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Good technology integration isn't about using the fanciest tool, it's about being aware of the range of options and picking the right strategy-or strategies-for the lesson at hand.

The biggest obstacle to teaching online probably isn't the technology. Teachers seek out educational technology, in fact, because it "can have considerable positive impacts on student performance," according to a 2016 study -improving test scores and allowing teachers to assess student achievement more efficiently. The big problem is how to integrate it: Beyond the sheer number of tech tools available, the same researchers identified "inadequate professional development and training" as the primary obstacle to using technology productively in classrooms.

Understandably, the emergence of the coronavirus has dramatically accelerated the process of integrating edtech, as educators around the country race to get online as fast as they can. But as many of our teachers have noted, the current state of K-12 online learning is more like triage-a form of crisis management-and not at all like skillfully managed distance education.

What's missing from the conversation right now, which makes sense given the immediacy of the need, is a focus on the bigger question of what the highest quality technology integration actually looks like. That's an important conversation to have, because in a post-coronavirus world there's likely to be a greater emphasis on digital learning, even as we return to physical schools and take advantage of face-to-face opportunities.

A Hierarchy of Tech Uses

A powerful conceptual tool to think about technology integration-and edtech's best uses-is the SAMR model, developed in 2010 by education researcher Ruben Puentedura, who was the 1991 recipient of a Phi Beta Kappa teaching award.

The SAMR model lays out four tiers of online learning, presented roughly in order of their sophistication and transformative power: substitution, augmentation, modification, and r edefinition. When switching to an online format, teachers often focus on the first two levels, which involve replacing traditional materials with digital ones: converting lessons and worksheets into PDFs and posting them online, or recording lectures on video and making them available for asynchronous learning, for example.
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Those are important steps, especially when teaching online for the first time, but in classrooms where tech integration has moved to the mastery level, the last two levels of the SAMR model-modification and redefinition-should also be in the mix. Students in classes where this kind of mastery is embedded find more novel and immersive uses for technology. They are creators and publishers of their own work across multiple forms of media, for example, or they are inviting professionals to provide feedback on their work products, or participating in digital forums with other peers around the world.

It's tempting to think of SAMR as a mountain to be summited. But good technology integration isn't about living at the top of the SAMR model; it's about being aware of the range of options and picking the right strategy-or strategies-for the lesson at hand.

Here's a closer look at good classroom practices at each level in the model:

Substitution

"Substitution" means replacing traditional activities and materials-like in-class lectures or paper worksheets-with digital versions. There is no substantial change to the content, just the way that it is delivered.

The goal here is to keep things simple: there's no need to reinvent the wheel. Scan your lessons and worksheets, convert them into PDFs, and post them online using Microsoft OneDrive, Google Drive, or a similar file-sharing service. Think about the information you have on your walls, such as the classroom norms, the daily schedule, or vocabulary lists, and convert them into digital formats that students can easily reference.

It may also help to provide synchronous as well as asynchronous versions of your lectures. If you're holding class meetings over a videoconferencing service like Zoom or Skype, provide a recording for students who can't attend. You can also create your own instructional videos for students to view at their own pace.

Augmentation

This level involves incorporating interactive digital enhancements and elements like comments, hyperlinks, or multimedia. The content remains unchanged, but students can now take advantage of digital features to enhance the lesson.

For example, students can create digital portfolios to create multimedia presentations, giving them more options to demonstrate their understanding of a topic. And instead of handing out paper quizzes, you can gamify your quizzes with tools like Socrative and Kahoot.

Teachers can also create virtual bulletin boards-using an app like Padlet -where students can post questions, links, and pictures.

Modification

At this level, teachers can think about using a learning management system like Google Classroom, Moodle, Schoology, or Canvas to handle the logistical aspects of running a classroom, like tracking grades, messaging students, creating a calendar, and posting assignments.

Teaching online opens up new channels of communication, many of which can help students who have traditionally been marginalized. Research shows that girls may be less likely to speak up in class, for example, so they may benefit from backchannels -alternative conversations that can run alongside instruction-that encourage participation.

Zoom's text chat feature, meanwhile, gives students an opportunity to write their questions out, which can feel less intrusive if there are dozens of students participating in the call. Also, students who prefer to collect their thoughts may benefit from slower-paced, asynchronous discussions in an online forum or email threads.

Redefinition

Learning is fundamentally transformed at the "redefinition" level, enabling activities that were previously impossible in the classroom.

For example, virtual pen pals can connect students to other parts of the world, whether it's with other students or experts in a field. Virtual field trips enable students to visit locations like the Amazon rainforest, the Louvre, or the Egyptian pyramids. After reading a book in class, you can invite the author to chat about their work and answer questions.

Technology also provides an opportunity to bring authentic audiences into your virtual classroom, and can make publishers out of your students. Kids can write their own wikis or blogs for public consumption and feedback-and platforms like Quadblogging can connect distant classrooms together so students both write and respond. Students can tackle local problems-like investigating the water quality of a nearby river-and invite members of the community to assess their digital proposals.

Going Beyond SAMR

Finally, consider how technology can be used not just as a way to deliver content, but also to strengthen relationships with your students. For elementary school teacher John Thomas, Seesaw and Flipgrid allow him to share a daily greeting, which his students then respond to-or to each other-with a typed or voiced comment. It's a good way to provide some stability while they're isolated.

How can my lesson be improved using technology?

How can I engage and empower students through technology?

How can online learning more closely resemble authentic, real-world learning?

Remember, again, that SAMR is sometimes thought of as a mountain to summit, but it's really more like a toolbox. The goal isn't to use the most sophisticated tool, but to find the right one for the job. More importantly, however, it's a way to reflect on your technology integration by thinking about a few key questions:

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A Powerful Model for Understanding Good Tech Integration

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Good technology integration isn't about using the fanciest tool, it's about being aware of the range of options and picking the right strategy-or strategies-for the lesson at hand.

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What is the SAMR model?

The SAMR model is a framework that orders strategies for classroom technology implementation into four stages:

In each stage of the SAMR model, the use of educational technology (EdTech) becomes increasingly sophisticated.

Substitution and augmentation strategies use EdTech to enhance learning and add value, whereas modification and redefinition stages harness EdTech to transform learning and make new things possible.
The effectiveness of any of these four strategies depends on when and how it is used.
Here's how you can harness each stage for more powerful classroom learning:

Substitution

This is the simplest stage, where EdTech is used as a direct substitute for traditional practices.

Substitution strategies can save you time and space by cutting back on laborious pen and paper tasks. Instead of printing out twenty-plus paper resources that clog the cupboard, you can use technology to manage resources with just a few clicks.

Substitution also provides a much more accessible introduction to technological soft skills than modification and redefinition. It's the perfect opportunity for students to get comfortable with new technology before you start to transform their learning.

Examples of substitution

having students type their work instead of handwriting it

using online quizzes and programs instead of pen and paper

uploading a worksheet in PDF for student access, as opposed to photocopying

using a digital interactive whiteboard as opposed to a traditional whiteboard and saving the results as a document.

Remember: Substitution strategies do not change the learning process or outcome. Ask yourself what you and your students will gain from the technology before implementing it. If it adds nothing but hassle, stick to pen and paper.

Augmentation

At the augmentation stage, technology adds something to the learning process beyond just convenience. It might give your students a clearer understanding of a complex topic or making it engaging in a way that traditional methods can't.

It also allows for the introduction of more independent and student-centric learning. By using technology as a source of information, students can start actively learning without requiring constant teacher-led instruction.

Examples of augmentation

Students give more informative and engaging oral presentations accompanied by a PowerPoint or Prezi containing multimedia elements.

Students use the internet to independently research a topic, as opposed to relying on teacher input.

Students use an EdTech program that gamifies curriculum content for student engagement and allows students to track progress in an accessible way.

Teacher instruction is supplemented with a video that clarifies a particularly hard to explain concept.

Modification

At the modification stage, technology is used to design interactive and dynamic tasks that go beyond the limitations of a traditional classroom.

For example, students can collaborate on shared documents, or work in large groups, allowing for seamless collaboration and knowledge sharing. This peer-to-peer work nurtures a more cooperative and dynamic class culture.

Technologically modified tasks also allow students to generate inspired and innovative work that isn't confined to paper. Some students will jump at the opportunity to get in front of a camera, while others will do anything to make it onto the global Mathletics leaderboard.

Examples of modification

Students produce podcasts summarising a topic, which can then be accessed by other students as a revision resource.

Students create an informative video presentation in place of a standard oral presentation. They can use their voice alongside a broader variety of creative multimodal components.

Students use a technological tool that makes an abstract concept visible in a hands-on, responsive way (e.g. voyaging on Google Earth to better understand measurement and geography).

Redefinition

The most sophisticated stage of SAMR, redefinition sees you using technology to make entirely new learning opportunities possible.

Redefining learning has the potential to connect learning with the real world and produce authentic outcomes. It also gives students strong technological soft skills such as digital collaboration, communication, technological literacy, and the ability to adapt to new systems and processes.

Most importantly, using technology to redefine learning in your classroom translates to vibrant and engaged students who embrace a growth mindset.

Examples of redefinition

connecting your students with other people around the world as part of the learning journey

having students publish their work online where it can be viewed by peers and the broader community

recording students as they deliver a presentation or practice a physical skill, then using this recording to prompt student reflection

experimenting with tasks that use extensive multimodal elements (e.g. producing documentaries or short films, webpages, print documents with creative layouts).

Remember, redefinition isn't the same as 'high tech'. A learning experience is redefined when it integrates technology seamlessly and meaningfully to open new doors for student learning - regardless of how sophisticated that technology might be.

In an English classroom, this might involve learning how to critically assess online media during web-based research. In mathematics, students might look at data represented through amazing visuals and get inspired to create their own.

Find your purpose

Starting with a purpose avoids the 'technology for technology's sake' that sometimes infiltrates the classroom.

Ask yourself:

What am I hoping to achieve by using this technology?

How will it make a difference to my students' learning?

Why is it preferable to not using technology?

How equipped are my students and I to use this technology?

How much time do I have to invest in making it work?

These simple questions can make it simpler to determine which stage of the SAMR model suits your needs. Remember that you don't always have to redefine your students' learning. A few simple technological additions to an already effective teaching strategy might be all you need to make a difference.

Using technology in the classroom sends a clear message to students. It shows them that you're connecting learning to the rapidly changing world outside the classroom walls, and you aren't afraid to adapt to a new challenge. Get creative with technology and you'll inspire as well as teach.

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The SAMR Model Explained (With 15 Practical Examples)

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What is the SAMR model and how does it apply to learning? Here's how you can harness each stage for more powerful classroom learning.

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

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Blended Learning Resources is becoming more popular among students in all types of educational environments. What this really entails might look quite different depending on the available options, the rules, and the interests of the students. An application that is well suited for blended learning that can make learning consistent in both time and place would be ideal.

When thinking about learner flow and the cognitive demands placed on them, this seamless experience is vital. The software and Blended Learning Resources that are discussed in this article have been selected with great thought given to the aforementioned factors. There is no one approach to blended learning that is suitable for everyone. Consider what approaches could be successful with your kids and put them into practice.

Here are 10 Popular Blended Learning Resources Teachers Actually Use;

1. Digital Badges

Taking into account learning that takes place in a range of settings is one of the challenges presented by blended learning. Students are not confined to the classroom by its traditional confinement of four walls. It is vital to have tools that capture and identify learning in order to have a route to monitor the development of students. The instrument that maintains information and credentials for a series of microlearning moments is called a digital badge. Badgr and Credly are two excellent examples of excellent solutions for getting started with badges.

2. Edmodo

Edmodo Blended Learning Resources is a system that is compatible with both Google Apps and Microsoft Online and can interface with both of them. It provides a forum for instructors, students, and parents to share information and collaborate on projects. Its purpose is to encourage exploration, facilitate the formation of groups, facilitate the administration of quizzes, and facilitate learning from other educators with similar perspectives. Note that Edmodo is not considered a learning management system. This is important to keep in mind.

3. Khan Academy

Khan Academy is a website that offers free access to an extensive video library covering almost every subject conceivable. In addition, there is a wide variety of practice activities to correspond with each sort of information. Students will often utilize Khan Academy to prepare for a more group-oriented activity that will take place in the classroom.

4. Lesson Paths

Blended Learning Resources may follow the road of a flexible and personalised learning environment if that is the path chosen. Playlists take on a far more significant role in terms of their importance to the overall framework of the students' educational experience. The Lesson Paths platform enables users to assign an already existing playlist or build their own from scratch. Additionally, students are able to create their own own playlists.

5. Go Formative

In a learning environment that makes use of both traditional and online methods, rapid formative evaluations take on an increasingly important role. Go Formative gives you the ability to set exams, monitor real-time learner data, and see students at work in real time, regardless of where your students are located.

6. Voicethread

Voicethread is a platform that allows students to participate in collaborative activities and articulate their thoughts. Voicethread supports the uploading of more than fifty different kinds of files, and students may provide feedback on those files via a variety of mediums, including text, video, chat, and phone calls.

7. BrainPop

With BrainPop, you can give your pupils short movies that are both interesting and engaging. They are a wonderful tool for presenting new material to pupils or providing them with more opportunities to exercise their skills. Students who have not yet completed the third grade are welcome to use BrainPop Junior.

8. Base Camp

Although BaseCamp is most often thought of as a tool for corporations, it may also be quite helpful for educational institutions. All of your students, your projects, and their many versions may be managed on a single platform. All of the papers and materials that students are working on may be stored in BaseCamp while they are working on a project.

9. PhET

The educational experience should always include time spent in a science laboratory. Students get the opportunity to investigate and experiment with a scientific idea via the use of virtual simulations before moving on to complete an actual lab. In addition, scientific experiments that, for one reason or another, cannot be carried out in the classroom may have their equivalents carried out using a PhET simulation. These simulations, which were developed at the University of Colorado, are inquiry-based and include open-ended gameplay.

The use of Blended Learning Resources might either be useful or detrimental to students. The actualities are going to be heavily reliant on the goal and use. All of the tools that are discussed in this article contribute to the linking together of pupils or the provision of extra practice. Blended learning should not devolve into a series of customized microlearning chances; rather, it should tap the potentials offered by a digital world for learning in both formal and casual settings. It is crucial that this goal be achieved.

10. Ed Tech Map

The Flash-based Ed Tech Map that was built by NewSchools is a comprehensive resource that lists major tools and companies serving blended learning in the form of talent management, data, instructional systems, and curricula. The Ed Tech Map is simple, elegant, and provides endlessly useful information.

Education planners who are seeking for a comprehensive resource that includes everything from digital textbooks to data analytics will find it ideal.

Conclusion

Teachers are supposed to choose updated Blended Learning Resources to train their students for advanced opportunities in careers. It promoted collaborative learning and upskill their students. Moreover, it can help teachers to measure the effectiveness of learning materials. As an educator or a teacher, you can use these blended learning resources within or outside the classroom and make students ready to embark on new fields of their careers.
Also read: What is Blended Learning?

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10 Popular Blended Learning Resources Teachers Actually Use | Future Education Magazine

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Here are 10 Popular Blended Learning Resources Teachers Actually Use; 1. Digital Badges 2. Edmodo 3. Khan Academy 4. Lesson Paths 5. Go Formative 6. Voicethread 7. BrainPop 8. Base Camp 9. PhET 10. Ed Tech Map

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Presented by Amanda Pelukas, Virtual Academy Coordinator 1-8, Plymouth-Canton Community Schools (MI); Rachel Babcock, Co-Founder and Co-Director, MAP Academy (MA); and Megan Hanley, Executive Director of School Design, ASU Preparatory Academy (AZ)
Moderated by Nate Kellogg, Partner, The Learning Accelerator

Sponsored by The Learning Accelerator
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As brick-and-mortar schools adopt more flexible practices and virtual schools create more opportunities for in-person learning, the "hybrid spectrum" is emerging as a key component of the future of student-centered learning. Schools are shifting away from the extremes of this hybrid spectrum-fully in-person synchronous learning on one end and fully virtual asynchronous learning on the other-to meet the needs of their students, respond to parent demand, and ensure access to engaging, effective, and equitable instruction no matter the school type.

View this edWebinar to hear from school leaders who have shifted along the hybrid spectrum to meet the needs of their school communities. You leave with actionable resources and tangible examples for shifting along the hybrid spectrum.

This recorded edWebinar is of interest to K-12 teachers and school and district leaders.
About the Presenters
With over 20 years in education, Amanda Pelukas has been both a classroom teacher and program coordinator of virtual learning. Spending the first 10 years of her career teaching high school English, she took a summer position teaching online. She quickly realized that students could find success outside of brick and mortar. In 2016, Amanda started the first virtual program within her suburban Detroit public school district. The online program grew quickly under her leadership with over 200 high school students. In the fall of 2020, she accepted the position of Virtual Academy Coordinator in the Plymouth-Canton Community School District and began the task of developing a virtual academy in the midst of a pandemic. Over the past three years, she transformed emergency remote learning into a successful hybrid-learning program where the students are thriving. She is passionate about finding alternate pathways of learning for students.

