Four of the nation’s largest technology companies—Amazon, Apple, Google, and Microsoft—are vying for the K-12 classroom market, and according to a recent Ed Week Market Brief survey, there’s a clear leader so far.
Teachers and administrators are more likely to use products from Google, both hardware and software, than the other three tech titans. And that’s mainly because, according to educators, the Google products are easy to use.
When asked which of eight companies, including the tech giants and four big-name education publishers, they would most want to hire to help improve student achievement in their school districts, more than half of educators said they would choose Google for Education. Apple Education was the runner up, though well behind, with just 13 percent of respondents saying they would choose the company.
And regarding hardware in schools, 42 percent of respondents said Chromebooks were the devices used most frequently for instructional purposes. PC laptops were behind them, with 15 percent of respondents saying they were most frequently used. PC desktops and iPads tied for third at 13 percent each.
But educators do have some qualms with Chromebooks—in particular related to privacy/security, durability, and their ability to support higher student achievement.
EdWeek Market Brief, a membership service, partnered with the Education Week Research Center to survey a nationally representative sample of 1,000 teachers and district-level administrators. Take a look at the full report and download the research results for free.
In this 2014 photo, Chromebook screens glow in a 6th grade English class at Ridgeview Middle School in Gaithersburg, Md. —T.J. Kirkpatrick for Education Week - File