According to Google’s Official Enterprise Blog, there are now more than 2,000 schools around the world in the Chromebooks for Education program. That’s a 100 percent increase from the 1,000 schools participating in the program merely three months ago.
Though some people still don’t know what a Chromebook actually is, the word is getting out as more and more educational institutions invest in the Chrome-based laptops. Many schools are trying out Chromebooks because they’re affordable and usually require very little maintenance. The education sector has become such an important market for Chromebooks that Google offered the Samsung Series 5 to teachers and students for only $99 (it usually costs $430) back in December. Manufacturers have also been making Chromebooks specifically for schools, the latest being Lenovo’s 11-inch ThinkPad X131e, and reports also indicate that HP is working on an entry-level 14-inch Pavilion Chromebook that is most likely meant for the education sector.
According to Google, included among the 1,000 new schools are the Transylvania County Schools in rural North Carolina (900 units), St.Thomas Aquinas High School in Florida (2,200 units), and Rocketship Education in the Bay Area of California (1,100 units). The company didn’t release a full list with the respective numbers of Chromebooks in use, so while these particular numbers might make Chromebook adoption rates (at least within the sector) look impressive , there’s a possibility that many schools have ordered fewer devices in order to give Chromebooks a spin.
