Schools are catching onto tech’s playbook

September 10, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

“We’re not actually asking questions about this, even the obvious questions about what are the benefits and what are the drawbacks that medical researchers ask about how big pharma is influencing medicine.” That is New York Times education technology reporter Natasha Singer, describing the central puzzle of her new book Coding Kids. She traces how a modest academic effort to broaden who gets into computer science was overtaken by a tech-industry-driven movement that, by the 2020s, had placed branded company curricula—Apple’s Swift course, Microsoft’s Minecraft course—into official Advanced Placement programs. Now those same companies are pivoting to AI, leaving schools, teachers, and students scrambling to keep up.

The century-old pattern of tech in schools

Singer’s book opens not in 2010 but in 1912, with Thomas Edison insisting that his motion-picture projector should replace books in every classroom. “Books are boring and teachers teach them in boring ways,” Edison argued. His machine would be “super engaging.” A century later, the product has changed but the pitch has not. Steve Jobs wanted an Apple II in every school to “democratize learning.” Google pushed the Chromebook as a cheap, sturdy gateway to career skills. Now the pitch is AI chatbots, which will “customize learning” and prepare kids for the workforce.

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What you'll learn

1 (00:02) **Welcome & Episode Setup** - Lauren Feiner introduces the episode's focus: a new book comparing the tech industry's push for computer science in schools with a more academic, methodical approach.
2 (03:27) **The Century-Old Pattern of Tech in Schools** - Singer explains that the current push for AI in education is just the latest in a cycle of tech innovations promising to transform learning.
3 (06:04) **Does Technology Actually Improve Learning?** - The host asks about the evidence for tech's effectiveness in schools, and Singer points to a lack of rigorous, independent studies.
4 (08:20) **Code.org's Startup Approach to Education** - Singer describes how former Microsoft executive Hadi Partovi used viral marketing and startup tactics to launch a massive coding movement.
5 (11:05) **The Hour of Code Phenomenon** - The Hour of Code became a global "coding holiday," spreading rapidly through schools and tech company stores.
6 (13:42) **The Academic Alternative: AP Computer Science Principles** - Singer contrasts Code.org's approach with that of academics who developed a broader, more inclusive computer science course.
7 (17:12) **The Collision: Tech Companies as Curriculum Providers** - The two efforts converged when the College Board approved "box curriculums" from tech companies for the AP Computer Science Principles exam.

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Guests on this episode

Natasha Singer

Show Notes

For years, big tech companies have embedded their products into the classroom whether through Google's Chromebooks or computer science curricula developed by Apple or Microsoft. The industry pushed a generation of kids to foster coding skills with the promise of high-paying jobs. Now, those students are finding themselves less in demand as AI takes over, and the industry seems to be repeating its playbook. Senior policy reporter Lauren Feiner talks to Natasha Singer, author of the new book "Coding Kids," about how big tech worked its way into the classroom, and why Natasha is optimistic about educators’ response to the AI push.