Condolences to the Jobs family on the untimely death of a good, decent person who made a telling contribution to innovation and society. Amongst his crowning achievements, it must be noted, that Jobs leaves a distinct legacy in the education sector:
The death of Apple founder Steve Jobs is an education story as well as a business story.
Among the Jobs tributes flooding the Internet Wednesday night was this from the parent of an autistic child. Although the son does not talk, the parent wrote, he uses Apple’s iPad to communicate.
“Thank you Steve Jobs for helping my son,” the parent wrote on CNN’s iReport site. “You have given us hope we thought we would never have.”
The parent summed up Jobs’ impact on the son very simply: “Steve Jobs saved my son.”
Jobs’ influence on education is likely to increase after his death. School districts in Florida and elsewhere are turning to the iPad to both engage students and replace textbooks — keeping them more up-to-date at a lower cost.
State Rep. Jeff Brandes, a Pinellas County Republican, believes the devices have the potential to significantly reduce the cost of educating children as less money is available in the state budget.
My daughter has been enriched and engaged by the great variety of educational apps. I would have loved to learn to read with the tools she has at her disposal.
Thank you Steve!
Topical Teaching 