How Apple Plans to Revolutionize the Classroom

Although Apple has focused on the education sector for decades, the Cupertino-based company is looking to expand further into the classroom by utilizing its iOS ecosystem. According to Bloomberg, Apple has been selling thousands of iPads to grade schools since the tablet debuted nearly two years ago.

Now, the company wants to make these iPad purchases worthwhile, while promoting future sales, by adding educational content that can be utilized by teachers and students. Ultimately, Apple believes it can revolutionize the classroom. And with an education event scheduled to take place in New York tomorrow, it’s the perfect timing…

Apple is expected to combine its digital platform with the textbook industry, an idea originally conceived by the company’s late co-founder Steve Jobs.

Apple co-founder Steve Jobs had focused on the textbook business before his death in October. He told biographer Walter Isaacson that the industry was ripe for a digital disruption because of the interactive capabilities made possible by the iPad. Jobs had held meetings with publishers, including Pearson Education Inc., about teaming up with Apple, according to Issacson’s book, “Steve Jobs,” published last year. Jobs wanted to create electronic texts and curriculum material for the iPad.

Electronic textbooks, which will likely be in a modified ePub format, are expected to work with iOS features such as annotating, highlighting, and defining words. We’ll know all this and more soon, as Apple’s education press conference kicks off tomorrow at 10:00 AM Eastern (7:00 AM Pacific) at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City.

[Bloomberg]