SPA Issues Grade K-12 Computer Usage Report

Report Indicates Both Teachers and Students are Outpacing Schools in
Familiarity and Usage of PCs

August 16, 1994 (Washington D.C.) - The Software Publishers Association
(SPA) today released a comprehensive report on the current and planned
usage of personal computer technology by US public and private schools.

Based on surveys of US school districts by 19 different organizations, the
report provides school administrators and technology program planners with
comprehensive information about educational technology trends including:

* In the 1992-1993 school year, $571 million was spent on educational
software.

* CD-ROM-based software programs and CD-ROM players are the fastest growing
technology in schools.

* School use of distance learning services, including cable networks,
satellite dishes, fiber optic cable and instructional television fixed
signal, will increase dramatically in the late 1990s.

* Schools today are not information highway-ready. Two major barriers that
prevent most schools from accessing the information highway are
installation of new telephone lines and the costs associated with on-line
services.

* Personal computers, educational software and other technologies are
rapidly migrating out of the school computer lab and into classroom
curricula.

* It is clear that principals are a very important part of the technology
purchase decision-making process, more than 95% of school respondents
indicated that principals are involved in school-level acquisitions.

* The fastest-growing areas of technology product are estimated to be
optical media software, telecommunication services, distance learning,
computer supplies and computer peripherals, with the greatest expenditures
occurring in the purchase of personal computers.

* Local, state and federal funds are available to help fund the purchase of
educational technologies and software.

* In the 1993-94 school year, it is estimated that 639,000 new computers
were purchased at an expenditure of more than $958 million.

* More than 50% of US school teachers now have computers at home. However,
only 38% of middle/junior high and 44% of high school classrooms have a
computer.

"While the K-12 Educational Market Report demonstrates increasing use of
educational technologies in US schools, the report also sheds light on
several roadblocks to effectively incorporating technology into the
nation's schools," said Ken Wasch, SPA Executive Director. "When it comes
to obtaining local, state and federal funding for educational
technologies, school administrators need to be creative and diligent."

The SPA report summarizes research findings from market surveys conducted
by more than 19 organizations--CCA Consulting Inc., Curriculum Product
News, Education TURNKEY Systems, Inc., EDUCORP Consultants Corp.,
Electronic Learning, Interactive Educational Systems Design, Inc., Market
Data Retrieval, Peter Li Education Group, Quality Education Data Inc.,
Robertson, Stephens & Co., Scholastic, Inc., SIMBA Information Inc.,
Software Publishers Association, T.H.E. Journal, and Anne Wujcik &
Associates.

Also included are research results supplied by the National Education
Association, the International Association for the Evaluation of
Educational Achievement, the U.S. Department of Education's Center for
Education Statistics, and the Education Development Center's Center for
Children and Technology. The Report was compiled for the SPA by C. Blohm &
Associates of San Antonio, Texas, and Waugh & Rich Associates of Denver.

SPA is making the report available to educational professionals as a
planning tool for $95 and to all others for $250. To order a copy of the
report or to obtain a free table of contents of the report, educators
should call Software Publishers Association at (202)-452-1600 ext. 185.

The Software Publishers Association is the principal trade association of
the PC software industry. Its 1,100 members represent the leading
publishers in the business, consumer, and education markets. The SPA has
offices in Washington, DC, and Paris, France. SPA press releases are
available on-line through CompuServe. (GO:SPAFORUM).

Software Publishers Association
1730 M St, Northwest, Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20036
202-452-1600,  Fax: 202-223-8756

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