Rachel Babcock is Co-founder and Co-director of Map Academy Charter School in Plymouth, Massachusetts. As a school founder, Rachel has expertise in new school design, competency-based assessment, administration, dropout prevention and reengagement, alternative pathways, career-development education, social-emotional learning, literacy intervention, and building rapport and cultivating change with high-risk adolescents. Rachel has 15 years of instructional experience as a middle and high school ELA teacher, and is also an experienced instructional coach and literacy intervention specialist. Throughout her career, Rachel has been an advocate for high-risk youth. She has always been passionate about creating school environments where all students can thrive. Rachel holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Rochester and a master's degree from Boston University. Rachel earned National Board Certification as an English teacher, and is MA certified as a High School Principal. Rachel also serves on DESE's guiding coalition for the Massachusetts Dropout Prevention and Reengagement Network.

Megan Hanley is the Executive Director of School Design at ASU Prep. In this role, Megan helps to lead the innovation teams at ASU Prep including the Next Generation Coordinators, AZVTI and Professional Development teams, Microschools, Khan World School, and STEM-related projects. Megan has over 15 years of experience in the field of education, covering Pre-K-12th grade, having worked as a teacher, family advocate, program manager, educational and admissions coordinator, and assistant principal. Originally from Tempe, Arizona, Megan attended George Washington University where she received her bachelor's in arts and George Mason University where she received her master's in education.
About the Moderator
Nate Kellogg is a Partner at The Learning Accelerator, specializing in inclusive innovation and design. Prior to joining TLA, Nate served as the Director of Personalized Learning for ReNEW Schools, a charter network in New Orleans. Nate also organized teacher professional development across the city of New Orleans through collaborative professional learning, including co-founding New Schools for New Orleans' Personalized Learning Teacher Fellowship. Before joining ReNEW, Nate spent six years teaching in public, charter, and independent schools, beginning as a Teach For America corps member in DC Public Schools. Nate earned his bachelor's degree in rhetoric from Bates College and his master's degree in special education from George Mason University. Nate serves as a board member for Rooted School New Orleans. He recently moved with his wife and their son to Middletown, RI, leaving their beloved New Orleans to be closer to family.
Learn more about viewing the live presentation and the recording, earning your CE certificate, and using our new accessibility features.
Join the Online Learning and Collaboration community to network with educators, participate in online discussions, receive invitations to upcoming edWebinars, and view recordings of previous programs to earn CE certificates.

The Learning Accelerator (TLA) is building a world in which each student receives the effective, engaging, and equitable education they need to reach their full and unique potential.

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Balancing Virtual and In-Person Learning: Moving Along the Hybrid Spectrum Towards a Student-Centered Future - edWeb

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Attend this edWebinar to hear from school leaders who have shifted along the hybrid spectrum to meet the needs of their school communities.

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What is Differentiated Instruction? (4 Types Explained)

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.

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In my recent article regarding using Universal Design for Learning in remote classrooms, I mentioned Todd Rose's term, "design to the edges," which is what educators attempt to do each day as they accommodate the variety of learners in their classrooms.

While there are some ways to allow this to happen organically, such as with open-ended projects, differentiation also needs to be purposeful. With large class sizes and children of diverse abilities, backgrounds, and interests, this may seem to be a daunting task.

However, there are many tools that are out there that can be helpful, especially if the teacher and students have access to technology.

There are generally four areas where educators can adjust their lessons to support differentiation: Content, Process, Product, and Environment. For this article's purpose, let's assume that the environment is online - whether at school or at home - and look at some of the tools out there to help with Content, Process, and Product in the virtual setting.

Read more: Implementing differentiated instruction: the good and the bad

Content

To decide on the exact content to be addressed, teachers usually need to determine students' ability levels and interests. Pre-tests are quick ways to assess ability levels.

It's helpful to leverage technology for these because most online tools will automatically grade and give data reports. Educators familiar with Google may use Google Forms for this purpose. Some other popular tools are Kahoot, Quizziz, Socrative, and Gimkit. To select one, consider the learning environment.

For example, a classic "live" Kahoot quiz shows the questions on the teacher's screen, while students see the responses on their own. This works well in a classroom where the teacher can project onto the main screen while students use individual devices but can be difficult when students are at home with only one screen. Instead, the teacher may assign a Kahoot challenge, which does not require multiple screens and allows students to work at their own pace.

Once teachers have data about student ability and/or interests, this can inform the content you select and the small groups that you may create within your class. Some districts have tools for grouping based on academic ability. If this is not available to you, or you would like to group by interest, intentional grouping can be done using a spreadsheet with your own specific criteria using this template from Jen Roberts.

Because English/Language/Arts courses usually require skills that can be addressed using many different types of literature, teachers in these areas have a lot of freedom in selecting the content that may best serve their purpose.

Some technology tools to consider are CommonLit.org, where they can search by theme and standards for quality fiction. Epic is also a favorite way to read books online. The New York Times Learning Network, Newsela, and Tween Tribune are all places to find content based on current events. Both Newsela and Tween Tribune will also allow you to search by reading level. For informational nonfiction text that is highly engaging, students can go to Wonderopolis.

For other ideas for content differentiation in the core subjects, teachers may look to Khan Academy or TED Ed. Both of these sites offer video lessons and practice problems for practically every subject, including math and science. Another favorite is Prodigy Math, which allows students to use a game-based method for advancing at their own pace on math skills.

Process

Once the content has been selected, the next decision the educator needs to make is how to proceed with presenting that content to the class. One way to differentiate the process is to alter the assignments for each group. Most learning management systems will allow you to send out different assignments to different students. This article, for example, shows how to use various G-Suite tools for differentiated assignments.

Specific online tools can also be used for creating various versions of assignments. Some of these may interface directly with your learning management system, so you can import student rosters, assign, and gather assessment data seamlessly.

For example, EdPuzzle, which allows teachers to assign videos with questions embedded, is a good tool to use for formative assessment as the class is introduced and learning the content. Other tools that are similar to EdPuzzle are Vizia and Play-Posit. Newsela is another site that allows the teacher to assign articles based on student lexile level, offering the option to assign the same content to all students, while keeping it matched to their reading ability.

These days, some of the best digital tools for differentiation are those that help struggling readers. With extensions like Snap & Read and Immersive Reader (which can be used in the Microsoft Edge browser, or as an unaffiliated extension on Chrome), students can have websites read out loud, adjust text size, highlight particular words, and more. They can copy and paste the text into Rewordify to have it summarized in more straightforward language.

It has recently become popular to give students digital choice boards, where they can select their own assignments that will advance their learning from a set of activities. SlidesMania offers engaging choice board templates that can be used for PowerPoint or Google Slides. This article includes more templates, links, and instructions on how to make your own choice boards.

Students who are ready for working independently with some support might enjoy the challenge of Hyperdocs, which are interactive Google Docs or Slides that encapsulate entire lessons. If students are working collaboratively in small groups, here are some suggestions for introducing and managing virtual breakout rooms.

Product

Whether for summative or formative purposes, educators will need to assess their students' learning. This is another opportunity to differentiate, where student interest and/or ability can be addressed. Students can be given choices for ways to present their learning, or the teacher can create assessments that can be adjusted for different groups.

One example of the latter is a digital worksheet creator called Wizer. This is not a typical PDF generator of physical worksheets. In Wizer, teachers make interactive assessments that can include several different types of questions, such as reflective, multiple-choice, videos, sorting, and even drawing questions. The teacher can record audio instructions, as well as written ones. Students can also record their responses. One of the game-changing aspects of this tool is that teachers can create groups within Wizer (with a Premium subscription) and send different versions of their worksheets to different groups.

Another tool that allows for audio responses is Flipgrid. Students can record themselves (video and audio) and add their responses to a class grid where others can view them and comment, or the educator can select the feature that makes their responses only visible to the teacher. As another alternative, although it isn't always precise, students who have difficulty with writing or using a keyboard can use voice typing in Google Docs or the dictate feature in Microsoft word.

With open-ended assessments that allow students to choose their own way to " Show What You Know," teachers will want certain benchmarks to be met. Rubrics outline the expectations for these projects. These can be created within Google Classroom or by using online tools such as Rubistar or any of the other sites in this article.

Read more: What is the role of rubrics in performance-based education?

Final thoughts

The purpose of this article is to empower teachers so they, in turn, can empower their students. In order to avoid becoming overwhelmed, educators need to differentiate their own learning as well. While continuing to use the resources that make them comfortable, teachers can choose tools that will fine-tune the student experience and implement them at a pace that does not create additional stress during an already challenging school year.

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Top edtech tools for digital differentiation - K-20 Blog

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Differentiating the virtual classroom is quite challenging. Luckily, there are plenty of edtech tools for digital differentiation:

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For teachers who differentiate instruction, experimenting with technology is both an exciting and necessary experience. Those who work with students of any age understand that a period of experimentation must precede any meaningful implementation of a new educational tool. Before students can benefit from using base 10 blocks, a graphing calculator, a microscope, or a software application, for example, they need a chance to play with the tool, ask questions, and explore its possibilities. Educators who used new digital tools during the emergency remote-learning period know that experimentation and testing were key to effective integration.

But what now? Teachers have always wanted to learn ways to integrate technology effectively in their lessons, but in the post-pandemic era, this desire to move beyond experimental use is even greater. And for teachers who personalize learning for students, technology has potential to transform learning. Differentiated instruction can powerfully guide the integration of technology to promote more equitable, efficient, effective, and engaging learning.

Teachers whose educational decision making is guided by differentiated instruction already function as educational designers, using a "design mindset" (Kilbane & Milman, 2014). Designers are professionals who apply their specialized knowledge and skills to create experiences and solutions for others. Intentionally inquiring through needs assessments and similar methods, educational designers learn about their students' priorities, use these to identify clear goals, and then formulate strategic plans to achieve them. As progress is made, these designers systematically create, implement, and evaluate while also adjusting plans as needed. They approach their practice with an awareness of the control they possess as educational designers who not only teach, but also create, manage, and assess their students' learning.

This design orientation provides teachers who differentiate instruction with a mindset and a strategy for better understanding their students, which helps them determine when and how best to leverage available technology tools to respond to students' unique attributes.

Differentiated instruction puts students' diverse needs front and center (Tomlinson, 2017). When differentiating instruction, teachers develop learning experiences that flexibly adjust specific instructional elements (such as content, process, product, the conditions where the learning takes place, and its atmosphere or "tone") to respond to the natural variability among students (their readiness, interests, or unique backgrounds).

But what's the best way to incorporate technology into this mix? It can be overwhelming to determine each tool's function and best application for a particular classroom. Many teachers are interested in using new technologies to support their students but are not sure where to begin. They wonder which tools are worth the potential risks, and how to gain the most benefit from them so the tools are used for more than basic, transactional purposes.

Guidance we have offered teachers for decades, based on our research and experience, is to remember that the integration of technology in any educational setting should always aim to accomplish the "4Es" (Kilbane & Milman, 2014). The 4Es can help determine whether a tool might make learning more:

It's also important to remember that the goals of instruction, particularly those of differentiated instruction, should drive the design of learning experiences and technology's integration within it. As teachers appraise the value of different tools and the methods for which they will be used, they must prioritize their goals for the design supporting differentiation, carefully consider what purpose will be served (how will it address students' needs equitably, efficiently, effectively, and/or in an engaging way), and determine what positive outcomes might result.

For example, will use of an online survey for pre-assessment save time (be more efficient), aid a teacher's analysis of information about student readiness (add efficiency and enable greater effectiveness), and inform more powerful learning design (resulting in more equitable, effective, and engaging learning experiences)? Will incorporating an online multimedia tool generate greater student investment in demonstrating their learning, diversify the modes available for expressing learning, and expand the classroom boundaries so that parents and other community members may contribute to supporting students' growth?

In addition, teachers will want to identify the constraints of the technology (what it cannot do and the conditions necessary for successful use) and the drawbacks (the possible compromises or negative effects) it will have in their design. Even when digital tools are used with the 4Es in mind, their incorporation can still result in unintended consequences for learning. For example, a malfunctioning tool might waste precious learning time. Or certain learners may experience barriers because they do not know how to use a tool properly. It is also possible that a technology has so many "bells and whistles" that students spend more time thinking about its gimmicky features than the content they should include to demonstrate their learning. This is why, when making decisions about technology, a teacher must not only consider the potential of the tool itself as it relates to their goals, but also clearly identify its potential problems and pitfalls, as well as be prepared to flexibly address any challenges that might arise.

Even if a teacher incorporates technology that supports differentiation and achieves the 4Es, it may only serve a transactional purpose. Transactional learning involves the exchange of ideas and information between teachers and students where the focus is knowledge transmission and acquisition, which has traditionally been the primary goal of learning. Many teachers routinely incorporate technology to support differentiation in this type of design. For example, they might make a simple lecture more effective for certain students through a multimodal demonstration (one that incorporates visual, auditory, and physical stimuli) using a software tool. Or they might record their lectures in video format and include captioning to support English language learners, hearing impaired students, or those who were absent, in addition to those who may benefit from rewatching or slowing down their teacher's presentation. Likewise, they might create more tailored, differentiated learning experiences for all students using pre-assessment data that is easier to collect and analyze through an online survey tool.

These uses of technology address the 4Es and meaningfully support students as they strive to achieve the goals for their learning; however, their impact can be finite because transactional approaches have limited outcomes. Even though transactional learning is a necessary, valuable, and efficient means for building the foundational understandings students require for new learning, teachers will also want to design transformational learning experiences. Such experiences foster students' capacities for creativity, collaboration, communication, critical thinking, cognitive flexibility, complex problem solving, and curiosity, often at the same time students are acquiring basic knowledge. These capacities are increasingly emphasized in national curriculum standards built around the recognition that to be prepared for life, citizenship, and work, students must have the ability to apply knowledge, not merely possess it.

Yet, the benefits of transformational learning experiences do not end with their power to support students' development of important capabilities. They also involve a transformation in students' beliefs, understandings, and actions. As students transition from being passive recipients of information to active creators of knowledge, they gain a new awareness of their agency and the dynamics of learning-understandings that better equip them for their future.

In experiences designed to promote transformational learning, students use digital tools to achieve instructional outcomes that are only possible with certain uses of technology. Toward this end, both the tool and how it is used are important. The same technology tool could be used in multiple ways, but one way might result in transformational learning and the other might not. For instance, two different groups of students might work on a project to promote composting efforts in their community, with the objective to use a photo- and video-sharing app to educate the community. One group might create a simple photo post with information about how and where to compost. The other group might transform their learning, however, by creating a video that includes polls to learn about community members' composting habits and embedded links to several relevant resources (such as composting locations in their community). The video group also engages with others, resulting in their posts going viral and making the local news.

Such outcomes are encouraged by the International Society for Technology in Education's Standards for Students (ISTE, 2016), which suggest learning be designed in a way that allows students to become empowered learners, digital citizens, knowledge constructors, innovative designers, computational thinkers, creative communicators, and global collaborators.

Transformational learning is dynamic and differs depending on contextual factors, such as grade level and content area. Still, according to ISTE, several essential conditions must be in place in a classroom or school before transformational learning can occur, including:

In a differentiated classroom, transformational learning experiences that are supported by technology would address one or more elements of differentiation (content, process, product, environment) and respond to the sources of variability among students (interest, readiness, and learning profile), just as any high-quality differentiated lesson would. However, while technology's inclusion might respond to students' needs to make learning more equitable, efficient, effective, or engaging, its involvement is not limited to this. Rather, the introduction of a digital tool into the learning experience can help students learn more, learn different things, and change how they think about themselves and the world around them.

A differentiated learning experience involving a transformational use of technology might involve students downloading real-time butterfly migration data collected from across the United States and analyzing the data using a spreadsheet to understand the effects of residential development and habitat loss. Students with different learning profiles would have the ability to consider these data using different types of visualizations (such as bar or line graphs or a pie chart) and be aided through the multiple and varied methods of representation made possible with the spreadsheet tool. Students would not only be able to retrieve the data more efficiently and with methods that effectively support diverse learning needs, but would also mirror the work of scientists in an engaging way and come to understand the data more fully. They might also use an augmented reality app to create a map with animated butterflies showing where and when they migrated. This experience would also open up students' sense of what it means to "do science" and empower them to see their role as stewards of the environment.

Teachers who differentiate instruction are educational designers, professionals who possess the skills and expertise to address the diverse learning needs of their students. Their approach to planning instruction, which incorporates varying content, process, and product, coupled with technology that addresses the 4Es, provides a strong foundation for creating transformational learning for students. Intentionally approaching their role as designers will allow educators to think strategically and systematically about the best ways to incorporate technology to achieve their goals.

The increased availability of digital tools in post-pandemic educational settings means that teachers no longer need to worry so much about whether technology will be available for supporting learning. They can focus their attention on considering how it can be most powerfully used, which depends primarily on how teachers choose to integrate it when developing lessons and learning activities. As teachers transition out of the reactive methods that enabled them to succeed during the pandemic, they will benefit from reconsidering the technology in the context of differentiation. This approach provides teachers an orientation to practice that enables them to proactively design experiences that respond to students' unique and diverse needs and promotes transformational learning. Adding technology to the differentiated instruction equation helps students cultivate relevant, real-world skills that will benefit them throughout their education, life, and careers.

