Ubergadget rollouts

THE has an article today about another “smart phone in the classroom” rollout and some of the issues that it might raise. All these rollouts are starting to sound like the PDA trials of the start of the decade. The PDA, which was the precursor to the ubergadget had everything going for it at the time, except it didn’t connect to anything on the go. Now that phones are able to connect to the ‘net just about anywhere, things are looking up. Until you remember that you have to still use someone’s network to get data. Regardless of the tye – wifi or cell, there is a cost beyond the device. Sometimes the cost is borne by the companies running the pilot but other times, it is the user.

So where does that lead us when we are thinking about the classroom? Well, if you have a rollout big enough, it is just possible that the project can be run on the cost that students are having to pay for textbooks – many of them out of date in the early grades, and overly expensive in post secondary. So if the textbook fee is dumped, aren’t the publishers going to get angry? Well, only if they don’t catch the hint. I think it would be a good idea for a publisher to facilitate these programs. If they really are about the content and not the container, then they should figure out a way to get these ubergadget/knowledge devices into student hands sooner rather than later. And for the students, if farmers in India can afford it, I’m sure it can be made to work in the West.