the competition will make significant inroads against the iPad. Apple has an advantage in brand recognition and in standardization (the models it releases are limited to a relative few and they've so far been released on a predictable cycle). Even so, all of those manufacturers have deep pockets and no one is close to ready to drop out yet. The marketplace is only headed in one direction — toward more competitors. Apple itself may be ready to enter with another tablet: There's a rumor of an iPad with a larger screen slated for 2014, although it should be noted that Apple tests a lot of products that never see the light of day.
Developers must weigh whether and when to make apps for Android
This is a chicken-and-egg issue: Without the devices in students' hands, developers will not find it profitable to make apps for Android tablets. Without the app support behind the platform, schools will not want to move to Android tablets. Google has sought to make Android a more hospitable place for education developers and educators alike by launching Google Play for Education. Apple certainly had a first-mover advantage in this area, but there are signs that Android may be catching up.
Success must be measured
A tablet program is an expensive proposition. Right now, there are a lot of anecdotal success stories. For tablet programs to continue to get funding, their success will have to be backed up by hard numbers. For the time being, that seems hard to come by. 2014 might be too early to see results on a large scale, but you can bet observers will be hungry for any data that does come out.
Chromebooks may gain a place at the table
Sure, Chromebooks aren't really tablets — but that may work in their favor. After all, some schools buying iPads are adding keyboards to their purchases, at additional expense and inconvenience. A Chromebook could hold a convenience and cost advantage over iPads, but will educators feel like the app support is there? And does a laptop have the same "wow" factor and the same power to pique kids' interest as a tablet? 2014 may find answers to those questions.
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