Dive Brief:

• A handful of school districts are taking part in a pilot program with an app that teaches math and English to prepare students for Common Core.
• One instructor says her students are more focused on the lessons by using the iPads and the software, which is from Pearson Education Inc.
• Educational content companies are focusing more energy on software at the intersect of tablets and the Common Core standards, as schools are placing more emphasis on both. 

Dive Insight:

About 40,000 students across the country are participating in this pilot. Districts nationwide spent $7.97 billion on educational software in the 2011-12 school year, up about 2.7% over the year before.