A South Texas school district betting big on the educational potential of tablet computers and other Apple touch devices will begin distributing them to students.

The McAllen school district on Monday will begin distributing 6,800 devices - mostly iPads along with several hundred iPod Touch devices - in the first phase of what the district believes is the largest public school effort in the country.

Select students and teachers have been working with the devices since fall, but by next spring the district hopes to have the devices in the hands of about 25,000 students at a cost of more than $20 million.

Kindergarteners through second-graders are getting the iPod Touches, while the iPads will go to students in third grade through 12th.