In a little less than an hour, at 10am ET, Apple plans to make an education-related announcement, and I’m not gonna lie: I’m excited to hear what’s on deck. There’s been speculation on blogs and such about what will be revealed, and in particular, what the role of the iPad will be. I have a lot of thoughts on iPads and e-readers (you can get a better sense for that thinking here if you’re interested) — especially how they fracture (in a good way, I think) how we think about time/space/communication/learning/teaching, etc. I snapped this picture during one of the initial protests of the Occupy movement in Zuccotti Park back in September, and keep thinking about it.

As I shot the photo, I was participating in a protest while watching the same protest on a device as it unfolded. What does that do for a learner, the act of participating-while-observing? What benefits are there to being able to participate in something in real time while also capturing it for, ostensibly, future learning, on a device that doubles as a book (among many other things)? How will note-taking and field trips evolve into non-linear projects that no longer involve notebooks and pencils or being in one place at one time?

Before I start asking more questions, I have to run to a meeting. But I wanted to start this strand of thinking and hopefully pick it up again later. I have a feeling 2012 — and today’s announcement in particular — is going to shape much of what is to come in digital education. It’s unclear as of yet how that innovation will change education in schools that don’t have enough dollars, period, but I’m hopeful that as the excitement builds around possibility that this dilemma is also considered.