Reflect & Discuss

➛ Do you see yourself as a designer when crafting lessons? If not, how might shifting your perspective change the way you create learning opportunities for students?

➛ How might the 4Es help teachers evaluate technology tools in more helpful ways?

➛ Think of one technology tool you incorporated recently. Was it for transactional or transformative purposes? How might you use it differently?

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Differentiated Learning and Technology: A Powerful Combination

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Dynamic, individualized instruction is possible when teachers intentionally design learning experiences.

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The 5 Levels of Engagement by Schlechty:  A Simple Guide

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Students engage deeply in class when tech tools encourage them to construct ideas, collaborate with peers, and create unique work.

Over my years as a secondary school teacher, I've attended professional development opportunities that introduced me to new classroom technology that piqued my interest. I enjoyed playing and interacting with the new technology, and I assumed that my students would too. I'd go home and redo my lesson plan for the next day so that I could incorporate the new technology.

The next day, my anticipation couldn't be contained as my students walked into the classroom because I was excited to see them engage with the classroom technology that would guide their learning. On a number of occasions, the result was unanticipated disengagement. At times, they would outright refuse to participate in the activity.

Finding the Right Tech for Your Class Is a Process

Engagement is crucial. I want my students to participate in class discussions, ask questions, comment on their peers' ideas, take notes, read out loud, post in online classroom discussion threads, and probe deeply into what they're reading. These are all visible indicators of student engagement, and research supports the idea that student engagement leads to academic achievement.

I've seen digital technology capture my students' attention; it seemed natural that it would be a valuable educational tool. However, I've also seen students disengage from technology. Therefore, I sought to understand how I could leverage it to support their learning. When I was standing in front of my disengaged students and needing to spontaneously come up with a new lesson plan, I learned the hard way that I can't assume that digital technology inherently engages students.
"I like being able to come up with different types of ideas... things we didn't discuss in class."
By intertwining my own PhD research with my experiences as a classroom teacher before and after the pandemic, I've found that technology engages students when it allows for students to do what I call the 3Cs: construct, collaborate, create.

When technology is used as a tool to transmit information to students to read and memorize, students will disengage by opting out of the task. Instead, we can use technology to allow students to construct their own ideas in order to create personal meaning. Technology is effective when used as a tool for knowledge construction, not knowledge consumption.

In the classroom, this looks like having students read two news articles on the same topic and then letting them decide which article was more persuasive. This allows students to access recent texts through technology, but it also allows them to sort through their own thoughts to decide which article was more effective. Students are able to use technology to construct their own ideas.
"I don't want to quietly sit at a computer and work by myself. I can do that at home. I want to be able to work with other people."
Collaborate

When technology is used as a tool to foster collaboration with others within and beyond the classroom, it will engage students. As educators, we need to position technology to facilitate activities that foster social interaction.

Sometimes, we imagine classroom technology to be isolating-students quietly sitting at their desks working on a computer. Instead, we can use it as a tool for communication. For example, I've had groups of students gather around a single device to watch a short video. Yes, they could all watch it at their own desk on their own device, but positioning technology this way allows students to pause the video, talk to their peers, and rewind and rewatch as necessary.
"I know that I could create without the technology, but the technology means that I can create something better, something I couldn't create without the technology."
This huddled viewing makes the activity interactive and collaborative. Students continue to process their own ideas and engage with their peers to help refine them further.

Technology leads to student engagement when it's a tool that allows students to design, build, and perform tasks that would otherwise be difficult for them to do without access to the technological tools. Students feel accomplished when they create a product that's different from everyone else's. If we can design an evaluation task that allows them to choose how they'll design their final product and provide them with the technological tools to do so, the technology will engage them.

For example, I've had students redesign the cover of a book they've read in their secondary English classroom so that the book can be marketed to preschoolers. This enables them to consider colors, shapes, and images that would appeal to preschoolers and subsequently design, build, and create something that's new and doesn't exist.

Uniting the 3Cs

Despite the amount of learning that happened through and with technology during the pandemic, I've noticed that students still find it engaging. However, I've found that rather than tasks that allow for one of the 3Cs, tasks that unite all of the 3Cs foster greater engagement that can be sustained over several classes. The 3Cs allow students to inquire, connect, and design-three facets of education that emergency remote pandemic learning eroded. To rebuild these important skills, I implemented a task that unites the 3Cs.

This activity gave students voice and choice, and the result was that they created work that they were proud to submit for evaluation. Some products included a radio ad, a TikTok video, an Instagram post, a city bus advertising wrap, an infomercial, a television commercial, a rap with a music video, and a magazine ad. What my students created was beyond what I could have suggested because they had creative skills and media knowledge that I hadn't been aware of until this project.

I learned that when we design an activity that unites the 3Cs, it's a gateway to invite student engagement.

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Supporting Student Engagement With Technology

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Students engage deeply in class when tech tools encourage them to construct ideas, collaborate with peers, and create unique work.

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Learning during the pandemic showed that teacher-led direct instruction and rote memorization are not the best way to engage students. In many schools, there was a shift to more project-based learning (PBL) and toward learning activities (and pace) being directed more by students themselves. This shift allowed for a wide variety of technology to be used to support students' learning and help them become more actively engaged in gaining knowledge and skills, as a 2021 study by Hira and Anderson showed. While there were certainly students who struggled with online learning, that wasn't the case for all, and Hira and Anderson's research shows that using PBL in online learning was valuable for many students.

Now that students and teachers are back in the classroom, it's important not to backslide into old habits that don't spark engagement because they don't allow for enough active learning. Educational technology plays a role here. Getting the most out of edtech can allow students with a wide variety of learning profiles to be successful and more fully engaged in class. And tech-based activities or learning approaches can fit into all curricular areas if teachers are given the time to make this happen and the leeway to try new ideas and fail at times.

As a makerspace director and technology coordinator at a K-12 school, I've helped teachers in various disciplines use edtech in more meaningful ways. I've learned there's one thing educators need to keep in mind in such efforts: The use of technology needs to promote active engagement. Students don't need to sit and consume more content from their teacher, even if it's presented through cutting-edge technology; they consume content all the time. Students' ability to create content through active engagement is the ultimate testament to an immersive learning experience. While teachers can provide valuable content a student might not discover on their own, exploring, learning, failing, and succeeding on their own is tremendously valuable to students-and happens more regularly when they use technology that lets them become independently engaged in their learning.

Regularly reinventing lessons (and infusing edtech elements into them) so that they're more active and engaging to an ever-changing student population can be exhausting. But it's not a challenge teachers need to take on alone. There are many resources available that have been vetted by experienced educators focused on edtech, who have done the heavy lifting for the average teacher who's just beginning to use tech-enhanced approaches. Allow me to describe a few resources (all freely available) I've seen teachers use in my school during and after learning went remote.

The Power of Stories: Combining Writing and Coding

One comment I commonly hear from educators is that there is a big push for STEM skills-such as math and coding-in the classroom, but that STEM doesn't fit in their content area. A 6th grade English language arts teacher in my school, Ms. Flexer (a pseudonym), thought this-until we collaborated to get her students engaged in the writing process by using Python code to create a text-based game.

Interactive Fiction, meaning a text-based computer game that requires players to enter in text commands to advance the game and story, is one of the original types of computer games. For early versions of interactive fiction games like Zork, developers lacked the ability to generate serious graphics, so they relied on text to drive the narrative a game revolved around. To create a text-based game, you need strong writing skills, an understanding of how plot works in a story, proofreading skills, and basic coding. In the 6th grade ELA curriculum in our school, students learn narrative writing skills, how to craft a plot, proofreading, and other components to writing a story. When their teacher added coding elements, students worked on those writing skills while creating a game they could share with friends and family.

The Raspberry Pi Foundation has an excellent lesson on how to create text-based games . With a few tweaks, it can be turned into a full-scale lesson for students to write their very own game that draws on stories they've written. As Ms. Flexer walked her students through the tutorial provided with this lesson on how to code the game, they added elements of their own stories. As the students dug into the code, they started to ask questions about how different parts worked and whether they could change the code to something different in their game. The students and Ms. Flexer worked together to learn more about the code so the games they were creating could do all the things they wanted.

While adding more elements to their games allowed the kids to personalize those games, it sometimes led to problems: If you want the code to do more, you need to write more code, and when you write more code, you're going to have more bugs crop up. One of the most important parts to coding anything is making sure the code is bug-free so it runs smoothly. All it takes is one improperly placed indent or comma and the whole thing comes crashing down. As students worked on their code and their stories, they willingly spent a lot of time proofreading their work and the work of others, making sure they found all existing errors so the game would work.

Ms. Flexer was astounded by how committed the students were to writing and proofreading their code. Like most ELA teachers, she'd had trouble getting the students to spend time on traditional writing assignments. When the work was reframed around writing code for a game, her students worked on proofreading and other writing elements in a way that was engaging for them-and gave them a taste of text-based coding.

Interactive fiction games are only one way to bring gaming into learning. For instance, Gimkit is a highly engaging tool that enables collaborative learning through gaming, and Kahoot! allows students to review content through playing a game.

The Power of Showcasing Work

Another way to leverage edtech for greater engagement in the classroom is to find digitally supported ways for students to organize and share their work. Teaching during the pandemic led to a greater use not only of project-based learning, but also of digital portfolios. Students learning from home could share their work using digital tools that both teachers and parents could access. When students know they will share their work, they are more engaged because they want to showcase something that will reflect well on them.

Two tools many teachers used successfully toward this end were Seesaw and Adobe Express. Seesaw is a student-driven digital portfolio and communication platform that let teachers easily engage with students and their families, facilitating personalized learning and sharing of multimedia assignments, progress, and feedback. I worked with teachers who would post a learning activity on Seesaw that provided all the details students needed to complete the activity. Students would complete the learning activity on Seesaw and then use Adobe Express to create an additional artifact-such as a digital poster, short video, or website-to further demonstrate their understanding. Adobe Express gives students access to a wide variety of tools for creating high-quality work, such as adding text to graphics, creating simple websites for presentations, and more. This free tool helped students showcase their creativity while presenting something that highlighted what they learned.

I've found Seesaw to be a helpful tool for students, teachers, and parents because it gives all stakeholders access to the work a student has completed, allowing for more engagement from parents. Students store their products in a digital space where teachers or parents can provide feedback and students can reflect on their progress. The material a student publishes to Seesaw can be kept private, to be seen only by the teacher, student, and their parents, or made public to all students. This is helpful because some portfolios might be designed for specific feedback from a small group and others might just be used to collect student work.

While Adobe Express and Seesaw need not be used together to work well, I've found that pairing a creativity tool with a portfolio tool helps get the most out of students. Other good tools that enable students to create and share digital products include Flip from Microsoft, Canva for Education, and Book Creator. Now that schools are in-person again, there's no reason teachers shouldn't continue to use tools like these to motivate students to learn and create.

The Power of Leveraging What Kids Love

Another great way to engage students is to meet them where they are by using activities students already know and enjoy. For many students, that would be Minecraft. Minecraft Education, a crafting and building program that lets students create massive "worlds" on their computers, has been a huge hit with students and teachers for years. This program can be used across multiple disciplines. It engages students who are itching to envision and design possible societies, cities, or buildings or to simulate scientific experiments.

I've seen students use Minecraft in social studies to build countries, establish borders and trade, and more, learning social studies-related concepts and the value of collaboration. In science classes, teachers are giving students virtual access to volatile substances through the safety of Minecraft Education's chemistry workbench. Students can freely experiment with what happens when they combine various elements; if something blows up in Minecraft, it's harmless. Students in math class can explore ratios by deciding how to place blocks within the program and dive into scale sizes by building houses.

Minecraft isn't the only digital program that lets students virtually design and build things and that can be tapped for learning. Other good options include CoSpaces Edu (a virtual reality and augmented reality creation platform) and Tinkercad (a free, web-based 3D modeling and design tool that provides an interface for students and educators to create, prototype, and explore design ideas). Scratch is a visual programming language and online community designed for beginners, especially children, to learn coding concepts by creating interactive projects.

Teachers are often amazed by how engaged students are and how hard they work when given an assignment that uses Minecraft Education or similar programs. And it's no problem if the teacher is a novice; students love to showcase their Minecraft skills and will support the teacher or any student who is struggling to place their first block.

Students can use the program differently to develop whatever skill they're most interested in. Some will use the coding feature to automate tasks; others might teach themselves how to build pointed roofs by watching videos on YouTube. I've seen students spend hours exploring the content needed to create their perfect virtual worlds. They learn to collaborate to build elaborate town centers, shops, amusement parks, and whatever else pops into their mind, gaining valuable design skills.

Taking the First Step

It's a reality that teachers need to continue to innovate to find ways to engage students, and some of these new ways will involve edtech. But don't be overwhelmed or think you immediately need to change everything you're doing to incorporate more tech in your teaching. Go at your own pace, and realize you are going to fail from time to time. It's easy to give up when you try a new lesson with a new piece of technology and it doesn't land the way you had hoped. But consider how many traditional lessons you have created that flopped. Why should a lesson that utilizes technology be thought of differently? Be open with students when you try a new lesson involving edtech. Tell them they are going to be "Beta testers" for your new lesson and give you feedback that will help make the lesson better for the next group of students. Move forward with the hope that failure will teach you a valuable lesson and provide experience that will help you improve.

The Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu said, "The journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step." Take a deep breath and identify one thing you think will engage your students and start there. Exploring ways technology can make learning more immersive and experiential is a pursuit that will involve failures, but also big wins for students. Seeing smiles on your students' faces will let you know when you are heading in the right direction.

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Lifting Student Engagement Through Smart Tech Use

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Rule number one is to make learning active.

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contributed by Sara McGuire, venngage.com

Technology distracts students, right? Keeps them from focusing?

One solution is to ban phones and computers from the classroom. Another solution is to harness their tech-savvy and engage students with online tools that will help them complete assignments while still engaging them electronically. Whether they're working on a research essay, a presentation, a science project, or a math report, there are ample tools available to make the process more engaging for students.

Think about it-if students are growing up in a world that requires them to be tech-savvy, then shouldn't tech play a big role in their classroom experience? Here are ten picks for tools to engage students in the classroom.

First, what type of tools can make learning more interesting for students?

There are many learning technology tools that can be used to improve student engagement.
1. Gamification tools
Gamification tools, such as Kahoot!, Quizlet, and Gimkit, can make learning more engaging and interactive by adding game elements like points, rewards, and competition. These tools can be used to create quizzes, flashcards, and other activities that students can complete individually or in groups.
2. Video Content
Video-based tools, such as Edpuzzle and PlayPosit, can make learning more engaging by incorporating videos into lessons. These tools allow teachers to add interactive elements, such as quizzes or discussion questions, to videos and track student progress.
3. Tools For Student Collaboration
Collaborative tools, such as Google Docs and Padlet, can make learning more engaging by allowing students to collaborate and share ideas. These tools can be used for group projects, brainstorming sessions, and peer review activities.
4. Adaptive learning apps and platforms
Adaptive learning tools, such as DreamBox and Aleks, can make learning more engaging by providing personalized learning experiences for each student. These tools use algorithms to adjust the difficulty of the content based on each student's strengths and weaknesses.
5. Virtual and augmented reality tools
Virtual and augmented reality tools, such as Nearpod VR and Merge Cube, can make learning more engaging by providing immersive experiences. These tools can be used to explore historical sites, conduct science experiments, and visualize complex concepts.

You can see some examples of these kinds of tools below.
15 Learning Technology Tools For Student Engagement 1. Augmented Reality Apps
Here are some augmented reality apps to get started.

Video is a wonderful engagement tool. Add a social dynamic in a school-friendly architecture and you've got Flip. See some ideas on ideas for using Flip in the classroom.
3. Video Games
I know this is general-merely saying 'video games' isn't actually a 'student engagement tool.' However, video games literally don't work without player input-and thus student engagement. The right game could change your classroom. Here are some examples of video games you can teach with.
4. Google Forms
We're starting with what's likely the simplest app on the list (well-aside the from background noise strategy): Google Forms

One of the best ways to engage all students in your classroom is to give students an easy (and even anonymous) way to ask questions, receive feedback, or otherwise reach out to the teacher. While there are many ways to do this, one of the most universally accessible (and free) methods is Google Forms.

Whether you provide specific questions and prompts for students to respond to as an exit slip (e.g., Was there any point during today's lesson where you were confused?), or you simple leave it as a way for students to post questions anonymously (which can be useful for some struggling students who might otherwise be hesitant to reach out), a simple messaging system or basic form can help improve student engagement.
5. Socrative
Like a few others on this list, you've likely heard of Socrative, a tool to "assess student understanding with prepared activities or on-the-fly questions, then adjust your teaching based on the results."
6. Kahoot!
Kahoot! is a handy tool that students can use to create in-class questionnaires and quizzes. This is handy for obtaining data for graphing assignments, data for research essays, and feedback from their classmates. Kahoot! is compatible with multiple devices and has a game-like feel that will help keep students interested.
7. Class Dojo
This is a fun tool to gamify the classroom. Students make their own avatars, gain and lose points based on classroom behavior, discussion approaches, and other soft skills agreed upon by the teacher and the class. Teachers can also use Class Dojo to take attendance and create graphs that breakdown the information for teachers. Not only will this tool encourage students to uphold class values, but it will also provide key metrics to help teachers adjust their teaching tactics accordingly.
8. Clickers
Classroom clickers may not be the higher-water mark for innovation in education, but as a simple and useful tool that you can use almost every day, it's a no-brainer for many classrooms.

