The integration of tablet computers into classroom settings has some parents learning firsthand the value of iPad repair as students find ways to damage them during the school day. Device insurer SquareTrade found that 50 percent of parents reported that their children caused damage to an electronic device, with costs totaling almost $3 billion over a five year period.
Many school districts now use iPads in classrooms, where they take the place of bound textbooks and provide a platform for testing and enhanced learning projects. The Los Angeles Unified School District, for example, recently spent $1 billion to provide iPads to more than 600,000 students and to put wireless servers in school buildings, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
About 85 percent of children in the U.S. have their own handheld electronic devices and use them for about 3.2 hours per day, SquareTrade said. With so many iPads now in the hands of schoolchildren and more on the way, reports of accidents are likely to increase.
“Just like their parents, kids use devices for an increasing number of things – from games and videos to research and homework,” SquareTrade CMO Ty Shay said. “Our research shows that this increased usage also means that devices are more at risk than ever before, and we expect this trend to continue.”
About 33 percent of breakage incidents stemmed from food and beverages in close proximity to the devices, a situation that likely won't occur too often in the classroom but could cause problems for kids doing their homework during dinner. In about half of the food-related incidents, milk was to blame, followed by chocolate, candy and yogurt.
SquareTrade recommends that you can avoid iPad repairs by avoiding eating or drinking when using them, storing the devices in a case when they're not in use, keeping them out of the bathroom and by carefully packing book bags.