How Google took over the classroom

Natasha Singer writing for The New York Times:

In 2016, Chromebooks accounted for 58 percent of mobile devices shipped to primary and secondary schools in the United States, up from less than 1 percent in 2012, according to Futuresource Consulting, the research firm.

When I was in school, it was the Apple IIe, and later, various Macintosh and eMate 300 machines. But it was all Apple, and it helped prepare me for the work I've been doing now my entire adult life.

Just this week, our district announced they were transitioning away from iPads.

Of course, all this raises concerns about Google's motives in this market. Apple wants to sell computers and devices to schools, and has traditionally done so at a discounted rate. But Google and its Chromebooks are nearly free by comparison, and Google's objectives do not end at the point of sale.

Google declined to provide a breakdown of the exact details the company collects from student use of its services.

There is computer aptitude, and there is Google dependency. Google wants to be the primary (if not the only) place kids go for knowledge and answers. I'm inclined to think children need as diverse a skill set as possible, and Google taking on an outsized role in education feels troubling to me. But whether this represents a benign shift in learning or an insidious grab for personal data on children, I truly do not know.