This is a tool for teachers, to help assess students' understanding of concepts and their engagement with the material. With some tools, teachers can project questions onto their screen using while students answer them in real-time. Students' answers show up on the teacher's phone screen, and teachers can see which students got answers right and which didn't. This gives teachers an accurate picture of how students are following the information, and adjust their lessons accordingly.

Note, this is more of a general recommendation than an endorsement of a specific clicker tool or app. The problem with this otherwise 'no-doubter' recommendation is that many of the clicker tools are expensive-at least the ones we know of. Plickers, iClicker, Top Hat, and other tools are not only not free but often have monthly subscription-level pricing. If your school has the budget and you put it to good use, it's likely worth the investment.

Immediate responses from every single student instantly? That's a great strategy for engaging students.
9. Edvoice
Edvoice is a feature-rich communication tool with everything from lesson planning and rubrics, to messaging, announcements, notifications, and even tools to help prevent (or respond to) bullying in the classroom.

Depending on what you want the students engage in-you, one another, content, an assignment, etc.-they need to be able to focus, and classroom aren't always the easiest places to do that. Background noise can not only drown out excess noise, but more helpfully as students concentrate, there is less noise because they're concentrating. Neat trick, huh?
11. Venngage
Create interactive lessons, assess students on the fly, and see data and student responses in real-time. Students that can ask questions and receive feedback at any time are more likely to be engaged.

With so much focus being given to data analytics these days, data literacy is a useful skill for students to learn. Whether your students have collected their own data or they've collected it from other sources, being able to visualize their data in an infographic is a highly useful skill. Infographics appeal to both visual learners and textual learners. Venngage offers a selection of infographic templates that students can customize.
12. Prezi
Presentations are a core part of the curriculum but let's face it, PowerPoint isn't terribly engaging. Prezi allows students to create presentations that are more creative and exciting than was PP has to offer. Not only will this make the presentation creation process more interesting for students, but it will also make watching presentations more interesting as well. Plus, Prezi presentations are published publicly on students' accounts, so their classmates can access them later to check their notes.
13. Trello
Because so many students are in the habit of multitasking, a good skill to teach them is how to organize and streamline their assignments. Trello is a free and super easy-to-use tool students can use to create workflow charts. Multiple students can be added to the same board; great for collaboration on projects. (See also a better list of ideas for project-based learning.)
14. Virtual Reality
For most classrooms, virtual reality still isn't viable. Even if you do have a headset, you likely don't have 30. But in terms of 'student engagement,' it's difficult to improve on virtual reality. We use a Pico virtual reality headset for learning, for example.
Bonus 15. Cold Turkey
Students probably won't love this one but it's a useful tool you can use to mitigate the amount of multitasking students can do on their computers. Cold Turkey is a tool that allows you to block certain websites or the internet in general so that students can focus on their tasks. Even having students turn it on for half of a period for some focuses in-class writing time will make a difference in terms of their productivity.
10 Technology Tools To Improve Student Engagement In The Classroom

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15 Technology Tools To Engage Students In The Classroom

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One of the best ways to engage all students in your classroom is to give students an easy (and even anonymous) way to ask questions.

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Student engagement has become a prominent strategic priority and buzzword in higher education with conversations focusing on the best ways to keep students interested, motivated and engaged, leading to optimal academic performance. As a result, various software solutions exist to help combat student disengagement. But, first of all, why all the fuss over student engagement?

What Is Student Engagement?

According to The Glossary of Education Reform, student engagement "refers to the degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion that students show when they are learning or being taught, which extends to the level of motivation they have to learn and progress in their education."

The concept of student engagement is based on the belief that students are more engaged to learn when they are motivated, interested and inspired, and less engaged to learn, or disengaged, when they are bored, uninterested and distracted. Makes sense, right?

Student Engagement and Generation Z

As technology rapidly changed in the early 2000s, especially with the rise of smartphones and social media, individuals, particularly students, were faced with more opportunities for distraction than ever before in this increasingly connected, digital world. And, considering that these mobile technologies have been designed to capture and sustain our attention, it's become critical for higher education leaders to ensure that students are engaged in their learning. This concern paved the way for increased emphasis on student engagement, as higher education administrators cannot expect that students will automatically be engaged simply because they are enrolled at a college or university. These leaders must work harder in today's digital world to gain the attention of students.

Australian social researcher, speaker and author Claire Madden shares her perspective in an article for CGMA. "The use of smart devices and the internet is ubiquitous for Gen Zs today," she says. "With the democratization of information in today's digital age, there's been a dramatic shift in how students learn. The smartphone - almost guaranteed to be within arm's reach of a Gen Z at any point - has provided much quicker access to a much broader world of information than instructors can."

Why Does Student Engagement Software Exist?

Student engagement software exists to capture the attention and interest of today's digital native college students. According to Ryan Jenkins, author of The Generation Z Guide, this generation tends to be more independent in learning and working than previous generations. "They have a DIY attitude and, through tools like YouTube, they find the resources they need to do things on their own," he says (via CGMA).

Jason Dorsey, speaker, generational issues researcher and author, explains to CGMA that members of Gen Z also have "much higher expectations around the integration of technology" in the classroom compared to Millennials. "Gen Z students expect to access classroom learning outside of the classroom, on-demand and unique to them," he says. "Our research shows they expect faculty to integrate the latest technology, from adaptive learning resources to video collaboration and knowledge-sharing tools. We're seeing the highest student engagement when faculty members leverage mobile learning, interactive learning experiences, and individualized assessment to keep students on track."

Student Engagement Trends

Now that we've explained the topic of student engagement and established why student engagement is critical to Gen Z's success, let's consider six of the latest student engagement strategies and trends for use in the classroom.

1. Student-Focused Learning Experiences

To engage college students these days, you need to speak their language. By doing so, they are more likely to engage with what they're learning. Gen Z's ease and familiarity with technology that provides quick and simple user experiences has led higher education leaders and curriculum developers to design learning experiences that appeal to these students. After all, according to Element451 , if a process is not simplified and fails to capture students' attention early, you'll risk losing them. By tailoring learning experiences to appeal directly to students' needs, you put them in the driver's seat, making it easier to capture their interest and keep them engaged.

2. Personalized Learning

The trend of personalized learning similarly gives students more control over how they learn. When students are learning in a way that appeals to their needs, it's only natural they will be more engaged. Personalized learning, noted Fierce Education , consists of activities where individual items are tailored for students' individual skill levels. This type of adaptive assessment begins with easier questions and advances to more difficult ones once a certain mastery level is met.

Think about it this way: When students start off with the harder questions, they are more likely to become frustrated and lose interest. By adapting items to students' individual skill levels, they are rewarded with positive reinforcement which increases their confidence and, therefore, leads to more positive learning experiences.

3. Project-Based Learning

Similar to active learning, project-based learning is a trend that keeps students actively engaged through hands-on projects rather than sitting passively listening to lectures. As Fierce Education points out, engaging in short-term projects allows students to put their organizational, time management, teamwork and critical thinking skills into practice, which will no doubt be useful later in their professional careers.

4. Active Learning

Active learning is all about making learning hands-on, enabling students to take ownership of their education. "In a classroom that is using specific strategies to target engagement and active learning, you will not see students sitting quietly at their desks listening to a teacher speak about the content. Instead, you'll see them participating and exploring, sitting on different types of seats, standing up, using interactive technology, playing games, engaging in discussion, or creating their own projects," Dr. Stacy Ness of Walden University explains in an article for K-12 Dive .

Active learning leads to increased student engagement because it's designed not to be a passive learning strategy. In active learning lessons, teachers spend additional time selecting projects that appeal to their students' interests and aptitudes. She adds, "The students become much more invested in their own learning because it's tailored to their interests, strengths and needs-which really increases their intrinsic motivation."

5. Flipped Classroom Learning

Another hot trend for student engagement is the flipped classroom. This model of learning "flips" the traditional model of instruction on its head. Instead of receiving a lecture or lesson about a new concept in class, students complete this work the night before by reading texts, watching videos or listening to podcasts. Then, in class, they work on an assignment based on the lesson - basically the traditional form of "homework."

By having the teacher present while students work on the activity, instructors are able to help students with specific questions. Class time may also be used for discussions or more interactive lessons based on the content. "If it works the way it's intended and the students are really doing this work at home, they get very engaged in school and the teachers can check students' understanding before they do assessments," says Ness.

6. Focus on Security Measures

While it can be tedious, paying increased attention to security is a trend that's here to stay. Data breaches occur often, making it crucial for schools to keep students' personal data safe and secure. As Element451 noted, requiring stronger passwords, implementing two-factor authentication and encrypting sensitive data are steps that may take time and effort up front but are worth it in the end.

Student Engagement Software Solutions

While some of these trends for improving student engagement can be implemented in the classroom using traditional methods and materials, many of them can be enhanced by implementing a variety of software solutions. These solutions for enhancing student engagement in higher education often come at a reasonable cost, are simple to implement and are relatively user-friendly for both instructors and students.

1. Student Response Systems and Gamification Software

Student response systems, sometimes referred to as "clickers," promote active, personalized and student-focused learning experiences. They enable all students in class to answer a question posed without fear of being called on and having the wrong answer. According to K-12 Dive, various free apps enable students to compete against each other. Because they are individual apps, no sophisticated technology is required - just a connected device, whether a smartphone or a tablet. These types of in-class learning experiences keep students engaged through their use of gamification features. Plainly said, they make learning fun.

"The students' responses can be immediately graphed and presented to the whole class. Using a response system keeps students attending and engaged during classroom instruction," describes Ness. These types of technologies also appeal to students' need for instant feedback. Adds Shannon Johnson, an elementary school teacher-turned-curriculum designer, "That's where technology in the classroom is headed. Students are on their own devices, and teachers are able to instantly see their work and put it up on the electronic whiteboard or interactive panel."

2. Real-Time Data Integration / Data Insight to Data Action

These days, data is everything. Gathering and interpreting this data can provide numerous insights about students and how they learn best. To effectively personalize learning experiences for students, instructors must first have the data to understand their students' strengths and weaknesses and how they learn best. Additionally, by accessing this data in real time, instructors are able to provide the instant feedback their students desire. Higher education leaders can also leverage these technologies to learn which programs and initiatives best contribute to student success and use this information to conveniently figure out which areas students may need additional support (per Element451).

3. All-In-One Communication Platforms

By implementing all-in-one communication platforms, which include features such as convenient chatbots and text messaging, students get the type of instant feedback in which they've become accustomed. These platforms can be especially beneficial for implementing active learning strategies and flipped classroom instructional models, as they give students immediate access to support. Since these all-in-one communication platforms help simplify communication throughout various learning experiences while also serving as a cost-effective solution, they are a win-win for colleges and universities (via Element451).

4. Virtual and Augmented Reality

Similar to gamification software, virtual and augmented reality promote hands-on, active learning and can easily be incorporated in project-based learning. "VR offers students the ability to explore something in 3-D right, such as looking at different parts of a heart, or visiting places in the world or times in history that you could only read about in the past," Johnson says. "They're going to provide valuable hands-on experience for students."

Suitable's Guided Pathways and Co-Curricular Transcripts are examples of simple software solutions that appeal to today's students, thereby helping to increase student engagement. By incorporating gamification techniques such as digital badges and real-time progress, Guided Pathways gives students more control over their higher education learning experiences, keeping them more engaged throughout. Similarly, Suitable's Co-Curricular Transcripts provides a dynamic, real-time look at students' individual experiential and , conveying their individual stories in a clear and engaging way. co-curricular college experiences

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6 Student Engagement Software Trends This Year

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Student engagement software is a hot topic that will continue to rise. Learn about 6 trends to account for in your student engagement strategies this year.

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How to Foster Student Interaction in Online Learning

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It can be challenging to engage your students when they are participating from different locations around the world. However, there is hope! In this blog post, we will discuss three ways you too could promote interactive learning with your students and be able to implement these effective techniques into all aspects of teaching.

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The digital age has undeniably transformed the educational landscape. Classrooms are no longer confined to textbooks and blackboards. As digital screens have become the new windows to knowledge, the essence of human touch in learning environments has never been more crucial.

As classrooms morph into tech-driven ecosystems, the challenge and necessity to foster genuine connections amongst educators and students intensify.

This transformation beckons a pivotal question: How can we maintain the invaluable human touch in an increasingly digital age?

From interactive whiteboards and tablets to virtual reality simulations and artificial intelligence-powered tutors - the integration of technology in education has undeniably broadened horizons, offering unprecedented access to information and interactive learning experiences.

However, amidst these technological advancements, the core of education-the human connection-risks being overshadowed. This article delves into the significance of nurturing emotional and interpersonal connections in tech-enriched classrooms in the digital era.

A Journey Through Time: The Evolution of Technology in Education

The educational landscape has undergone a dramatic transformation, evolving from classrooms dominated by chalkboards and textbooks to environments brimming with modern-day educational technology (EdTech).

This digital revolution, while fascinating, presents a complex scenario for educators. Let's delve into the historical context of EdTech and explore its multifaceted impact on learning.

The history of EdTech is a testament to human ingenuity and our ever-evolving approach to education. While the concept of learning aids dates back to ancient civilizations, the tools we typically associate with traditional classrooms emerged much later.

Students in ancient Babylonia and Sumeria, for instance, used clay tablets inscribed with cuneiform writing - a testament to the enduring human desire to record and share knowledge.

The 20th century witnessed further advancements in educational tools. Radio and television, while primarily used for entertainment purposes, began to make inroads into educational settings. These new technologies offered the potential for broader dissemination of knowledge and exposure to diverse viewpoints. With the introduction of computers into classrooms, this shift paved the way for the digital revolution in education, laying the groundwork for the plethora of modern EdTech tools.

Of course, the 21st-century classroom is a far cry from its chalkboard and slate predecessors. From interactive whiteboards and tablets to online learning platforms and virtual reality simulations, each iteration of EdTech brings exciting possibilities for personalized learning, interactive experiences, and access to a vast information pool today.

This progression from analog to digital tools reflects a broader societal trend towards technology-driven communication and information exchange. As we stand at the threshold of even further advancements, it allows us to appreciate the complexities of integrating technology with traditional teaching methods, ensuring we harness its potential while mitigating the drawbacks.

Benefits of Technology in Learning

Technology, when harnessed effectively, can greatly enhance the learning experience. It offers several key advantages:

Accessibility: Digital platforms can provide learners worldwide with access to quality education materials and resources. Genie AI by Wadhwani Foundation is a prime example of how technology breaks down geographical and financial barriers to education.

Personalization: Adaptive learning technologies allow for personalized learning experiences, catering to the individual needs, pace, and learning styles of students.

Engagement: Multimedia content, interactive simulations, and gamified learning modules can make education more engaging and enjoyable for students, potentially increasing motivation and retention rates.

Challenges Posed by Technology in Classrooms

The human connection between teachers and students forms the bedrock of a strong learning environment. Despite technology's benefits, its incorporation in education is not without its challenges:

Screen Overload: Excessive screen time can lead to issues like eye strain, reduced attention spans, and overall physical discomfort.

Digital Divide: The disparity in access to digital devices and reliable internet connections among students can exacerbate educational inequalities.

Diminished Human Interaction: Perhaps the most pressing concern is the potential reduction in face-to-face interaction between teachers and students, which can impact emotional support, understanding, and the development of social skills.

Why is the Human Touch Important in Education?

Stronger Student-Teacher Bonding

Positive teacher-student relationships characterized by mutual respect, trust, and open communication create a safe and supportive space where students feel comfortable taking risks, asking questions, and seeking help. Research indicates that strong student-teacher relationships can lead to improved academic achievement, increased motivation and engagement, and a greater sense of belonging. These positive relationships can also foster social-emotional learning (SEL), a critical component of education that equips students with the skills to manage emotions, build healthy relationships, and make responsible decisions.

Improved Personalized Learning

Personalized learning is another aspect of education where the human touch remains irreplaceable. While technology can offer adaptive learning platforms and personalized recommendations, it cannot replicate the nuance and understanding that a skilled teacher brings to the table. Teachers can leverage technology to tailor instruction to individual student needs, utilizing data and formative assessments to identify areas of strength and weakness. This allows them to provide targeted support, differentiate instruction, and offer individualized guidance that goes beyond what technology can offer on its own.

Promoting Critical Thinking and Creativity

Critical thinking and creativity are fundamental skills for success today. However, technology can sometimes hinder these skills if not used strategically. In this, teachers can play a crucial role. They prompt students to think critically about the information they encounter online, to analyze evidence, and to form their own conclusions. Open-ended questions, student-led discussions, and problem-solving activities facilitated by teachers encourage students to think creatively, explore different perspectives, and develop innovative solutions.

