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This timeline explores technology in the classroom from the 1970s to today. I gained a lot of insight by interviewing different people from different eras and walks of life. I started with my mom, who was a student in the 70's in rural Mexico. I was then lucky enough to interview my fiancee's co-worker, Mrs. Puckett, who has been a teacher for over 20 years. I ended my interviews by choosing my fiancee, who has been teaching for 3 years now, to gain some insight into what technology in the classroom looks like today. I learned the structure of the classroom hadn't changed much since the 70s, but we do have new technologies, like Padlet, that make everyone's lives much more convenient and make learning fun! Technology like Padlet can make is easier to organize ideas and collaborate with peers.

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"Mom, what was the staple of the classroom?"

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My mom grew up in a small town in Mexico, where resources were limited. She attended Elementary School in the 1970s. She told me the chalkboard was the most essential part of her classroom. It is where the teacher visualizes ideas and explains concepts so everyone can see them. They used that chalkboard every single day.

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"Mom, what was the coolest piece of technology in the classroom?"

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My mom knew it would be a good day when the teacher pulled out the projector. They only had one in the whole school. Kids would take turns writing on the plastic slides. She remembered praying the teacher would choose her to go up in front of the class and write on the slides. Using the projector was a great way to shake things up and create engaging content.

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Stuffed far back in the storage room in the hallway of Taylor Jr High, Mrs. Puckett showed me the old encyclopedias. They were the last ones the school had purchased and used years ago. Opening the books up and brushing the dust off, I noticed that the books were covered in doodles and graffiti, and their age was obvious. 2002 was the printing date. These were once a useful tool for photo-copying articles or having students do quick research, but as computer labs became more common, the use of these books was swiftly diminished. As Puckett said, there is nothing these books did that is better than what the internet does. Her coworker sometimes threatens the kids who misbehave that if they keep it up, they'll have to copy down the encyclopedia, but even he doesn't follow through with that. So here they sit, forgotten and collecting dust, and they will stay here until the school gets demolished.

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A coworker of my fiancee, Mrs. Puckett, has been teaching for almost twenty years now. She saw first-hand the shift from scantron testing to fully digital testing, a process that began in the mid 2010s. The process of testing was even more stressful and an even bigger headache when scantrons were a thing. Teachers were expected to check them out at the start of the day, they had to check off which scantrons they had and if a student was there. They had to sign those same ones back in. The entire process took a very long time, and was incredibly stressful, especially for teachers who were forgetful or spacey. Moving away from scantron testing was a new set of challenges, but she feels that ultimately it is worth it because she can't accidentally misplace a student computer.

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"Hey, are they still using SmartBoards?"

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My fiancee is a middle school history teacher. I asked him about the differences in technology from today to back when we were in high school from 2015 to 2019. I remember using the SmartBoards back in high school. He said now they have something similar but higher tech. It's closer to a touchscreen TV than a touchscreen whiteboard. He uses it regularly to play quiz games with his students. It helps them retain information because they enjoy engaging with the content.

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Are there any technological advances that surprised you?

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My Fiancé never thought he would live to see the iPad in the classroom. We have an inside joke: We call each other iPad kids if we feel the other person is addicted to their screen. However, the progression to using the iPad in the classroom felt natural and like the obvious next move. Kids can add hyperlinks and videos to their notes and still write instead of type with the apple pencil.