Even in a country that has some of the fastest broadband services in the world and has established a global reputation for embracing technology, the national drive to replace all printed primary (elementary) education material with digital content is truly ambitious.
By 2015, the entire school-age curriculum will be delivered on an array of computers, smart phones and tablets, and the government is going to spend $2.4 billion buying them.
And given the choice of Apple’s iPad and the local Samsung tablets, it isn’t hard to see who is favorite to land the deal.
Some schools on the peninsula are already using textbooks displayed on notebook computers, but when it comes to choice of tablets, how likely is it that the government will choose the iPad or any other tablet other than those manufactured by South Korean electronics giant Samsung, such as the Samsung Galaxy Tab or some larger variant of it?
It is a fascinating experiment, and hugely audacious. But Korea regularly ranks highly in international education comparison. Just last month, Korea came top in an OECD survey testing how 15-year olds use computers and the Internet to learn. (more…)