Summing Up

Finally, human connection is essential for developing essential life skills. While technology can be a powerful tool for communication and collaboration, it cannot replace the importance of face-to-face interaction in honing these skills.

Balancing technological tools with the irreplaceable value of the human touch ensures that the essence of education-fostering meaningful connections and inspiring learners-remains at the forefront.

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The Human Touch in a Tech-Driven Classroom: Fostering Connection in the Digital Age - Wadhwani Foundation

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The digital age has undeniably transformed the educational landscape. Classrooms are no longer confined to textbooks and blackboards. As digital screens have

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May 18th is Global Accessibility Awareness Day, a day to spotlight the importance of making sure that technology is accessible for those with disabilities - including diverse learners. This year, Understood partnered with Google for Education to spotlight how technology can help diverse learners thrive.

The past 30 years I've spent in education has shown me that assistive technology has the potential to shape the world, and change the educational experience for students and teachers. And I'm so excited to see what Understood and Google can do to help kids, parents, and teachers better understand learning and thinking differences.

What it means to be a diverse learner

Being a "diverse learner" means a student doesn't learn in ways that others might expect. Differences can be based on many things. That includes race, ethnicity, culture, language, and socioeconomic status. It also includes neurodivergence. So, kids with learning and thinking differences like dyslexia and ADHD are diverse learners.

Today's classrooms are often frustrating and confusing for kids with learning challenges and ADHD. Schools need to provide more support and flexibility to help these students succeed. Otherwise, they risk developing low self-esteem and a negative attitude toward learning.

Accessibility in the classroom

Classrooms are more accessible than ever, but we have a long way to go. There are still many misconceptions; many educators and families think accessibility is only for people with disabilities. The reality is it benefits everyone.

Some believe accessibility measures and tools are expensive. Or that they create an unfair advantage if everyone isn't using them. In fact, there are lots of low-cost or no-cost solutions, and solutions with assistive technology built in, like Chromebooks and Google Workspace for Education. And supports like assistive technology don't create advantages. They level the playing field so every student has access to learning. Finally, many educators believe that you have to be a specialist to figure out how to make learning accessible for all students, but the tools are easy to learn, and there are many trainings and resources available.
In this episode of Teaching for Tomorrow, Bob Cunningham shares his vision for the future of education and accessibility.
What can help

Technology allows activities to be tailored to each student. Text-to-speech software, like ChromeVox and select-to-speak on Chromebooks, lets students with dyslexia have text read to them in a human voice. A learning management system (LMS) like Google Classroom can help kids with organization challenges keep track of assignments, due dates, and grades. Teachers and families need to get to know kids as people and learners. Be flexible, clear and supportive about what you want a child to learn. Accept that there are many ways to learn it and to show learning, which will help you problem-solve together. Assistive technology can help, but it's important to teach kids how to use it.

Editor's note: For Global Accessibility Awareness Day, Understood partnered with Google For Education. It was originally posted on Google's site. Google builds accessibility features into Chromebooks and Google Workspace for Education. They are adding more to Chrome browsers in the coming months, like reading mode, typo detection in the address bar, and image-to-text conversion to make previously inaccessible PDFs more accessible for screen reader users. They also added more Google Fonts that are intended to help readability, legibility, and text accessibility. Find resources on edu.google.com/accessibility, including training videos.

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How technology can help diverse learners thrive

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In honor of Global Accessibility Awareness Day, Understood partnered with Google For Education to share how technology can help diverse learners thrive.

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Entities ranging from businesses to schools to nonprofit agencies are striving to build and support efforts toward better diversity and inclusion. These organizations not only seek to offer more opportunities for people with varied backgrounds, experiences and abilities to participate, but also to ensure the services they offer meet the needs of everyone in the community.

While this is decidedly a person-first endeavor, artificial intelligence and other technology tools can help bridge certain gaps and improve essential efforts. From enabling communication to helping all of us see the world in different ways, below, 20 members of Forbes Technology Council discuss how technology can support diversity and inclusion efforts.

1. Breaking Down Language Barriers

Implementing AI-driven language translation tools fosters inclusivity by breaking down language barriers to communication across diverse teams, educational settings, healthcare services and social initiatives. This ensures everyone can participate and benefit, regardless of linguistic differences. - Mohit Gupta, Damco Solutions

2. Connecting A Global Workforce

Technology can foster diversity and inclusion by providing platforms for virtual collaboration and communication, enabling organizations to connect with a global workforce. This enhances cultural exchange and understanding, encourages varied perspectives and supports flexible work arrangements, making organizations more accessible and inclusive for individuals from diverse backgrounds. - Miguel Llorca, Torrent Group

Forbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs and technology executives. Do I qualify?

3. Improving Healthcare Outcomes

AI has the potential to unlock powerful healthcare solutions that could harness the data and information that currently overload health systems, helping clinicians "cut to the chase" with preventative and personalized care pathways. However, this can only happen if AI is built with solid foundational data and without the systemic biases that prevent inclusion. AI built on solid data is a game-changer for health equity. - Brad Porter, Orion Health

4. Curating Larger, More Representative Datasets

Data and analytics enable organizations to curate extremely large and diverse datasets. A data asset that includes a myriad of sources, both internal and external, creates a richer foundation that's more comprehensive and representative of society. In healthcare, a curated data asset can thwart bias by ensuring the data used in decision-making includes information on an accurate patient population. - Michael Meucci, Arcadia

5. Drilling Down Into D&I Efforts

Data analytics can help organizations understand how well they're doing on diversity and inclusion efforts by drilling into data in multiple ways. Instead of just overall numbers, dive into the details by department, by role and by salary level. What are the demographics of applicants, interview candidates and actual hires? True diversity and inclusion should be visible in all roles and levels. - Ann Westerheim, Ekaru

6. Providing Empirical Evidence Of DEI's Impact

Technology is essential to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts because it can be used to provide empirical evidence that a particular issue exists. DEI initiatives are often perceived as superfluous virtue-signaling, but there is no better evidence to combat this potential misconception than quantifiable metrics demonstrating how solving a particular issue contributes to improved morale and positive business outcomes. - Ikechi Okoronkwo, Mindshare

7. Ensuring More Equitable Healthcare Experiences For Patients

Although technology can potentially exacerbate bias, it can also potentially be used to empower organizations to uncover and address unconscious biases. In the healthcare sector, AI can be used to uncover bias in areas including hiring and patient scheduling, fostering learning and reflection that can drive a more equitable and inclusive environment as well as improved access for patients. - Salim Afshar, Reveal HealthTech

8. Enabling Inclusive Recruitment Practices

Technology can help organizations support diversity and inclusion efforts by enabling more inclusive recruitment practices and facilitating remote work. This opens up access to a diverse pool of candidates and collaborators, promoting diversity and inclusion. - Jean-Baptiste Coger, Plato

9. Analyzing Existing Policies And Practices

Cultural and structural inertia have been among the top barriers to supporting D&I efforts. One way to address such inertia is to use AI for policy analysis and improvement. Analyze existing policies and practices to identify areas that may hinder diversity and inclusion. AI can suggest improvements or highlight successful practices from other organizations, fostering a more inclusive environment. - Abhishek Kaushik, WeCP (We Create Problems)

10. Screening Job Candidates More Accurately

This may seem counterintuitive, but AI has immense potential to reduce bias. For example, AI can recognize career patterns and pinpoint when a job applicant has an incorrect or misleading job title. It's well-documented that women and people of color receive fewer promotions. AI can instantly level the playing field by allowing recruiters to look at skills, capability and experience rather than a dusty old job title. - Joanna Riley, Censia Talent Intelligence

11. Expanding Distance-Based Care And Engagement

Distance-based engagement has already changed education and healthcare. As wearables for healthcare continue to improve and there is increased adoption of telemedicine, those who may not have had the ability to engage will be on a level playing field with those who do-creating a bridge for diversity, equality, inclusion and accessibility. - Sean Barker, cloudEQ

12. Enabling Organizational Learning And Collaboration

Diverse perspectives foster a dynamic workforce and drive success for an organization. Physical barriers may have previously stifled a company's ability to embrace diverse perspectives, but technology has enabled learning and collaboration in an equitable and inclusive environment. By leveling the playing field, organizations can tap into the entire knowledge base of their organization. - Mike Lefebvre, SEI

13. Facilitating ERGs And Mutual Support Groups

Appropriate internal collaboration platforms, backed by executive support, are crucial for advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in organizations. These platforms facilitate the creation of employee resource groups and diverse communities, promoting idea sharing and mutual support. Such a strategic approach enriches workplace inclusivity, ensuring that diverse voices are valued. - Raj Polanki, Wacker Chemical Corporation

14. Providing Access To Financial Services

Blockchain allows for global participation, enabling diverse groups to collaborate and contribute equally to various projects and initiatives. Moreover, blockchain facilitates more inclusive financial services. This can be particularly beneficial for marginalized groups, ensuring they have equal access to financial services and rights. - Alexei Dulub, PixelPlex

15. Securely Analyzing Sensitive Data To Inform Policies

I see encrypted data analytics as a key tool for enhancing DEI. By securely analyzing sensitive data, organizations can uncover essential insights into DEI initiatives without compromising confidentiality. This approach not only respects privacy, but also drives informed decisions, helping organizations bridge gaps in areas including pay equity and healthcare delivery, ultimately fostering a more equitable society. - Ryan Lasmaili, Vaultree

16. Supporting More Accurate, Targeted Clinical Decisions

In healthcare, advances in natural language processing have made it possible to make more accurate clinical decisions by bridging the gap between structured and unstructured data. This enables healthcare professionals to weigh factors outside of billing codes and medications, taking into consideration social determinants of health that often have a greater impact on marginalized populations. - David Talby, John Snow Labs

17. Democratizing Education

Technology is essential for increasing information availability and educational access. Online platforms provide learning options independent of location or financial status. Accessibility democratizes education, empowering individuals from diverse backgrounds to gain knowledge and expertise, thus opening opportunities and facilitating remote and adaptable work environments. - Dax Grant, Global Transform

18. Simulating Sensory Experiences

Mixed reality technology can enhance diversity and inclusion efforts by simulating the experiences of visually impaired individuals. How can we understand the perspective of a person who is visually impaired? We can do so through an empirical experience of their perspective. Mixed reality can greatly increase empathy for those with physical impairments. - Robert Strzelecki, TenderHut

19. Converting Sign Language Into Spoken Words (And Vice Versa)

Globally, there are 70 million people with hearing impairment who communicate by signing, and people who are deaf face significant employment challenges across the world. AI holds immense promise for this underrepresented and often marginalized community. AI has the ability to translate sign language by converting signs into spoken words and vice versa. This impacts the lives and work of many by creating a more inclusive form of communication for all. - Jeff Wong, EY

20. Promoting Welcoming Online Discourse

Businesses can rely on AI tools to analyze and filter language online-for example, on social media or student communication platforms. The system can detect hateful comments through keywords and delete them, as well as block the user or send a warning. As a result, organizations can promote a welcoming and inclusive environment where every user feels safe. - Yuriy Berdnikov, Perpetio

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Council Post: 20 Ways Technology Can Further Diversity And Inclusion Efforts

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While diversity and inclusion is a person-first endeavor, artificial intelligence and other technology tools can help bridge certain gaps and improve essential efforts.

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The integration of technology in the educational landscape has opened up a world of possibilities for all students, particularly those with special needs. Technology has the power to break down barriers and provide individualized learning experiences, catering to the unique learning styles and abilities of each student. In a classroom that celebrates diversity, it's crucial that teachers understand how to leverage inclusive educational technologies to help learners with special needs thrive academically and socially.

Educational technologies designed or adapted for special needs learners can help address various challenges, ranging from physical impairments to cognitive or developmental differences. For instance, text-to-speech tools can support students with reading difficulties, while assistive keyboards and touchscreens can enable students with mobility impairments to participate more fully in classroom activities. As teachers, it's our responsibility to identify and implement appropriate technological tools that cater to the wide range of needs and abilities present in our classrooms.

However, it's not just about selecting the right technology. It's also about understanding how to use these tools effectively and seamlessly within our instructional practices. Integrating adaptive educational technologies into the classroom requires careful planning, ongoing support, and a commitment to regularly assess their impact on students' learning experiences.

In this article, we will explore various types of inclusive educational technologies and offer practical guidelines for selecting, implementing, and evaluating these tools in your classroom. With the right approach, you can create an inclusive learning environment that empowers students with special needs to reach their full potential and gain the confidence to use technology effectively in their education and daily lives. Embrace the power of inclusive educational technologies to transform the learning experiences for students with special needs and foster a compassionate, supportive classroom community.

Adapting Educational Technologies for Students with Special Needs

Understanding the Spectrum of Inclusive Educational Technologies

Inclusive educational technologies encompass a wide range of tools and services designed or adapted to support students with diverse learning needs. These technologies can be categorized into the following major areas:

1. Assistive technologies: These include specialized hardware and software that directly aid students with specific impairments, such as screen readers, speech-to-text software, and adapted keyboards.

2. Accessible resources: These are digital materials that adhere to accessibility standards, such as textbooks with adjustable text and multimedia content with closed captions.

3. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) tools: These are technology tools that embody the principles of UDL, an educational framework that encourages flexible and adaptable instructional materials to support diverse learning styles.

Selecting Inclusive Educational Technologies

The process of selecting the appropriate educational technologies starts with identifying the specific needs of your students. Consider the following approach when choosing technologies for your classroom:

1. Assess student needs: Conduct observations, consult with special education professionals, and gather data on students' individualized education plans (IEPs) to better understand their unique requirements.

2. Research available technologies: Explore the wide range of technologies available, focusing on those that directly address the specific needs of your students.

3. Evaluate ease of use and compatibility: Ensure that the technologies you select are user-friendly and compatible with the devices and software used in your classroom.

4. Consider cost and sustainability: Evaluate the cost-effectiveness and long-term sustainability of the solutions, taking into account potential updates, maintenance, and training.

Implementing Inclusive Educational Technologies in the Classroom

To effectively integrate inclusive educational technologies into your classroom, consider the following strategies:

1. Develop an implementation plan: Create a structured plan that outlines the steps to integrate and support the chosen technologies, including training, resource allocation, and timeline.

2. Collaborate with various stakeholders: Involve special education professionals, parents, and IT staff in the process, leveraging their expertise to ensure seamless integration and support.

3. Provide tailored instruction: Develop differentiated instructional materials and activities that incorporate the selected technologies, ensuring all students benefit from them.

4. Establish a supportive environment: Foster openness and understanding among students without special needs, encouraging empathy and acceptance within the classroom.

Evaluating the Impact of Inclusive Educational Technologies

Ongoing evaluation of the effectiveness of inclusive educational technologies is essential to ensure their positive impact on students' learning experiences. Consider the following methods to assess their impact:

1. Monitor student progress: Regularly track students' performance using both formative and summative assessments, noting any changes or improvements in relation to the implemented technologies.

2. Gather feedback from stakeholders: Seek input from students, parents, and colleagues about their experiences with the technologies, identifying any areas for improvement or additional support.

3. Observe classroom interactions: Evaluate how effectively the technologies are integrated into classroom activities and observe their impact on student engagement and participation.

4. Reflect on your practice: Continuously evaluate your own instructional practices and consider ways to refine your approach and better incorporate inclusive technologies.

Cultivating a Community of Empathy and Inclusivity

Creating an inclusive learning environment is about more than just providing the right technology. It's about fostering a culture of empathy, respect, and understanding within your classroom. Consider these strategies to cultivate a warm and inclusive atmosphere:

1. Model empathetic attitudes: Demonstrate your commitment to inclusivity through your words, actions, and attitudes, setting a positive example for your students.

2. Teach empathy explicitly: Incorporate lessons and discussions on empathy, celebrating diversity, and supporting one another as a learning community.

3. Promote a sense of belonging: Encourage students to build strong connections with their peers, regardless of their abilities or needs, and work collaboratively in an inclusive environment.

Expanding Opportunities for Students with Special Needs through Inclusive Technologies

The potential of inclusive educational technologies cannot be overstated when it comes to supporting students with special needs in the classroom. By identifying, selecting, and implementing the right technologies for your students, you can help break down barriers and create a learning environment that caters to their unique abilities and requirements.

To truly make a difference, educators must be willing to educate themselves about the diverse needs of their students, actively seeking out the best solutions and practices to create an inclusive setting for all learners. With dedication, empathy, and forward-thinking strategies, we can empower students with special needs to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally, gaining confidence in using technology to support their journey towards success in their education and daily lives.

Looking for ways to support students with special needs in your online classroom? Check out our website for helpful online teaching tips and strategies for incorporating inclusive educational technologies. With these resources, you can create a more accessible and engaging learning environment for all of your students. Start exploring today and see the positive impact on your students' learning experiences.

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Educational Technologies to Support Students Special Needs

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Discover the potential of adaptive educational technologies in supporting students with special needs in the classroom.

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Technology has been woven into nearly all aspects of education, and social-emotional learning is no exception.

