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U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan wants to get the federal government more involved in schools.

Successful Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who, in creating and running their businesses, clearly understand the importance of understanding the market and testing how effective their products are, seem to leave those important instincts at the door when they comment on -- and these days increasingly get involved in -- K-12 education.

Desktop virtualization is not a new idea, but when coupled with CDI's recertified computers, it means big savings for K12 schools.

DA editors attend many national and state conferences around the country to learn the latest about education and ed technology. In early February I spent time at the Texas Computer Education Association Annual Convention and Exposition learning about the latest trends in ed tech.

With iPads making their way into kindergarten classrooms from Maine to Tennessee, it may seem like a given that American education is embracing technology for the rising generation.

Jill Duffy of PCMag.com may have said it best: "Apple brings a spotlight with it everywhere it goes, and people pay attention to anything caught in its glow."

Rumors of the new and improved iBooks application began swirling weeks before Apple's anticipated announcement on Jan. 19, but perhaps no one was expecting the tidal wave of media coverage that proclaimed the company's venture into the textbook industry to be the Holy Grail of K12 learning. After all, iPads are hardly new, nor are their netbook predecessors or online learning material, for that matter.

Asking families to buy their own educational technology runs counter to the normal way of doing things in public education.