DEER TRAIL, Colo. – School buses in 12 states are being fitted with free Google Wi-Fi service so students who live in rural areas can do homework while they ride.
Google officials formally announced the expansion of their “Rolling Study Halls" program on Monday at a school district on the plains east of Denver. Officials say the move will help reclaim 1.5 million hours of time the thousands of students would otherwise be spending just sitting on buses riding to and from school.
The program will provide service to 70 buses at 16 districts, Google said, and will be free for participants. It's targeted to rural areas where kids might not have high-speed home Internet access and where they have long bus rides.
Google last year launched a pilot program with two buses at Berkeley County School District in South Carolina, and then expanded it to 28 buses there, said Diane Driggers, the district’s chief information and technology officer. About 2,000 students are currently being served, she said.
The system works only with school-issued Google Chromebooks, which are inexpensive laptops, and limits students to school-approved Internet sites. It also blocks their access to social media, Driggers said. A teacher often rides with the students, expanding their learning time.
Olalla Elementary School fourth grade student Carley Hocog ,10, works on a Digital Passport program on his Chromebook in class.
Larry Steagall / Kitsap Sun
“In some rural areas, it’s really helped,” she said. “For us, it has worked out really well.”
The free bus Wi-Fi is the latest salvo in an ongoing battle between Google and Apple to lock new customers into their computing ecosystems, which include both hardware and software. Apple last week announced new lower-cost iPads designed to compete with Chromebooks, and Google offers the "G Suite for Education," allowing teachers to give quizzes, share student data and create collaborative projects online.
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Google officials said each district's policies will govern what students can access from the bus Wi-Fi, and that Google won't be able to see what the kids are looking at.
“We are so excited to bring Rolling Study Halls to communities across the country,” said Susan Molinari, vide president, Americas for Google. “It’s so important for students to have access to the resources they need to be successful in school and in their future careers. ”
In Berkeley County, Diggers and her staff are writing a grant to expand the Google service to additional school buses, including the ones student-athletes use on their way to competitions. Drivers on buses with the Google Wi-Fi have noticed an improvement in student discipline.
“We try to give them challenges for education activities to do on the bus, really this also helps to keep them occupied," she said.
Google is paying for the service for school districts in: Alabama, Georgia, Kansas, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.
Google’s parent company, Alphabet, had an adjusted net income last quarter of $6.84 billion.
More: Apple unveils new $299 iPad for students with support for augmented reality, Apple Pencil
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