Google is Equipping More Rural School Buses With Wi-Fi and Chromebooks (theverge.com)

Google on Monday said it was formally expanding its Rolling Study Halls program, or school buses equipped with WiFi, computers and on-bus educators to help rural students with work beyond school hours. From a report: Google today announced an expansion of its Rolling Study Halls initiative to over 16 additional school districts, giving "thousands" of students access to Wi-Fi and Chromebooks on their buses. Google has piloted the program in North Carolina and South Carolina over the last couple years, focusing its efforts on rural communities where some students have lengthy bus rides between home and the classroom each day.

Providing students with dependable Wi-Fi before and after school is a boon for those who might lack broadband internet at home, giving them two opportunities daily to complete assignments or study for exams while on the bus. Google contributes mobile Wi-Fi routers, data plans, and Chromebook devices.

Comments

Study? Ha!

[Anonymous Coward]

My 12-year old son would LOVE this idea...it would make it much easier to play games on his school-provided Chromebook if he had internet access for the long bus ride home. I can assure you that Chromebook gets used for much more gaming and YouTube watching than for actual schoolwork. No, they can't install apps, but there are lots of games available via the browser...

Re:Obligatory conspiracy theory

[Penguinisto]

Okay, campers - put the tinfoil aside.

Out here in the sticks (yes, I'm rural), kids routinely spend upwards of an hour or more on the school bus each morning (and afternoon), as their classmates and themselves are picked up from (or dropped off to) their somewhat remote homes. School hours are typically either a bit shorter in response, or that extra time spent on the bus eats into the time kids spend on homework.

May as well let the kids get the homework done before they get home (and/or before they get to school), and as a bonus, the kids won't be eating into the bandwidth caps at home that most Satellite Internet providers impose, which is what most folks in the sticks end up having to use if they want to get online (if there's Internet at all at home, which brings up another point entirely.)