One-to-One Computing Drives Growth in the Education Technology Market
The education field may not adopt new innovations as quickly as the business world, but the sector is catching up: A new report indicates that the education technology market could reach $55 billion by 2019.
Published by global technology research and advisory company Technavio, Education Technology Market in North America 2015-2019 attributes the projected growth in large part to the rise of one-to-one computing initiatives. A summary of the report states:
One-on-one computing is an essential component of personalized learning, which has a positive influence on students in terms of their language and analytical skills. It is believed that students’ engagement with studies has increased tremendously because of this initiative. Moreover, these devices are capable of instantly finding solutions while connecting with teachers or other students.
Additional findings from education marketing agency MDR’s State of the K-12 Market 2015 report show that 58 percent of K–12 technology directors rate one-to-one computing as a high priority over the next three years; another 28 percent cite it as a medium priority.
For some districts, the strong interest in one-to-one computing manifests itself in higher technology budgets during the 2015-2016 school year: The MDR report indicates that 46 percent of districts increased their hardware spending from the previous year.
While districts implementing a one-to-one program have many viable device options, Google Chromebooks have become an increasingly popular choice. According to CNBC, Chromebooks’ market share rose from less than 1 percent in 2012 to more than 53 percent in December of last year.
Despite Google’s gains in the hardware market, rival Microsoft continues to thrive in the education technology space. The new Technavio report names the company as one of the top vendors in the competitive market.
A sales report from Futuresource Consulting might explain why: According to that document, Microsoft Windows holds 43 percent of the global market share, making it the number one operating system at that level. Google’s Chrome OS is a distant second with 20 percent of the global market share.
According to Technavio, fluctuations in market shares are accompanied by changes in end-user segmentation.
“In 2014, the education technology market in North America was dominated by the post-secondary segment with a market share of nearly 54 percent,” a summary of the report states. “However, with the emergence of several online courses catering to the needs of the K–12 curriculum, the education technology market is expected to shift focus towards K–12 classes in the coming years.”
In the meantime, school and district IT leaders will have to keep their eyes on the horizon.
