I have been looking for a way to get computers in my classroom. The major stumbling block has always been price. Recently I wrote a grant to get Chromebooks, but that fell through. I want to look at putting Pi's in my classroom. My main question is, can I get them to connect to wifi? I can't have ethernet cord all over the room, so I am looking for a way to make them wireless. Plugs I can run, though.
Hello Lee,
Have you thought about buying second hand ? I've bought an old Compaq DC7600 in the past for £25 in P&P. Whilst there is no operating system, they would quite happily run Linux and have the bonus of already being cased and having a power supply. 
You could just as easily run Python etc on one of these just like a Pi.
I'm not saying a Pi wouldn't be suitable, but as Jamodio points out, it isn't just the cost of the Pi you have to factor in. Also, the Pi only has composite and HDMI out, which means if you have old monitors you will have to buy an adaptor which increases the outlay even more. Any old PC will likely have VGA out.
Regarding wireless, this one works pretty much out of the box for me:
Steve
Hello, Lee,
The success of your idea depends on your audience.
If you are targetting students (engineers or programmers), it's a great idea. You might teach them some engineering on the Pi, or maybe some of them might do some research and build something on their own.
But if your audience is undergraduates and below, your enthusiasm will be surpassed by their dissapointment.
The Pi as a standalone computer is pretty much rubbish 
It's the stuff you can do with a Pi that gives it its great value.
If you're not going to attach some nifty module to a Pi and do something using sensors, motors etc. the Pi will probably not fit your needs.
Also, it's quite a small gadget, you wouldn't want someone to step on it by accident, or drag it around after kicking a wire.
So don't buy "Raspberry Pi"s just yet. First decide on the Pi's accesories, case, power adapter, monitor, keyboard, mouse, USB Wi-Fi, HDMI-DVI(VGA) adapter etc. and especially how much RAM and CPU power you really need.
Only afterwards you can make a decision based on both performance, budget and risks.
You might eventually chose to replace a few Pis with a few laptops, because you might need more power....
