Google Making Plays for K12

Those of you who don’t like the idea of tablets in the classroom may want to just keep scrolling down today. Google Play developers announced this morning a district-scale, tablet-based environment for K-12 schools in the U.S. I had the chance yesterday to speak about details with Rick Borovoy, Product Manager for Google Play for Education and Tech&Learning advisor Joel Handler, IT Director for Hillsborough Public Schools in New Jersey, who beta tested the setup. First impressions: The most interesting aspect of the launch is in the plumbing—from the way teachers can select classroom apps all the way through to the way districts can pay and manage them—something that for some iPad districts can be an issue. Check out the slick Google-style promo here. Look for more on the advisor blog in the coming weeks. Seems like I have another excuse to buy a Nexus7 now. —Kevin Hogan, Editorial Director