Though the root of SEL lies in human interaction, and in encouraging students to have healthy relationships with themselves and their communities, technology is playing a bigger role in facilitating those skills and competencies.

EdWeek Market Brief conducted a survey last fall about the technology and technology strategies district and school leaders believe have significant value in improving students' capacity to engage in meaningful SEL.

The online, nationally representative survey was asked of 120 district leaders and 158 school leaders.

The survey suggests that district and school leaders see technology as having the potential to build student and educator understanding around complex issues, in unexpected ways.

Tech as a Tool for Delivering DEI

Asked what kinds of tech and tech approaches they believe would have great value in improving students' capacity to engage in meaningful SEL, the largest percentage of respondents, 49 percent, point to tools that can enrich students' and teachers' understanding of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The survey was conducted at a moment when school district policies supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion have come under attack by political leaders in some states and communities.

Over the past two years, 18 states have approved laws or policies that restrict lessons on racism or gender in classrooms. And 44 overall pieces of legislation, overwhelmingly backed by Republican officials, have been introduced with that aim. In some communities, and in at least one state - Florida - public officials have also sought to restrict lessons on SEL, saying those resources are divisive.

Melissa Schlinger, vice president of the SEL nonprofit, the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning, said more districts are seeing SEL as an important foundational effort in supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion.

CASEL is a policy and research organization that focuses on evidence-based SEL to support students' learning and development.

Despite the recent wave of state and local resistance to DEI measures, many district officials have become determined to make sure academic resources address the diverse needs of their students and communities, particularly as the populations of their school systems have changed over time. (Fifty-four percent of public school students today are racial-ethnic minorities, up from 46 percent roughly a decade ago, according to federal data.)

Districts' interests in making sure the communities they serve are represented ramped up significantly after the murder of George Floyd three years ago, Schlinger said. To the extent that technology can help administrators and teachers have those conversations, it will have value to school systems.

"When kids feel included and safe and known and cared for, they do better in school and tend to have less stress and behave better," Schlinger said. "Districts want to provide experiences for kids where they can academically succeed, and providing that inclusive environment is key to that."

Teachers, in particular, need support in developing strategies for working with diverse student populations. Previous EdWeek Market Brief research has found that district and school leaders believe classroom educators' lack of comfort in talking about DEI issues is a major barrier to delivering that content.

Value in Anonymity

The second- and third-largest responses, when district and school leaders were asked how tech could contribute to meaningful SEL, have more to do with the technology's specific functions.

Forty-two percent of those surveyed say it's important that SEL platforms allow for anonymity for students. And 40 percent point to SEL tools promoting cooperation between schools and families.

The prioritization of these two types of technologies possibly stems from needs that arose during the pandemic, those who specialize in SEL say.

Virtual classrooms, which became the norm during COVID-era remote learning, created new opportunities for students to reach out to teachers for help, without the pressure of having a spotlight on them, Schlinger said. The survey suggests district and school leaders still regard the ability for students to interact anonymously through tech platforms as important.

"We've seen that technology can be a really important opportunity for kids to communicate directly with teachers in a safe environment that maybe sometimes feels more safe than coming up to the front of the classroom to ask for help," she said.

The other survey finding, pertaining to cooperation between schools and families, could also reflect another offshoot from the pandemic - how remote learning brought classrooms into homes. That shift provided new ways for families and caregivers to get involved in their children's learning. Conversations became increasingly focused on how students are supported outside of the classroom.

Over time, there's been a growing emphasis on tech platforms being built to include a whole system of supports that come from not only teachers, but also from families and other participants in the social-emotional growth of a child, said Heidi Johnecheck, chief impact officer of SEL company Ripple Effects.

As a provider of digital programs that promote social-emotional skill-building, Ripple Effects has seen, across the districts and education leaders they work with, that there's a renewed focus on developing the whole child.

"Students have social-emotional needs 24/7, not just in the classroom, in the moment," Johnecheck said. "How are we then using the technology to connect with families [and] after-school programs, or mental health and behavioral health providers?

Tools for English-Language Learners

Another data point in the survey shows that some district and school officials see tech tools that facilitate lessons for English-language learners as especially valuable in promoting SEL.

Forty-one percent of those from districts with relatively low amounts of poverty - where less than half of students are on free or reduced-price lunches - see ELL-focused tech tools as highly valuable in encouraging meaningful SEL.

Just 21 percent of respondents from higher-poverty stems saw the same value in those tech tools.

Lower-income districts may have more pressing needs when it comes to where to allocate their resources, and that could explain the survey results, although more questions need to be answered, Johnecheck said.

"If I was making a choice based on my resources - let's say paying for lunch or for reading and math remediation, or individualized needs in tutoring - you start listening to those higher needs," she said. "You may not have the dollars as compared to a district that may have some of those taken care of and is able to start thinking about some of these other areas."

The discrepancy in ELL prioritization could also be a difference in where respondents are from, and how much language content is focused on in that state, she said.

"What we know is when people feel connected and safe in their learning environment and have a familiarity with language, they do better ... and that certainly goes across socio-economic status," said John Ray-Keil, CEO of Ripple Effects.

Digital Role-Playing

Another tool survey respondents believe would contribute to improving students' SEL: technologies that allow digital role-playing for students to work through hypothetical situations. Thirty-eight percent of respondents said they see value in that.

Glenn Albright is co-founder and director of research at Kognito, and his organization wants to use those sorts of tools to benefit students. Kognito is a platform that creates role-play simulations, in which students, educators, staff, and family members can practice difficult conversations using evidence-based communication strategies.

Users are placed in a virtual environment, in which they role play with virtual humans who are programmed with memory, emotions, and personality so that they react like a real person. Feedback is also provided from a virtual coach so users can gain the skill and confidence to navigate these conversations in real life.

"When you're teaching individuals through these simulations, they begin to report that they themselves are becoming more aware of their emotions and their thoughts," Albright said. "We're providing them a sense of how they can be able to understand and better maintain and develop healthy, supportive relationships."

The survey also finds that some forms of tech and tech strategies rank lower as strategies to increase engagement with meaningful SEL.

The lower-ranking options include immersive technology, such as augmented and virtual reality; micro-credentials or digital badges demonstrating student progress in SEL; and tools allowing digital role-playing for district and school administrators to work through hypothetical scenarios.

Takeaway: District and school leaders see value in leveraging technology to bolster SEL - with almost half seeing tech as helpful in enriching students' and teachers' understanding of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Many districts are struggling in trying to find strategies that support diverse perspectives in classrooms and communities. The challenge has only risen, as state and local officials in some communities have sought to restrict discussions of race and gender in classrooms. But the survey finds that technology may provide one avenue forward.

Vendors looking to incorporate SEL into new or existing products must keep in mind that while districts and SEL leaders are likely to believe that authentic connection can never be fully replaced by technology, digital tools can play a role in enhancing efforts to promote students' well-being.

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Technology Seen as a Bridge to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

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An EdWeek Market Brief survey finds that education leaders think technology plays an important role in helping address issues of diversity.

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Using Technology to Support Collaborative Learning

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The 9 Best Teach Tools For Collaboration

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Best Student-Collaboration Tools | Common Sense Education

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Best Student-Collaboration Tools is a list of 32 apps, games, and websites curated by Common Sense Education editors.

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Promoting Student Creativity with Technology

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Updated for 2020: Since this post was first written, the education landscape has changed greatly! We've updated it to include five more tech tools teachers can use to inspire creativity in the for virtual learning.
Virtual Learning Tools

The shift to remote learning had many teachers scrambling to find effective ways to share lessons, deliver instruction, and allow students to collaborate. Here are some of our favorite tools to get online/hybrid classes running effectively:

Ozobot 1:1 Program | Evo Student Packs

With the shift to remote learning, we knew we needed to work with districts, teachers, and our extended community to understand education's new challenges. The result is our 1:1 Robotics Program, designed for teaching core subjects anywhere without sacrificing STEAM. Each student receives a Student Pack-a care package from you to them-to make core subjects more hands-on and collaborative with their robot study buddy using our 2 Ways to Code. Plus, we made Ozobot Classroom remote-friendly, including a seamless Google Classroom integration and Learn Anywhere Lessons that can be used virtually or back in the classroom.

More good news: Ozobot qualifies for federal and state initiatives (CARES Act, 21st Century Schools etc), making 1:1 possible for educators nationwide. Sign up for a personal demo to learn more and see how we can be part of your K-12 solution to keep students engaged in class or at home.

Buncee

Buncee understands how much more kids learn if they're engaged, so their platform makes it easy to engage students from anywhere. Teachers have the flexibility to create activities that their class will enjoy with over 1000 templates, and students earn badges as they complete their work. Buncee also makes it easy for students to collaborate with sharing and discussion functionality.

Bakpax

Bakpax is an AI tool that autogrades student work, giving them (and the teacher) instant feedback on assignments! As teachers know, hand grading student work can take hours, so Bakpax allows teachers to save time with the more administrative aspects of teaching, so they can focus more on creative lessons/activities and individualizing student instruction.

Bakpax wants to support educators during the transition to remote learning, so teachers can currently access Bakpax for free!

Pear Deck

Pear Deck allows teachers to make lessons interactive so every student can actively participate, whether instruction is synchronous or asynchronous. It utilizes formative assessment, active learning, retrieval practice, and more to close the achievement gap, even for students who are learning from afar. Bonus: PearDeck has the stamp of approval from many Ozobot Certified Educators.

SeeSaw

Rather than limit students to one method for demonstrating their knowledge, SeeSaw allows students to show what they know with tools like draw+record, collage, video, and more. Educators report that SeeSaw is intuitive for students to use, so minimal support is required to use this tool!

For more tips on creating successful virtual learning environment, check out our Ozobot Certified Educator-hosted webinar!
Original post by Amanda Dodge:
Students who grow up with a love of learning are more likely to stay engaged in STEAM subjects and other lessons as they grow older. They won't take what they learn at face value, and will instead seek out ways to expand their knowledge and ask questions about what they learn.

Teachers are always looking for ways to pique student interest, from engaging experiments to unique learning methods. If you want to add fresh elements to your classroom and encourage your students to be creative, check out these tools. They might offer the tech solutions you need to wow your students during the learning process.

Evo Classroom Kit

We may be a little biased, but our personal favorite tool is the Evo Classroom Kit. This kit is made for students grades 4 through 8 and includes 12 Evos, accessories, and a driver's ed activity that allows students to program Evo's proximity sensors and other features. Plus, students and educators can explore over 100 STEAM lessons in the Lesson Library. Lessons cover a wide range of subjects along with Ozobot's two ways to code-online with OzoBlockly and screen-free with Color Codes. Teachers across the country have shared how they use their Classroom Kits to encourage creativity while teaching coding concepts. We pride ourselves on fostering a creative experience that motivates students to keep learning.

Nearpod

Nearpod specializes in multimedia displays to make discussions more engaging. One of their top tools for teachers is Nearpod VR, an affordable virtual reality headset that lets teachers explore different concepts in 3D. There are more than 450 VR tutorials, broken down by subject and grade level. Take your students to explore volcanoes or for a historic look at the Taj Mahal. This technology inspires curiosity about the world and student engagement in lessons.

Learn Around The World

The goal of Learn Around the World is to use technology to connect students and educators globally. They have events and collaborative projects where students can work with people in different countries, and virtual field trips for exploring foreign lands. LATW also has guest speakers and private events that teachers can take advantage of. Imagine speaking with someone who lives in Buenos Aires while learning about Argentina. Your students can ask questions and use their curiosity to spur discussion.

Buncee

Never sit through boring Powerpoint presentations again with Buncee, a multimedia display tool that allows students to easily create displays and narrate them through microphone recordings. There are more than 8,000 graphics to choose from and students can upload their own media as well. They can either create a presentation based on their own findings or use Buncee's tools to add graphics to their ideas. This is also a useful tool for students who might be too young for Powerpoint tutorials.

Glogster

Glogster is one of the fastest-growing multimedia management tools for teachers and students. Your students can easily create posts and other graphic designs to enhance their learning experience. This site also allows teachers to find awesome content. There are more than 40,000 Glogs shared online across 80 topics and nine disciplines. With over 1.9 million teacher accounts and 17 million student accounts, Glogster is a favorite worldwide.

FlipGrid

Do you wish classroom discussion could continue after the bell rings? Do you wish you could encourage quiet students to speak their minds without feeling intimidated? With FlipGrid, teachers create discussion topics and students can respond with video recordings. Their peers can respond to keep the discussion going. This tool helps students formulate their ideas in a pre-recorded setting, which means no one gets talked over or ignored by louder voices.

TodaysMeet

TodaysMeet provides a backchannel of discussion for your classroom. Teachers monitor chat discussions during the lessons and can respond to or highlight questions asked by students as they go. Instead of stopping the class or losing your train of thought to answer questions, teachers can set aside time for questions and discussion at various points throughout. Plus, quiet students can ask questions and voice their opinions without having to worry about speaking up or waiting until the end.

Microduino

Microduino offers small electronic building blocks that kids can creatively assemble to find solutions to problems or explore ideas. These blocks can be stacked on LEGO bricks, expanding your resources as far as your imagination will go. This product also has open-source code compatible with Scratch and other programs you might already use.

TinyTap

TinyTap is home to more than 100,000 learning activities for students and teachers to use. You can search for games for your kids to play to better help them understand concepts, or ask them to create games of their own. TinyTap Market encourages students to learn by teaching, and provides the tools to help people develop their own games. Creators can even sell their games to gain recognition for their work.

Because Learning

This tool is ideal for teachers who want to bring STEAM learning to the classroom but worry about their lack of programming background. You don't have to be a professional web developer to engage your students. Because Learning is designed for educators and offers STEAM kits based on national learning standards. You and your students can start creating in just a few steps.

SiLAS Solutions

More instructors are increasingly concerned with social skills and encouraging their students to work together. SiLAS Solutions is a tool that can help. Through video game technology and 3D development, students use characters and create conversations with their own voice recordings. They can make videos talking through problems and expressing their emotions. Grading is easy, with teachers able to assess students and provide feedback through the system.

Labster

Do you wish you had access to a University-calibre laboratory? Consider testing simulations with Labster. Students can run a variety of simulations on topics ranging from diabetes to herpetology. The software runs mathematical algorithms based on the criteria so students get a full lab experience. Teachers can grade participation in different parts of the simulation as they would with a full-fledged science lab.

PhET Sims

Another simulation software that younger students can use is PhET simulations. Teachers can filter simulations by grade level and topic and use them to explore different ideas in the classroom. The goal of this organization is to increase STEAM literacy worldwide and create engaging interactive content that encourages students to ask questions and explore topics beyond what the common core demands.

ZeeMaps

ZeeMaps is a tool that students and teachers can use to create their own graphics. You can create maps on a local, state, national, and even global level. Students can choose different map types and assign colors and labels as needed. This is perfect for creating visual aids for projects, mapping out complex concepts (like battles in a war or evolving country borders), and letting students learn in an interactive manner.

Tiki-Toki

Just as ZeeMaps is useful for mapping out various concepts and ideas, Tiki-Toki is great for developing timelines. Students can customize events and choose different formats to explore their ideas. They can provide as much information as they need to fully explain a topic. This tool is ideal for both classroom-led activities and solo work.

Popplet

Popplet is a mind-mapping and brainstorming tool for students. You can use this tool to guide assignments, encouraging students to create mind maps for their projects, or create a classroom-guided brainstorm to explore new ideas. This tool is also used in group projects to help students creatively come up with solutions to problems. It teaches the concept of brainstorming and has a useful option to save your ideas for later.

Venngage

You don't need to be an expert graphic designer to create engaging infographics for your classroom. Even better, your students can create graphics for you! Venngage offers free infographic tools to help students visualize their data and clearly present ideas. The infographics can be shared and saved online, so they can be used by students in real time and future students can also benefit.

Sutori

Sutori lets anyone build a multimedia-rich story that looks like a timeline, though the focus is on arranging information into an engaging, interactive format for storytelling. It's a useful format, too, because it's a more intuitive way to illustrate the relationships between concepts than, say, a slidedeck. The applications are many, as well: Teachers can use pre-made stories in their lesson plans (there are nearly 800,000 users, so stories are plenty), or they can create their own stories in a snap to use as teaching tools or study aids. What's more, stories can even be assigned as projects or homework, which could be a welcome alternative to an essay assignment.

Lifeliqe

With more than 1,100 3D models and 700 lesson plans, Lifeliqe provides an interactive way to meet Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards. This tool has data behind its name: 86 percent of students who used their 3D models to learn improved their science scores. The company attributes their success to the idea that 65 percent of the population is made of visual learners. By connecting with kids in the way they learn best, they're more likely to enjoy the material.

Storybird

STEAM educators who are looking to add reading and writing elements to their curriculum can try Storybird. This company curates millions of images from illustrators across the world and encourages students and teachers to use them to tell stories. Consider assigning an image to each student and asking them to write about it, or ask them to create a book using the lessons they learned in science or math class. It's a great way to get creative with online tools.

