A question on many minds of many educators remains unanswered. A school in Hillsborough, NJ, educators put this question to the test, asking: is the iPad really the best device for the classroom?

According to The Atlantic, technology in schools is a huge and competitive business, with schools spending $9.94 billion on EdTech for the 2014 academic year. iPads have been the gadget of choice for most classrooms, but schools have been selling back their iPads within the last year. 

In Los Angeles, a district recalled 2,100 iPads from its students. At the end of the school year, educators were given the choice to pick Chromebooks or hybrid laptop-tablets. In Hillsborough, the school gave iPads to 200 kids and Chromebook laptops to an equal number. After receiving feedback from teachers and students, the school sold its iPads and purchased 4,600 Chromebooks in fall 2013. Jennifer Harmsen, social studies teacher at the middle school, said being on the iPad team transformed her classroom approach after 24 years of teaching, and she was upset that the district went with the Chromebooks. Now that she spent a full year using the device, however, she is happy with the decision. 

"At the end of the year, I was upset that we didn't get the iPads," said seventh-grade science teacher Larissa McCann. "But as soon as I got the Chromebook and the kids started using it, I saw, 'Okay, this is definitely much more useful.'"

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Article by Kassondra Granata, EducationWorld Contributor