Bringing personalized learning to shared tablets with Google Play for Education

Posted by Emily Bernier, Software Engineer, Google Play for Education  While most schools eventually want to get to 1:1, it’s not always practical to start with a dedicated tablet for every student. Asking students to share a single account isn’t advisable either -- too often the result is one-size-fits-all technology with more than a few management headaches. That’s why we’re adding support for multiple accounts to tablets with Google Play for Education, making it possible for schools to provide personalized learning for up to five students on the same shared device. With multiple accounts, schools can test out tablets at a meaningful scale before buying hardware for every student. Here’s how it works: “Bump” tablets together as usual to get them set up -- you now have the option to specify the number of students who’ll be sharing each tablet (up to 5). Students complete setup by signing into one of the the tablets you’ve configured, then setting a pin code for individual access. From then on, each student can pick up their assigned tablet, select their account, and enter their pin to get back to all their stuff. When each student has their own account it’s easy for them to collaborate on class projects using Docs, Drive, and other Google Apps. And teachers can use Google Play for Education to instantly send students the apps, books, and videos that match their academic needs and speak to their unique interests. It's easy for your school to scale to 1:1 when you're ready -- just set up any new tablets with the student accounts you’ve already been using. The apps teachers have already assigned to each student will download automatically. You can read more about multiple accounts in the Google Play for Education Help Center or contact our sales team to learn about a starting trial at your school.