KidBlog

If you're trying to get your students to blog more and reflect on what they learned, consider using Kidblog. Nothing goes live until the teacher approves it, so you have final say in what is published. KidBlog creates a safe space for students to publish content without exposing them to the trolls of the Internet. It's available for K-12 students and you can tailor your lessons based on the age group. You can also track engagement statistics each year to see if your students are reading each other's work.

LiveBinders

The goal of LiveBinders is to help educators and their students go paperless with digital binders. Users can save articles and videos, take notes, and post other forms of content in one place. They can also share binders with each other and collaborate to create something useful. With this tool, you never have to limit yourself to just one textbook or resource. You can keep all of your resources in one place for years to come, always adding when you find something new.

Padlet

Padlet is another collaboration tool that teachers can use. Students can submit a variety of supplemental material to make the learning process easier and can comment and interact with it as needed. Teachers can monitor all interactions that students have with the content and track engagement analytics. This tool can be used for any subject or grade level.

Celestia

This tool is definitely more space-focused instead of the other one-size-fits-all solutions on this list. However, it's rare to find such a dynamic resource for exploring outer space. Not only is there a wide variety of content on Celestia, but students and educators can customize the content or add their own based on their needs. If there's something you can't find, create it.

Project Noah

Launched in 2010, Project Noah was created to encourage citizen scientists to document the world around them. People can photograph organisms and share them online, helping scientists document the location and rarity of various species. Teachers can make this part of the classroom experience by turning students into citizen scientists sharing their discoveries.

Science360 Video Library

One of the biggest challenges that teachers face is modernizing the classroom and making students care about what they're learning. Part of the National Science Foundation, the Science360 Video Library shares the latest videos related to science, technology, and engineering. Whether you're introducing students to outer space discoveries or explaining undersea exploration, you can update those lessons with this video collection.

Teachers TryScience

If you're uncertain where to start with science and STEAM lessons, check out Teachers TryScience. Teachers can find lesson plans and follow different strategies and tutorials to make their content more engaging. It can be intimidating giving students the keys to explore a particular topic, but this site makes it easier.

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27 Tech Tools Teachers Can Use to Inspire Classroom Creativity | Ozobot

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Discover our favorite user-friendly tech tools for inspiring creativity for students learning in virtual or in-person classrooms!

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Classroom Management for Online Teaching

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What comes to mind when you hear 'classroom management'?

Experienced teachers know that effectively managing a classroom is the essential prerequisite for successful instruction, collaboration, and assessment. A teacher can have the most engaging and well thought-out lesson plans at the start of a class, but if the teacher is lacking in one or more areas of classroom management, the lesson may fall apart.

The challenge for many teachers is that reactionary classroom management threatens to disrupt learning and take up class time. Having the right structural supports in place for learning management, time and task management, student engagement and formative assessment, behavior management, and communication with parents and students makes it easier for teacher to effectively manage their classroom while focusing primarily on instruction and feedback. Responsive classroom management anticipates students' needs and potential challenges in the learning environment, and embeds structural supports throughout the lesson to keep students engaged, on-task, and aware of how their actions impact others.

Below, we've compiled 40 of the best classroom management apps and tools, recommended by experienced teachers. From digital assistance queues and peer grading to providing positive reinforcement and game-based formative assessments, we're confident that readers will take away at least a handful of resources that can make teaching in their classrooms all the more simple. If we've left some awesome classroom management apps out of this list, let us know what we're missing!

The 40 Best Classroom Management Apps & Tools

Learning Management Apps & Tools

Manage a standards-based gradebook, utilize rubrics, maintain your calendar, communicate with parents and students, track attendance, plan lessons, and more.

Both a learning management system and curriculum library, Canvas makes it easy for teachers to organize online, hybrid, and in-person learning.

Teachers can create assignments, distribute them to students, and give real-time feedback and grading through Classkick's tools. Additionally, teachers can view how students are progressing on any assignment.

Make learning visible with photos, videos, and other media by assisting students in curating their own digital portfolios.

One of the most popular LMS out there, Google Classroom is adored for how well it integrates with other useful apps. Post content, give feedback on assessments, and organize student groups in this all-in-one location for teaching and learning.

Teachers can build gamified courses that motivate students to pay attention to their own learning. Activities utilize concepts to increase student autonomy and give them freedom to take risks without the fear of their grade plummeting.

Create your own online courses and assignments and keep track of students' progress using Moodle, one of the most popular LMS used in schools today.

The Schoology LMS comes equipped with more than 200 integrated tools and education platforms (like Google Drive, nearpod, Khan Academy, and Brain POP). Teachers can manage classes, design and distribute assignments, foster interactive discussions, perform assessments, and more.

With Seesaw, students use embedded multimodal tools to capture their learning in a digital portfolio - teachers can observe all aspects of student thinking and progress to better differentiate instruction.

Showbie helps teachers deliver feedback, and this tool has it all: a gradebook, parent sharing, collaboration, assignments, portfolios, voice notes, discussions, and annotation tools.

Time & Task Management Apps & Tools

No seconds, minutes or hours...just an hourglass that allows students to visualize time flow and make decisions regarding task management.

In a class with one teacher and 25+ students, it can be hard to keep track of who needs help. Students may also get frustrated and impatient when they wait for help that may never come. With ClassroomQ, students can join a queue for assistance, and the teacher can go to students in the order in which they ask for help.

This Google Chrome extension visualizes information about student work in Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Drawings assigned through Google Classroom, along with assignment deadlines from a course calendar, allowing teachers to get a view of student effort.

LanSchool classroom management software allows teachers to monitor student devices to keep them safe, shift focus to them by blanking screens and locking devices, view individual student monitors, and limit or disable access to specific websites during tests, quizzes, or other times.

This app rewards students for staying off of their phone during class with deals from local and online retailers. Teachers can also create privileges like extra credit points, dropping a lowest assignment score, tardy passes, and snacks passes.

Time Timer's red disk disappears as the seconds go by. It's easy to set a timer and start a visual countdown for classroom activities and transitions.

Student Engagement & Formative Assessment Apps & Tools

Teachers can map conversations of up to 40 participants with this tool that tracks types of contributions by groups or individuals.

This beloved formative assessment tool makes learning fun by offering timed quizzes set to upbeat music, and showing a leaderboard after each question round.

Enhance instructional content with interactive games, assessments, and lessons. Users can also discover ready-made graphic organizers and manipulatives.

Teachers can make any slides-based lessons interactive, add formative assessments and videos, and deepen engagement and understanding through gamification.

Start by browsing a library of thousands of conversation topics, host an online roundtable, encourage dialogue, and highlight exemplary responses with Parlay.

Students can participate meaningfully in peer feedback with this app, which allows teachers to require certain questions, randomly distribute anonymous writing to other students, and stipulate the length of feedback responses.

Plickers is a free, quick-response class polling app that scans and records student responses.

With Socrative, teachers can engage students with activity choices like quizzes, space races, exit tickets, multiple choice questions, true/false questions, or short answers. It's also easy for educators to deliver quick feedback during assessment.

Teachers can select a student at random with just a tap! Additionally, the app can suggest question stems for learners at different levels and record how students respond during discussions. Questions can be based on Bloom's Taxonomy, ELL skills, or degree of difficulty.

Behavior Management Apps & Tools

Bloomz allows teachers to share class updates, manage events, schedule conferences with parents, sign up volunteers, and talk with families (all without sharing their personal cell phone number).

With Class Charts, educators can create instant seating plans for differentiation or classroom management, view behavior analytics, and motivate students with behavior points.

Aligned with SEL, PBIS, MTSS and behavioral RTI initiatives, Classcraft allows teachers to reward students for doing the right thing, demonstrating growth mindset, staying on task, helping others, and more. Essentially, it helps motivate students to be invested in their own learning, as well as their classmates' learning.

Over 95% of U.S. schools use this app to engage students and connect with families. Teachers encourage students to demonstrate specific skills or values, students can create digital portfolios, and parents can visualize their children's learning.

Teachers can track standards-based practice on Marzano scales, record positive and negative behaviors (along with consequences), track student accommodations, and manage hall passes.

Class123 houses a timer, seating charts, random student selectors, a chalk board, and mechanisms for keeping records and giving positive motivation to students.

Educators can track and reinforce behaviors like teamwork, perseverance, disruption, and off-task in this mobile app - the family portal allows parents to get a detailed picture of their child's daily activity.

Create and print automatic or differentiated seating charts in minutes.
The Great Behavior Game
Designed for students in grades K-5, the Great Behavior Game allows students to earn points for appropriate behavior, assigns time-outs, and freezes a student's points while they are exhibiting undesirable or disruptive behavior.

This app displays a noise meter on a digital whiteboard to help students realize when they need to change volume levels.

Student & Parent Communication Apps & Tools

Educators can send messages, share class materials, and facilitate discussions with Edmodo, an app that also shares class updates with families.

Need to make a call to a student's family member outside of school hours, but don't want to share your personal cell phone number? Google Voice assigns you a special 9-digit phone number that you can use to make contact with families when it is most convenient for them and you.

Otus calls itself the best platform for standards-based grading, common assessments, and progress monitoring. It also organizes data so teachers can get a holistic picture of each student's growth journey.

Teachers can manually add students, or students can sign up to join a class remind account. Here, teachers can send all-class or individual student messages to remind them for upcoming tests, quizzes, field trips, and important class/school events.

Document student behavior, identify behavior trends, and communicate with parents - this is a great tool to keep records and anecdotes of the spectrum of student behavior.

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The 40 Best Classroom Management Apps & Tools

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What comes to mind when you hear 'classroom management'? Experienced teachers know that effectively managing a classroom is the essential prerequisite for successful instruction, collaboration, and assessment. A teacher can have the most engaging and well thought-out lesson plans at the start of a class, but if the teacher is lacking in one or more areas of classroom management, the lesson may fall apart.

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In the ever-evolving landscape of education, classroom management tools have become indispensable for teachers looking to streamline tasks, boost student engagement, and foster a collaborative learning environment.

But with a sea of options out there, which tools should you invest in? Worry not, we've got you covered! Below is a comprehensive table detailing the 19 best tools on the market, each with unique features designed to meet specific classroom needs.

Don't miss out on actionable tips and recommendations to enhance your teaching. Keep reading!

Behavior Management Tools

Behavior management tools are more than just "discipline apps." These platforms help in establishing a positive classroom environment where both teachers and students can thrive.

In a world where a structured classroom leads to better student outcomes, having the right tools for behavior management in the classroom is a game-changer.

ClassPoint

Far from being a standard slide-maker, ClassPoint acts as a gamified teaching and presentation dynamo, turning your PowerPoint presentations into engaging, interactive adventures.

Key Features

Award Stars: Recognize student achievements and efforts with star awards.

Levels & Badges: Incentivize progress and mastery with various levels and badges that students can earn.

Leaderboard: Foster a bit of friendly competition by showcasing top performers.

My Class: Manage your student list effortlessly all in one place.

Name Picker: Call out names for tasks and run quick attendance checks.

Feedback and Analytics: Glean insights from student data to optimize future lessons.

Pros

Gamified Learning Experience: The award system, levels, and leaderboard make learning more interactive and fun.

Instant Feedback: Real-time data collection allows for immediate intervention or strategic planning.

One Platform, Multiple Features: Avoid the hassle of toggling between apps; ClassPoint brings everything into your PowerPoint.

User-friendly Design: Its intuitive interface ensures that educators can quickly get on board and maximize its potential.

Cons

PowerPoint Dependency: The tool is specifically designed for PowerPoint, which could be limiting for those not using this platform.

Classcraft

Classcraft transforms your classroom into a role-playing game, making behavior management an adventure.

Key Features

Pros

Engaging for students, encourages participation

Customizable to fit individual classroom needs

Cons

Setup can be time-consuming

Requires consistent engagement for effectiveness

Who is it for? Suitable for teachers of grades 3-12 wanting to gamify classroom management.

Bloomz

Bloomz is your all-in-one communication and behavior management solution designed to improve parent-teacher-student relationships.

Key Features

Pros

Streamlines communication with parents

Integrated rewards system motivates students

Cons

Multiple features may feel overwhelming at first

Free version has limited functionalities

Who is it for? Perfect for K-8 teachers aiming for an all-in-one communication and behavior management tool.

Learning Management Systems (LMS)

Learning Management Systems, often abbreviated as LMS, are the backbone of digital education. These platforms serve as a centralized hub for all learning activities, from curriculum planning to real-time assessments.

Moodle

Moodle is an open-source Learning Management System that's well-regarded for its flexibility and user-friendly interface.

Key Features

Pros

Highly customizable

Extensive range of plugins

Cons

Initial learning curve

Requires some tech-savviness for best use

Who is it for? Suitable for educators at all levels who desire a flexible, customizable LMS.

Blackboard

Blackboard is another high-performing LMS known for its scalable solutions, particularly suitable for larger educational institutions.

Key Features

Pros

Seamless integration with other systems

Strong focus on analytics

Cons

Can be pricey for small institutions

Interface may feel a bit outdated

Who is it for? Best for higher-ed and large K-12 institutions needing robust and scalable solutions.

Classroom Response Systems

Classroom response systems are the secret sauce to adding a dash of interactivity and real-time assessment in your teaching recipe. These platforms allow you to gauge student understanding instantly, making lectures more engaging and informative.

Kahoot!

Kahoot! is a game-based learning platform used as educational technology in classrooms and other learning environments.

Key Features

Pros

Highly engaging for students

Easy to set up and use

Cons

Limited question types

Can require stable internet connectivity

Who is it for? Ideal for K-12 teachers aiming to make learning interactive and fun.

Socrative

Socrative is another classroom response system that offers more traditional quiz formats with a real-time response mechanism.

Key Features

Pros

Versatile question formats

Allows for pre-made quizzes

Cons

Less gamified, might be less engaging

Some features locked behind a paywall

Who is it for? Great for higher education and advanced high school courses needing versatile assessment tools.

Digital Whiteboards

Gone are the days of chalk and erasers. Digital whiteboards have revolutionized the way teachers present information, collaborate, and interact with students. These tech-savvy boards allow for dynamic lessons that engage students in a way traditional boards can't. Let's dive into some must-know tools in this space.

OnePanel

OnePanel is an emerging contender in the digital whiteboard space, designed to transform traditional classrooms into interactive learning environments.

Key Features

Pros

User-friendly interface

Flexible sharing options

Cons

May require compatible hardware

Limited pre-made educational resources

Ready for an interactive upgrade?Give OnePanel a spin in your next lesson.

Jamboard

Brought to you by Google, Jamboard is a cloud-based digital whiteboard designed for collaboration in the Google app ecosystem.

Key Features

Pros

Seamless integration with Google Workspace

Easily accessible from multiple devices

Cons

Limited built-in templates

Fewer educational resources compared to competitors

Who is it for? Great for educators already invested in the Google Workspace ecosystem, from K-12 to higher education.

Classroom Communication Tools

Effective communication is more than a skill; it's a necessity for any educational setting. Classroom communication tools are designed to bridge the gap between teachers, students, and even parents, making the flow of information as seamless as possible.

Remind

Remind is a communication platform specifically for education, offering secure messaging and announcements.

Key Features

Pros

Easy to use with a straightforward interface

Free version available with core features

Great for holding retrospective meetings

Cons

Limited analytics for engagement tracking

File size limits for document sharing

Who is it for? Ideal for K-12 teachers who prioritize secure and straightforward communication.

ClassDojo

ClassDojo is not just a communication tool; it's a full-fledged classroom management platform with a strong focus on communication.

Key Features

Pros

Excellent for parent-teacher engagement

Multi-language support for diverse classrooms

Cons

The plethora of features can be overwhelming

Some advanced features require a subscription

Who is it for? Best for K-12 teachers looking for extensive communication and classroom management features.

Assignment and Grading Tools

Assignment and grading tools are the unsung heroes of classroom management, effortlessly transforming the cumbersome process of evaluating students into a walk in the park.

Turnitin

Turnitin is a cloud-based service that checks for plagiarism and offers a grading tool for instructors.

Key Features

Pros

Robust plagiarism checker

Streamlines the grading process

Cons

Can be expensive

False positives in plagiarism detection

Who is it for? Perfect for high school and college teachers focused on academic integrity.

Gradescope

Gradescope allows educators to grade paper-based exams, quizzes, and homework, using an online interface.

Key Features

Pros

Time-saving auto-grading

Detailed analytics for improved teaching

Cons

Learning curve for setting up

Limited to paper-based assessments

Who is it for? Ideal for STEM educators at all levels, particularly those dealing with complex assignments.

Collaboration and Productivity Tools

When it comes to modern education, collaboration and productivity tools are nothing short of game-changers. They're designed to help teachers and students manage tasks, collaborate in real-time, and ultimately, make the learning process more efficient and engaging.

Microsoft Teams for Education

Microsoft Teams is a digital hub that brings conversations, content, and assignments together in one platform.

Key Features

Pros

Robust security features

Extensive range of integrations

Cons

May have a learning curve for some

Requires Office 365 subscription for full benefits

Who is it for? Ideal for K-12 to higher-ed, especially those already using the Microsoft ecosystem.

Slack

Slack offers a chat-based collaboration platform that's more casual than email but still allows for structured conversations.

