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Editor's Note: Our guest blogger today is Ann Flynn, Director of Education Technology and State Association Services at National School Boards Association (NSBA, a member of the Learning First Alliance). This post was originally published on NSBA's School Board News Today.

The death of Apple founder Steve Jobs has triggered an outpouring of worldwide support by individuals touched by the innovations he enabled. One reporter compared Jobs to the Thomas Edison of our generation, and indeed his vision has transformed the way we create, connect, and communicate much as Edison changed the lives of those in the past century. We take the contributions of Edison for granted now, rarely thinking of his innovations with electric lighting or the phonograph as “technology”. They were simply devices, that over time, changed the world. The collection of devices attributed to Jobs’ vision, from the early computers to the latest iPads, are already regarded for what they enable us to do to simplify day-to-day living and learning, rather than just being the newest cool gadget.

His innovations allow adults and children alike to interact with their world in ways only previously imagined in science fiction. Many adults recognize the convenience of having the power of the Internet in the palm of their hand, the ability to manipulate content with the touch of a finger, the option to carry a lifetime of favorite tunes, or download applications to simplify everything from airline schedules to paying for parking meters. Yet some of those same adults have not embraced the idea that these tools can have the same transformational impact on education for today’s youth. Jobs’ Apple was among the earliest technology companies to recognize that their devices could impact learning and invested heavily in research known as Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow. Those early studies paved the way for desktop hardware manufacturers from IBM to Dell and a host of software developers. Fast-forward to today, and we see Apple again paving the way in the education marketplace with innovative learning tools like the iPad. Parents of autistic students have said it is a device that it empowers their children, while the multitude of applications allow teachers to create engaging, real-world learning experiences for all students.

As an observer of education technology for 20+ years, I believe Jobs’ greatest legacy is the foundation he helped establish to transform how students learn. He provided the vision and the tools, now it is up to the rest of us to ensure they are implemented in such a way to become as seamless and effective as Edison’s contribution to electricity. Perhaps when devices like the iPad are accessible to all children, the next generation’s Edison will find his or her calling and we will see a new model for learning in our K-12 institutions.