https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/ en https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/how-k-12-districts-can-use-student-voices-guide-ed-tech-purchases Although K–12 school districts spend billions on educational technology, often students are left out of the tech buying process. But including students in procurement decisions can boost learning and ensure that the technology meets the needs of students. Recent research from ISTE+ASCD found that incorporating student input leads to more ease of use for tech tools and a “clear, intuitive user interface.” They also prefer a customized experience without flashy features, according to the organization. Alana Winnick, educational technology director and data protection officer at the Pocantico… Wed, 21 Oct 2026 16:18:30 -0400 Brian T. Horowitz https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/how-k-12-districts-can-use-student-voices-guide-ed-tech-purchases https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/drone-education-programs-prepare-students-future-flight When, in 2020, the principal of East Ridge High School in Lake County, Fla., considered adding an aviation pathway to the school’s career and technical education (CTE) program, she sought advice from a nearby aviator. “I thought aviation might be a stretch,” says East Ridge instructor and retired Navy captain Mark Day. Having taught engineering in the school, Day was unsure that students had the maturity and mindset for general aviation training. “It’s based on the same concepts,” Day says. “As much as 70% of drone ground school falls in with pilot school. Whether they stay in unmanned… Tue, 20 Oct 2026 14:29:28 -0400 Brad Grimes https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/drone-education-programs-prepare-students-future-flight https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/bandwidth-experience-rethinking-connectivity-modern-classrooms From cloud applications and video to artificial intelligence tools and connected devices, schools continue to expand their use of in-classroom technology. But many districts, especially those with resource constraints and infrastructure challenges, aren't prepared for the increased demand this places on reliable connectivity. A strong network is foundational to digital learning, and yet a school connectivity report by Connected Nation found that nearly half of public school students in the U.S. don’t have adequate access to high-speed bandwidth in the classroom. Often, schools are running on… Mon, 19 Oct 2026 14:40:51 -0400 Suchi Rudra https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/bandwidth-experience-rethinking-connectivity-modern-classrooms https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/how-k-12-districts-sustain-lasting-device-programs When new Chromebooks arrive at Desert Sands Unified School District, they come preconfigured and nearly ready to hand out to students. That's because CDW, one of the district's technology solutions providers, unboxes each Chromebook, tags it and enrolls it in the district’s Google domain — a service that the district pays a small per-device fee for. Zero-touch enrollment is a massive timesaver for its four cloud support technicians, who manage nearly 28,000 Chromebooks across 34 schools. The La Quinta, Calif.-based district purchases between 4,000 and 6,000 Chromebooks a year as older… Tue, 13 Oct 2026 14:48:20 -0400 Wylie Wong https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/how-k-12-districts-sustain-lasting-device-programs https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/why-dns-and-content-filtering-are-k-12s-most-versatile-security-tool Students are creative, but that resourcefulness can sometimes put teachers and administrators in a tough position. Every day, students use their school-owned devices to play games, watch videos and check in with friends.  While schools can try to block or monitor this activity, it’s a balancing act. Ideally, students should have enough internet access to research and discover while guardrails keep them safe and on task.  Content filtering is one of the ways districts ensure that students have access to trustworthy and appropriate materials. It also provides a significant line of… Thu, 08 Oct 2026 13:46:03 -0400 Erika Gimbel https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/why-dns-and-content-filtering-are-k-12s-most-versatile-security-tool https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/supporting-career-and-technical-education-programs-right-technology Career and technical education (CTE) is evolving to meet the demands of modern industries. Growing numbers of high school students are choosing it as a viable post-graduation pathway to steady, well-paying jobs. This means district IT leaders are tasked with not just supporting classroom tools but also enabling scalable, secure and future-ready career pathways. Click the banner to learn how the Huntsville Center for Technology is rethinking the student experience. Wed, 07 Oct 2026 12:13:07 -0400 Adam Stone https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/supporting-career-and-technical-education-programs-right-technology https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/real-cost-student-device-total-cost-ownership-guide When a district buys student devices, it’s also committing money and staff time to configuring, licensing, managing, repairing and retiring them — expenses that accumulate across thousands of endpoints and several budget cycles. This makes factoring in the total cost of ownership (TCO) critical to the purchasing decision. A device with a higher price tag may ultimately cost less when it lasts longer, requires fewer repairs and consumes less staff time. An effective comparison follows each option through the district’s expected refresh cycle and normalizes the result per device, per year,… Mon, 05 Oct 2026 11:03:01 -0400 Nathan Eddy https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/real-cost-student-device-total-cost-ownership-guide https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/roundtable-how-k-12-districts-are-managing-third-party-risk Schools increasingly depend on third-party tools to support everything from classroom learning to back-office operations. But there’s a price to pay. A majority of all publicly disclosed K–12 data breaches have traced back to vendors and third-party partners, not direct attacks on districts. Districts often bear the consequences of their vendors’ security shortcomings. With 48% of education breaches now involving a third party, schools are taking a hard look at how they manage that risk. With that in mind, EdTech convened a roundtable of district leaders to talk about their strategies.… Thu, 01 Oct 2026 12:59:13 -0400 Adam Stone https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/roundtable-how-k-12-districts-are-managing-third-party-risk https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/google-launches-new-ai-tools-purpose-built-education Google has rolled out a wave of new artificial intelligence features across its ecosystem of products purpose-built for education. At the heart of these features sits Google Classroom, a learning hub for teachers and students globally. From bringing Classroom information directly into Gemini to bringing AI-powered scaffolding to learning journeys in Classroom, schools can now experience the best of Google’s AI for learning using Workspace for Education. DISCOVER: Google fosters brighter futures with tools made for teaching and learning. Securely Bringing Classroom Context Directly to Gemini… Thu, 01 Oct 2026 14:16:46 -0400 Adam Stone https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/google-launches-new-ai-tools-purpose-built-education https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/how-interactive-displays-fit-k-12-device-ecosystem For K–12 IT teams, managing a fleet of interactive displays spread across dozens of rooms can become a heavy lift. “Each display is a connected teaching device that needs to be configured, secured, updated and supported over many years,” says Sara Murray, executive vice president and chief product officer at SMART Technologies. “For lean IT teams, small things become significant when repeated across dozens or even hundreds of classrooms.” When IT struggles to manage these devices, instructional momentum can suffer. “A missing app or a wrong setting can force a teacher to stop and troubleshoot… Thu, 01 Oct 2026 14:16:27 -0400 Adam Stone https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2026/10/how-interactive-displays-fit-k-12-device-ecosystem