The basic challenge for a student is to organize all the resources in a place and systematically use them for the purpose of studying. Added to this, is the pressure of communicating with their peers, fellow students, and teachers. Google’s Chromebook can do all this just by a click.

What’s special?

Really, nothing. Any Chromebook can be used in the classroom and still have access to Google’s educational suite and work, communicate and collaborate with other students and teachers. The applications and services are lightweight and easy on resources so no fancy (read: expensive) hardware is needed. What is different is the support contract. School districts that purchase through education channels can also opt in for various levels of support from the company that made the Chromebooks, or through Google itself.

This can include on-site service and you can even have a Google specialist help students and teachers get started in person. Traditional warranty service is also available through the manufacturer the same way as any other Chromebook should a school board decide to opt out. And because Chromebooks and Google’s services are intuitive and administration is similar to enterprise Gmail administration, opting out is an acceptable solution for schools to save money if they have knowledgeable staff on hand.

How to use it?

There’s a reason so many schools use Chromebooks in the classroom. Actually, there are several reasons; each just as important as the next.

  • The price. Chromebooks designed for classroom use can be bought in bulk for hundreds of dollars less than other devices like iPads and Windows laptops.
  • They’re powered by Google. Google is a household name when it comes to technology and school districts know the company will be around to offer support for the life of the product.
  • Security and administration tools. Chromebooks are very secure by design and sG Suite administrator can lock things down even further to meet the needs of any school system’s IT policies.
  • Parents can provide a Chromebook, too. Because they are inexpensive and easy to use, parents can provide a Chromebook for a child who isn’t in a 1:1 school program, or during the summer recess.

How does it help?

School systems are notoriously cash-strapped and understaffed, yet they have the responsibility of shaping the next generation through their formative years and beyond. Because Chromebooks are inexpensive to buy and support, they are a welcome addition to the classroom by frustrated school officials.

In the classroom itself, Chromebooks provide a gateway to everything a student needs in order to learn and everything a teacher needs to guide them. Little things a consumer may take for granted, like automatic updates and the ability to sign in to any device and have your profile available mean more time can be dedicated to studies instead of administration.

Chromebooks also work seamlessly with Google’s educational software. Google Classroom and G Suite for Education, as well as Google’s consumer applications like Gmail or Google Keep, are integrated into the Chrome OS experience. When these applications are present students and teachers can work online or offline, and the application syncs with Google’s servers in a seamless way. It’s very difficult to tell you’re working with an app that stores its data in the cloud because the experience is so good. But you’ll know it did when you pick up a completely different Chromebook and everything is just as you left it. This is great for students and allows them to focus on the task in front of them instead of making sure things are properly saved and synchronized.

Chromebooks and Google’s educational application suite are simple to use, well integrated into inexpensive Chromebooks and are the perfect foundation for an education.

Built for education 

You’ll find education-focused Chromebooks from the names you already know and trust. Companies like Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo and more all make educational Chromebooks at various price levels.

You’ll find that they all have a few things in common regardless of the price tag: the ability to install and run Android applications from Google’s Play Store is a must-have feature. This gives teachers and students a huge library of apps that can be installed, and many are built specifically for learning. Google’s educational services also have dedicated Android and iOS applications so teachers and students can collaborate from a phone or tablet as well as a Chromebook, and since they are web-based they can also be accessed from any computer with the Chrome browser installed.

On the hardware front, you’ll find facilities such as the touch-enabled display, easily convertible to tablet through the 180-degree hinges. High-end Chromebooks have features like an active stylus which can be used in chemistry labs as temperature and pH probes to analyze and visualize data, or in engineering work as design models for 3D printing.

Where to purchase?

You can get an education-focused Chromebooks from every well-known laptop manufacturer for sale online and in stores. Chromebooks, including models for schools, are for sale in the same places as any other laptop like Amazon or Best Buy.

Source: Android Central