Since Apple unveiled iOS 9.3 complete with a handful of new education updates, many have wondered how the use of iPads in classrooms will be affected.

According to eSchoolNews, those who have tried out the latest updates in the K-12 sphere have mostly positive feedback to give.

Digital learning director Carl Hooker told eSchoolNews the new Classroom app has quickly become a valuable tool for the 8,000-student district he oversees.

"The new Classroom app (the 'teacher’s assistant'), for example, lets instructors quickly see what students are working on at any given moment. 'We were able to do this before with our mobile device management platform,' said Hooker, 'but it was never built into the iOS.’”

In addition to increasing effectiveness, the update also helps districts save some money.

"Through the [new device enrollment profile (DEP) program, schools save about 50 percent off mobile apps by purchasing them in bulk,” said eSchoolNews.

And because turning on location services to find lost devices is in violation of student privacy, the new update works to prevent schools from losing the devices through the addition of a “lost mode,” an addition that many educators are saying is their favorite change.

Educators and administrators in schools that do not have one-to-one initiatives, but rather share iPads between classes and students, are also happy with the new update.

"A classroom using iPads that are stored on a cart, for example, can assign a specific device to each student (e.g., Johnny always gets iPad No. 5),” said eSchoolNews.

"As students pick up their devices and log in, they’ll only see those apps that are available to them. And while all apps remain on the devices, a 'show/hide' feature shields some of them from certain users. 'If a third grader logs in,' said Hooker, 'he or she will only see third grade apps.’”

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Article by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

4/5/2016