IT spending in K-12 schools is expected to hit 4.7 billion in the U.S. by the end of 2015, according to a new report by IDC Government Insights. The report, titled The Pivot Table: U.S. Education IT Spending Guide, is the first of its kind and takes into account tens of thousands of data points to forecast IT spending in U.S. K-12 schools and higher education institutions.
Much of the projected 4.7 billion in K-12 is expected to go towards purchasing PC’s and investing in equipment and infrastructure upgrades. The report predicts spending on tablets and readers in K-12 to increase by eight percent, resulting in a spend of $522 million on devices in that category.
Shawn McCarthy, the author of the report and research director at IDC Government Insights, told The Center for Digital Education that the rise in IT spending was due to several factors.
“For the short term, we are coming out of a bit of a spike in spending for PCs (mostly laptops and notebooks),” he said. “We believe the spike was prompted by both tax base recoveries as the economy improved and because Microsoft ended support for Windows XP, which prompted many schools to replace older PCs that they had been nursing along.”
McCarthy also said he does not expect IT spending to flatline, but rather to grow at a constant, steady pace.
This news was first reported by the Center for Digital Education. You can read more details here.
Chrissy Winske is the K-12 editor for TechDecisions Media. She is also a contributing writer for Commercial Integrator, TechDecisions' sister publication. Chrissy joined the TD family in 2012 and has covered AV and IT trends, mobile learning, safety and security and the digital classroom. Get in Touch: [email protected] More by Chrissy Winske
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