What We Miss in One-to-One Initiatives

I've noticed a trend that when districts choose a one-to-one initiative. They tend to look at the features of the devices and compare this to what students will be learning. What can this device do? What apps are available? How does this compare to the cost? However, I rarely conversations about what it's actually like to use the devices. While it is important to ask what a device can do, it's equally important to ask how hard or difficult it is to use the device for that purpose. You can record and edit audio on a Chromebook or an iPad, but the user experience is vastly different. It is possible to use both devices  In the same vein, blogging and research aren't the same on both devices. When I think about devices in my own life, user experience is important. I can type on a tablet, but it's not easy. I like to navigate from tab to tab rather than app to app. I like the ability to multi-task. However, I don't like reading on a laptop. I've tried capturing and editing audio and video on a Chromebook and it was a clunky experience with many limitations. So, as I think about the potential for one-to-one initiatives, my hope is that people aren't just asking "What can these devices do?" and also asking "What is it actually like to use these devices on a day to day basis?"