Who could be against choice?
That’s the argument Los Angeles school district administrators are
now employing to push their latest round of expensive technology
upgrades. Schools will be given the choice to receive Chromebooks
instead of iPads—and some schools will get laptops, the most
expensive option of all. The Los Angeles Times
reports:
Under a new plan, 27 schools that were originally set to receive
iPads, made by Apple, now will also have the choice of choosing a
less-expensive Chromebook, which uses a Google operating
system.“We’re trying to gear this around giving choices to the
schools,” said Mark Hovatter, who heads the facilities division for
L.A. Unified.
The idea is to eventually place such a device in the hands of
every child in the district. The problem administrators encountered
when rolling out the iPad plan, however, was that kids kept losing
or breaking the devices. What happens then? Do parents pay, or does
the district? Do kids get a replacement? Teachers also struggled
mightily to incorporate the technology into their lesson plans, and
concerns about kids using iPads for unsanctioned purposes caused
headaches.
The initial iPad deal unravelled after allegations of an
improper relationship between then District Superintendent John
Deasy, Apple, and curriculum company Pearson. As I
wrote in the December 2014 issue of Reason:
Forced to admit the idea was a costly fiasco, Deasy cancelled
the order for more iPads. That’s when evidence surfaced that the
superintendent and his deputy, Jaime Aquino, were overly friendly
with executives at Apple and Pearson, the company supplying
curriculum for the devices. Aquino may have improperly advised
Pearson representatives on how to guarantee that they landed the
contract, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Fastforward to today, and the new plan is well underway.
Administrators would like people to believe that they are merely
introducing choice and competition—all that good stuff that us
free-marketeers love—to the technology plan. Each school can choose
the right device for its kids.
That’s all well and good, but I have little reason to believe
that the individual schools will be more responsible stewards of
the taxpayer’s money than the district was. Indeed, 21 schools
decided to go with an even more expensive option:
laptops.
Steve Lopez of the LA Times
argued persuasively in October that the iPad fiasco was a
costly diversion from the district’s real problems. Schools can’t
even find the money for math textbooks, but administrators want to
force unneeded technology on them and impose computerized
tests.
The district should prioritize basic instruction before deciding
to purchase thousands of fancy gadgets.
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