Dive Brief:
- A deal between the New York City Department of Education and Amazon to develop an online marketplace for digital teaching tools looks set to move forward.
- Amazon would receive $30 million over three years to develop the “Amazon Storefront,” where teachers could buy, use, and assign content to students, as well as track how much students use what’s assigned.
- The official vote to finalize the deal will take place in late August, but observers say its approval is likely guaranteed.
Dive Insight:
Amazon has been moving into the education sphere for some time, largely in the realm of digital tools rather than devices. Although the deal with New York City schools would be one of its largest stateside, the company worked with the Brazilian government last year to deliver 40 million digital textbooks to classrooms.
New York City selected Amazon's application from 16 different proposals. Students will be able to use various built-in functions, including passage annotation and a dictionary, while teachers will be able to keep an eye on what they’re doing. Amazon is already working on what safeguards it will have in place for student privacy, an increasing issue as vendors become more involved in student monitoring. “Students’ personal identifiable information will be safeguarded in this system, as Amazon will use a DOE-provided proxy with encrypted information and limited student information,” the city’s Department of Equation stated in a contract.
