Many of us love our technology; soon, BPHS will be supplying students with Chromebooks.

“Students at Neil Armstrong, Independence, and some of the elementary school students have already gotten Chromebooks, and, if according to plan, by next year, all high school students and the elementary school students will get Chromebooks,” Dr. J said.

Chromebooks have a short history, but they weren’t started by Google, as many might think. Chromebooks were first sold by Acer, Inc. and Samsung in June 2011. Soon after, Google, Hewlett Packard, and computer maker Lenovo started selling Chromebooks in early 2013. Chromebooks are supposed to be used when one is with a WIFI connection. But, people don’t have to worry if they are offline. Chromebooks come with Gmail, Google Drive, a music player, Microsoft Office, and Angry Birds, just to name a few, that can be accessed offline. In addition, Chromebooks seem to be the new school devices, not iPads, as schools in 41 states have Chromebooks.

The purpose of supplying Chromebooks to students, according to Dr. J, is to make the same technology available to everyone.

“As you know, we have Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), and many people have different devices; some better, and some worse than others,” Dr. J said. “With Chromebooks, students all have the same devices, so the field of devices is leveled, and everyone has the same access to technology.”

Chromebooks are a new thing to Bethel Park, as the middle school students are just getting them this year, so “we need to evaluate the Chromebooks this year, and then make a final decision,” Dr. J said.

However, even though students will receive Chromebooks from the school, don’t count on the use of your new computers being a daily occurrence in each class.

“Whether you have a device or not, you cannot use that device 24/7,” Dr. J said. “Using the Chromebooks, just like a device, is dependent on the teacher and the curriculum.”

So, even though many might be excited to lay their hands on the new Chromebooks, they might have to wait a little longer.

To check out an exclusive interview with Dr. J on Chromebooks, see the attached video.