Chicago, IL (September 28, 2004) -- School districts across the United States continue to invest in technologies that make learning resources more accessible to students and teachers, with more than 40 percent of school districts offering classes over the Internet in the 2004-2005 school year. In addition, about half of the districts in the country will have portable wireless labs on carts (or COWs) to bring technology directly to students in their classrooms. These and other key findings on school technology purchase trends can be found in the 2004-2005 Technology Purchasing Forecast, 10th edition by Quality Education Data, Inc. (QED®), a leading education market research and database firm, and a wholly owned subsidiary of Scholastic. Jeanne Hayes, President of QED, presented the report today at The Heller Reports' EdNET Conference, an annual event that draws top executives from across the education industry and focuses on successful marketing strategies and market drivers.
 
“Schools are tapping into flexible mediums such as the Internet and mobile computers to extend technology's reach into classrooms more than ever before. These applications enable districts to bring more education resources to more students, in a convenient and cost effective manner,” said Jeanne Hayes, President, Quality Education Data.
 
The Technology Purchasing Forecast also predicts that school district total technology budgets in the 2004-2005 school year will total $7.06 billion, including both e-rate and district spending. In addition, nearly every school surveyed reported that technology expenditures are increasingly centralized with only 1.9% of technology spending occurring on the building level.
 
Other key findings from Technology Purchasing Forecast, 2004-2005 show that in order to provide for online courses and other applications for learning, many districts are installing infrastructures that are faster and cheaper to operate. While Windows and Mac operating systems are still in great use, over a quarter of school districts surveyed are using some Linux or Unix servers.
 
“The Technology Purchasing Forecast indicates that more school districts are purchasing common applications and tools for use with administrators, educators and students alike, which is very similar to purchasing decisions made by businesses in the private sector,” commented Ms. Hayes. “This trend can also explain why Windows PCs are continuing to grow in the education marketplace - schools are buying one platform for everyone to work on, streamlining tech support and other resources.”
 
For a more detailed look at educational software trends and the leading software companies for intent to purchase this year, QED will release its new What Schools Are Using: Educational Software Market Share Data 2004-2005 study in October.
 
Methodology
The sampling frame for this field study was public school districts randomly selected from Quality Education Data's National Education Database™. A total of 493 surveys were completed via telephone or online with District Technology Coordinators between May 4 and June 30, 2004.
 
About QED
Established in 1981 and headquartered in Denver, Colorado, QED is a leading provider of K-12 and high education mailing lists, marketing services, and market research focused exclusively on the education market. QED Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Scholastic Inc., the global children's publishing and media company. QED's National Education Database™ provides comprehensive access to U.S. and Canadian educational institutions and is the core data resource that supports all QED products and services, including custom education market research, database design and annual research reports tracking critical educational trends. In 1997, QED introduced its National Registry of Teachers by Names, a database of over 4.3 million educators by name, telephone-verified at the school building level. In 2002, QED acquired The Heller Reports, adding a variety of news publications and the annual EdNET conference to its offering of products and services designed to help education marketers stay current on market trends.
 
About Scholastic
Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) is the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books. Scholastic creates quality educational and entertaining materials and products for use in school and at home, including children's books, magazines, technology-based products, teacher materials, television programming, film, videos and toys. The Company distributes its products and services through a variety of channels, including proprietary school-based book clubs, school-based book fairs, and school-based and direct-to-home continuity programs; retail stores, schools, libraries, and television networks; and the Company's Internet Site, www.scholastic.com .

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