Hardware sales maintain a steady beat: purchases of laptops, handhelds and wireless devices are key among districts' hardware expenditures. .

When President Bush signed the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, he millions of federal funds to support wise use of technology in our nation's K-12 schools. The money comes with a few strings, of course. But more districts than ever can expect to receive grant funds for technology under the flexibility provided by NCLB.

This is good news because schools continue to buy computers, peripherals and a variety of related hardware at robust rates.

Maintaining similar levels over the last three years, K-12 public schools will spend $5.6 billion for technology overall in 2001-02, according to Market Data Retrieval, a school research firm in Shelton, Conn. Of that total, hardware--networks, PCs, printers, projectors and the like-makes up 67 percent, or $3.7 billion. Thus, schools spend roughly $78 per pupil on hardware (plus another $40 for software and teacher training).

PLANNING FOR THE MULTIMEDIA FUTURE

Among the latest trends discernable in hardware sales to schools is more rapid adoption of certain technologies. For example, nearly a quarter of schools (24 percent) have computers equipped with DVD drives in 2001-02, according to MDR, up from just 5 percent the prior year. Considering the lack of much but movie titles for the format, this indicates educators are planning for a richer multimedia future they know is sure to come.

Wireless networks also remain favored by many schools, especially wheeled carts of rechargeable laptops combined with a WLAN access point and printer, etc. In fact, QED, a school research firm in Denver, Colo., estimates that as many as 22 percent of schools have deployed wireless Ethernet somewhere on campus, based on responses from building-level technology coordinators.

Four in 10 districts (39 percent) also report owning handhelds, notes QED's District Technology Forecast 2001-02. Currently, the vast majority of users are administrators (50 percent) rather than teachers (20 percent) but that ratio is likely to change. Enough new software applications as well as hardware add-ons usable for classroom needs have been rolled out by Palm, Compaq and other vendors to pique the interest and enthusiasm of teachers and students looking for personal technology tools.

ATTENTION GETTERS

Future hardware choices by schools and educators will undoubtedly reflect the mandates of No Child Left Behind. For instance, to help with the act's accountability components, assessment-oriented products--such as Scantron's Classroom Wizard, a Top 100 pick--should get a lot more attention. "Technology solutions for assessment, especially those providing quick feedback for diagnostic and remedial purposes, will be reviewed in a new light," agrees Jeanne Hayes, QED president.

"We saw strong growth over the past year in wireless technology and one-to-one computing models such as laptops," summarizes Kathleen Brantley, MDR's director of product development. "We expect to see continued growth in handheld devices, laptops and distance learning as the `learn anywhere, anytime' model takes hold."

In the present and future, school buyers seek value, so one thread runs throughout all of DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION'S Top 100 Hardware choices: high utility. With the exception of Apple's iPod MP3 music player (just plain fun), these are hard-working classroom tools. Roughly a third are some type of presentation technology, for example, while another third are handhelds or related devices. Digital cameras are also well represented--another technology educators have been quick to embrace.

Computer Inventory 1996-2001
(in millions)

1995-96       5.0
1996-97       6.3
1997-98       7.4
1998-99       8.2
1999-00      09.8
2000-01      11.3

Source: Market Data Retrieval, 2001, www.schooldata.com

Note: Table made from bar graph.

Terian Tyre, [e-mail], is special features editor and a freelance technology writer based in Oceanside, Calif.