Website of the Week: Educator's Reference Desk

I know, I know... The teachers out there are already tired of thinking of the busy school year ahead. But this week's website might make things a little easier. The Educator's Reference Desk, as the name implies, pulls together information on resources for educators across several disciplines. If you're stuck for a lesson plan, there are plenty to borrow from on the site.

Parents, especially those who are homeschooling their children, might also be interested in the information. For example, you can search for academic competition information, and get your child into things like the National Geography Bee. And I know first-hand that a Geography Bee win today, means you can be a tech blogger in the future!

Website of the Week: Einzstein Knowledge Network

Having the ability to take classes on just about any subject should make learning online quick and easy. Why then, do you have to go from site to site, trying to figure which courses are offered by any particular organization? Enter the Einztein Knowledge Network. The site brings together course offerings from around the world in a simple interface.

While some of the features are in a closed beta, you can still go to the site, browse by topic, or do a search. You can then filter by university. It's a great way to find educational content, especially content outside of the iTunesU universe.

Could Education Sales Sputter?

In Tuesday's results call, it was nearly nothing but good news as Apple had arguably their best quarter ever when looking at revenue generated across the product lines. Steve Jobs joined the call, and briefly discussed some ways in which the economic downturn could affect Apple.

He said, and rightfully so, that Apple has some of the best customers in the world, and if times get tough, they are more likely to put off a new Mac purchase until the economic environment changes, rather than buy a competing product. For retail customers, that could be very true. But there's one major market for Apple in which the almighty dollar trumps brand loyalty: education.

Tim Cook reported in the call institutional education sales in the US were down 7%. They were also down 28% in California. In an otherwise stellar financial quarter, these numbers could point to future problems. If the economy sputters through several quarters of educational purchasing, districts will feel the pressure to either purchase lower-priced PCs, or hold off altogether. This makes it all the more frustrating that sources point to an impending discontinuation (but hopefully a revamp instead) of the Mac mini.

Apple can make as many computers out of a single piece of aluminum as they want, but it doesn't mean anything to the institutional education market. Districts don't want to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars on adapters to attach Apple's latest and greatest to existing monitors for example.

With the educational discounts gone from the iPod, and reduced on laptops, maybe this market isn't as important to Apple as it once was.