Key Features

Pros

User-friendly interface

Real-time communication

Cons

Limited free version

Not designed specifically for educational use

Who is it for? Best suited for higher education and project-based learning environments.

Asana

Asana is a project management tool that helps educators and students keep track of assignments and deadlines.

Key Features

Pros

Visually intuitive

Highly customizable

Cons

Can be overwhelming for first-time users

Free version has limited capabilities

Who is it for? Excellent for high school and higher-ed where project management skills are part of the curriculum.

Classroom Organization Tools

When it comes to classroom organization, keeping track of assignments, deadlines, and resources can be overwhelming. That's where classroom organization tools come into play.

These digital solutions are designed to streamline various aspects of classroom management, making life easier for teachers and students alike.

Google Classroom

Google Classroom is a free organization tool that integrates seamlessly with Google Workspace, designed to create, distribute, and grade assignments.

Key Features

Pros

Free to use

Seamless Google Workspace integration

Cons

Limited customization options

Fewer features compared to specialized tools

Who is it for? Perfect for K-12 and higher-ed teachers who are already using Google Workspace and seek a simple, integrated classroom management solution.

Edmodo

Edmodo is a comprehensive classroom organization platform that aims to connect teachers, students, and parents.

Key Features

Pros

Robust feature set

Parent-teacher-student communication

Cons

Steeper learning curve

Some features locked behind a paywall

Who is it for? Ideal for middle school and high school teachers looking for an all-encompassing tool that includes parent communication.

Trello

Trello uses a card-based system to help organize projects, assignments, and more in a visually engaging manner.

Key Features

Pros

Highly visual and intuitive

Extremely customizable

Cons

Limited native educational features

Can become cluttered with complex projects

Who is it for? Excellent for project-based learning and collaborative activities, suited for high school and higher education settings.

Best Practices for Using Classroom Management Tools

If you're venturing into the world of digital classroom management tools, you're making a step in the right direction. However, having the tool alone isn't a magic bullet; you need to know how to wield it effectively. So, here's your quick guide to best practices for using classroom management tools.

Start with Training and Onboarding

Before diving in, invest time in training. Some platforms offer excellent tutorial videos and documentation to get you started.

Key Tip: Don't skip the tutorial or user guide; the 20 minutes you spend there could save you hours later on.

As the school year progresses, your platform can get cluttered. Regular maintenance is crucial to ensure smooth operations.

Key Tip: Set a reminder to clean your platform bi-weekly, archiving outdated materials and assignments.

Leverage Analytics and Reporting Features

Many classroom management tools offer analytics that can provide insights into student performance and engagement.

Key Tip: Use analytics to adjust your teaching strategies in real-time, not just at the end of the term.

Consistent Communication is Key

Choose a tool that streamlines communication between you, your students, and even parents. Clear, consistent communication builds a strong learning environment.

Key Tip: Use notifications and announcements features to keep everyone in the loop.

Data Privacy and Security

Last but not least, make sure you're compliant with data privacy laws like FERPA or GDPR, depending on your location.

Key Tip: Regularly update passwords and review user permissions to maintain a secure environment.

Classroom Management Strategies

Classroom management is more than just keeping a room of students quiet; it's about creating an environment where learning can flourish.

As the digital landscape of education evolves, so should your classroom management strategies. Let's delve deeper into strategies that can help you make the most of classroom management tools.

Setting Clear Expectations

At the beginning of the school year or even a new module, set the tone. Clear expectations provide a roadmap for both you and your students.

Use tools like ClassPoint to introduce rules through an interactive presentation.

Follow up with a quiz or poll to ensure comprehension.

According to a study by the American Psychological Association, clear guidelines and expectations positively impact student outcomes.

Active Monitoring

Merely setting rules isn't enough; you need to actively enforce them.

Real-time Feedback: More Than Just Grading

Real-time feedback encourages immediate corrective action.

A Harvard study shows that real-time assessment improves student engagement and understanding.

Teacher-Recommended Techniques for Maximizing Classroom Management Tools

Even with the best classroom management tools, your classroom management strategies play a critical role. Here are some gems from educators:

Call and Response: A classic but effective way to regain focus. Use a simple phrase and have the students reply. This not only grabs attention but also creates a moment of unity.

The Stoplight System: Use ClassPoint to display a virtual stoplight for behavior management and conflict resolution. Green means all is well, yellow indicates caution, and red signals that immediate change is needed.

Combining Traditional Techniques and Classroom Management Software

Think of your strategies as the bread and butter, and classroom management tools as the delicious filling. Combining traditional techniques with digital tools like ClassPoint creates a sandwich of effective classroom management that's both fulfilling and progressive.

Ready to Supercharge Your Teaching?

The journey to an organized and engaging classroom begins with the right set of tools. For a start, why not give ClassPoint a try for free? Experience how immediate feedback and interactive quizzes can redefine your teaching methods.

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19 Classroom Management Tools To Supercharge Your Teaching | ClassPoint

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Unlock the full potential of classroom management tools with expert tips on training, analytics, and secure communication. Elevate your teaching experience.

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Classroom Management Apps and Websites | Common Sense Education

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Classroom Management Apps and Websites is a list of 28 apps, games, and websites curated by Common Sense Education editors.

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Student Ownership of the Learning Process Using Technology

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Helping students take ownership of their learning | Becky Navarre

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Students choose the appropriate platforms and digital tools for meeting the desired objectives of their creation or communication.

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The ISTE Student Standards guide educators toward student-driven learning practices that prepare students to thrive in an evolving technological landscape.

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Download this poster as a PDF formatted for tabloid sized paper (11 by 17″).

Accessible Text

Title: Teacher Ownership of Learning with Technology versus Student Ownership of Learning with Technology

The poster includes an illustration of a teacher on the left with the following statements typical of teacher ownership of learning.

Technology helps me deliver curriculum to students efficiently. I was the first teacher in my school to convert all of my lecture notes into Powerpoint presentations to cover all assigned material.

When my students use technology, I guide them step-by-step through all activities to ensure that everyone does the assignment correctly.

I often assign "drill and practice" work so that students stay focused and on task when using technology.

I teach my students the basic procedures for creating and saving a document in each of the applications in a typical business suite.

I make sure that students always work on their own with technology so that there's no cheating or sharing of work.

I carefully select any online resources needed for a project ahead of time so that students don't waste time searching on their own.

Unless my lesson plan calls for the students to use their laptops for a particular activity, they stay locked in the cart so that the class's attention is focused on my presentations without distractions. Of course, students must keep any personal devices powered down and in their backpacks.

Technology allows me to track every student's progress much more efficiently than the old method of entering checks in my gradebook.

On the right of the poster is an illustration of a student with the following statements typical of student ownership of learning.

I like having a variety of tech to choose from when I'm working on a project. I can pick what's best for the way I'm trying to solve the problem.

When I get stuck, my teacher helps me think through assignments and how I can try new things to find my own solutions.

I learn best when I'm able to use technology to make connections between school stuff and things in the real world.

I love it when the teacher gives us assignments that really get the brains going. The good ones are hard to stop thinking about. I know it sounds geeky, but when we have an interesting assignment, my friends often keep texting each other with ideas-even over the weekend. Weird, right?

I learn so much from collaborating with other students-especially when it's with students in a different school or even a different country.

Sometimes the best part of a project is when we share what we've done and get to see how other teams have solved the same problem. Classmates often give the best feedback.

Tech really helps to keep me organized. I've learned what works best for me when it comes to keeping track of assignments and how I'm doing on each one.

My most memorable projects were the ones when I figured out how to use technology in a way that surprised even the teacher!

Poster footer: Ownership of learning is an underlying concept of the Technology Integration Matrix. Find the Technology Integration Matrix and an extensive collection of tech integration resources for teachers and school leaders at MyTechMatrix.org Copyright 2020 Florida Center for Instructional Technology, University of South Florida

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Faculty Focus | Higher Ed Teaching & Learning

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In order to stay relevant in today's college classrooms within our fast-paced and ever-evolving world, professors must be ready to utilize instructional tools of all kinds to actively engage students in authentic learning experiences that take them beyond the classroom. Professors are positioned and ready to best provide opportunities for students to explore real-world challenges and discover solutions to those challenges within their disciplines and professions.

One of the first calls for professors to actively involve their students in learning as a means of achieving higher order skills came from Benjamin Bloom and his widely used Bloom's Taxonomy (Bloom, 1956). More recently, as higher education institutions have sharpened their focus on student success, the term "high-impact practices" has been used to describe strategies that foster supportive peer and mentor relationships, make use of experiential learning opportunities, and ultimately increase students' likelihood of successfully completing their higher education goals (AAC&U).

As students complete their undergraduate programs and prepare for the professional world, they are expected to bring critical thinking and problem-solving skills with them to the workplace and their communities. Professors can best support them with engaged pedagogies designed to foster student leadership in the classroom and increase students' ownership of their own learning. Whether you are considering redesigning an entire course, enhancing current in-class activities, or incorporating a more interactive approach to what you are already doing, active learning strategies offer a variety of options that are relevant across all levels and disciplines. Experiential learning, service-learning, and discussion-based interactive instruction are three methods that are grounded in student experiences which encourage them to become further engaged within their discipline while increasing their focus on the application of knowledge over recalling information.

Experiential learning

Experiential learning describes a set of learning strategies in which students are asked to take part in specific experiences and then reflect on those experiences-colloquially, we might refer to experiential learning as "learning by doing." Experiential learning is much more than simply having an experience; however, students must think critically about their experiences through the reflection process and then apply their reflective insights to adjust their future behavior in order to transform an experience into an experiential learning. David Kolb's (1984) experiential learning cycle is often used as the basis for designing experiential learning projects, and the Experiential Learning Institute refers to these steps as (1) experiencing, (2) reflecting, (3) thinking, and (4) acting. Experiential learning opportunities can be built into the curriculum as in-class or out-of-class experiences, whether asking students to take part in a simulation, role playing exercise, or field experience.

Service-learning

Service-learning or community-engaged learning is one type of experiential learning that applies students' skills and knowledge from a particular discipline to a community issue. With its focus on connecting the campus and discipline to the broader community, service-learning is very appealing to a generation of students who are interested in contributing to meaningful change in their communities and the world. While complex social problems cannot be solved in the space of a semester, a service-learning project can raise students' awareness and understanding of social issues, foster lasting relationships with classmates and community members, and bring students into the network of individuals and agencies mobilized around a particular cause. Service-learning projects can involve students in direct service in the community, either in-person or virtually, or, just as often, they engage students in some behind-the-scenes research, development of resources or deliverables, or advocacy around a particular issue. Resources for getting started with service-learning are available from Campus Compact and the National Youth Leadership Council.

Class discussion

In-class discussion is one option for reflection on service-learning and other experiential learning opportunities, but discussion-based interactions can accomplish many additional goals beyond reflecting on experiences, and discussion can be an active learning strategy in itself. The key to empowering students to take part in active and engaging discussions is establishing a classroom community in which students trust that their contributions are valued and structuring discussion activities to call students into the conversation in a variety of ways. Here are a few discussion strategies that have been successful in our college classrooms. Spencer Kagan (2009) is well known in the field of education for developing classroom management strategies such as Think, Pair, Share and Hand up, Stand up, Pair up, which can be easily applied in the college classroom, along with other active learning strategies for discussion.

Fishbowl

This interactive learning method involves half of the students in your class sitting in a circle around the second half of your class seated in the very center of that circle. The inner circle of students engage in a performance, give a speech or presentation, perform an experiment, or they may simply share their experiences or responses to a specific prompt. They are like "fish in a fishbowl" because they can be seen from all angles. After their presentation or performance, the class discusses what they saw and provides feedback on the experience, or may ask follow-up questions of the students in the center; then, the inner and outer groups switch roles and the process may be repeated. This strategy ensures that all students are given the floor for a certain amount of time, and helps students sharpen their active listening skills.

Gallery walk

In a gallery walk, the instructor positions items, visuals, or prompts around the classroom. Students work in small cooperative groups walking through the room to read, analyze, answer questions, and gather information from each item in the "gallery" which is very similar to an art gallery. Once the groups have gone through all items on their gallery walk, the teacher refocuses the class back together for a debrief and invites students to discuss what they gained from the experience. This method allows students to share their thoughts in small groups prior to speaking in front of the entire class, and energizes students by giving them the opportunity to move around the classroom.

Students are assigned a partner they "pair" with and the instructor poses a question or topic for discussion. The pair must first "think" about what they already know about the topic and then take turns discussing and sharing their ideas and perspectives on that particular topic with their partner. This allows students to "share" their ideas with just one other person in class prior to or in place of speaking in front of the entire class, and ensure that all students have an opportunity to share and to listen to other students' ideas.

Stand Up, Hand Up, Pair Up

In this exercise, students are all asked to hold one hand up and walk around the room. On the professor's signal, the students stop walking and hold onto another student's hand in the classroom, or high five one another. The professor then instructs the students to partner up with that person and discuss the prompt for a set amount of time. After the pair discusses their topic, the professor invites pairs to share with the whole class what was discussed. This exercise can be repeated for several rounds to allow students to discuss the same topic with multiple other students.

Conclusion

Adopting active learning strategies encourages professors to step away from the role of subject matter expert and instead serve as facilitators of student learning. While this shift in control can feel daunting for both the professor and student, these strategies create active learning spaces that allow students to take risks, encounter the unexpected, and ultimately grow in their knowledge of their discipline. Through active learning, students gain perspective, empathy, and understanding of others through critical conversions in a supportive space, while also learning to view their own experiences as an important source of lifelong learning for themselves and others.
Stefanie R. Sorbet is the program coordinator for the elementary K-6 program as well as an assistant professor in elementary education at the University of Central Arkansas. She began 23 years ago as an elementary classroom educator. She currently instructs preservice elementary teachers in positive classroom management courses. Sorbet earned her undergraduate and graduate degrees in elementary education and her EdD in educational leadership from Southeastern Louisiana University. Lesley Graybeal is the director of service-learning and volunteerism at the University of Central Arkansas. Graybeal earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in English and PhD in social foundations of education from the University of Georgia. Prior to her time at UCA, she taught first-year writing and American literature and coordinated the service-learning program at Wake Technical Community College in Raleigh, North Carolina. References
American Association of Colleges and Universities. (2022). Trending topic: High-impact practices. https://www.aacu.org/trending-topics/high-impact

Bloom, B.S. (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives, Handbook: The cognitive domain. David McKay.

Campus Compact. (2022). Community-engaged learning and teaching knowledge hub. https://compact.org/resources/community-engaged-learning-and-teaching-knowledge-hub

Institute for Experiential Learning. (2021). What is experiential learning? https://experientiallearninginstitute.org/resources/what-is-experiential-learning/

Heer, R. (2015). A model of learning objectives based on a taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing: A revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of educational objectives. Iowa State University Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching. https://www.celt.iastate.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/RevisedBloomsHandout-1.pdf

Kagan, S. & Kagan, M. (2009). Kagan cooperative learning. Kagan Publishing.

Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. Prentice Hall.

National Youth Leadership Council. (n.d.). Service-learning. https://www.nylc.org/page/WhatisService-Learning

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Building Student Ownership through Active Learning Strategies

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Through active learning, students gain perspective, empathy, and understanding of others through critical conversions.

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Personalized Learning and Student Ownership During Virtual Learning (REL Southeast)

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2.5.b Design Authentic Learning Activities

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2.5.b Design Authentic Learning Activities

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Educators design authentic learning activities that align with educational standards and use digital tools and resources to maximize learning.

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The ISTE Educator Standards challenge educators to deepen their practice, empower students and rethink traditional approaches to education.

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Educators apply evidence-based instructional design principles to create innovative and equitable digital learning environments that support learning.

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The ISTE Educator Standards challenge educators to deepen their practice, empower students and rethink traditional approaches to education.

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Use collaborative tools to expand students' authentic, real-world learning experiences by engaging virtually with experts, teams and students, locally and globally.

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The ISTE Educator Standards challenge educators to deepen their practice, empower students and rethink traditional approaches to education.

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Demonstrate cultural competency when communicating with students, parents and colleagues, and interact with them as co-collaborators in student learning.

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The ISTE Educator Standards challenge educators to deepen their practice, empower students and rethink traditional approaches to education.

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Use technology to create, adapt and personalize learning experiences that foster independent learning and accommodate learner differences and needs.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The ISTE Educator Standards challenge educators to deepen their practice, empower students and rethink traditional approaches to education.

# data[].attributes.body
Use collaborative tools to expand students' authentic, real-world learning experiences by engaging virtually with experts, teams and students, locally and globally.

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The ISTE Educator Standards challenge educators to deepen their practice, empower students and rethink traditional approaches to education.

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Model and nurture creativity and creative expression to communicate ideas, knowledge or connections.

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The ISTE Educator Standards challenge educators to deepen their practice, empower students and rethink traditional approaches to education.

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2.6b Foster Classroom Management of Tech

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2.6b Foster Classroom Management of Tech

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Manage the use of technology and student learning strategies in digital platforms, virtual environments, hands-on makerspaces and in the field.

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The ISTE Educator Standards challenge educators to deepen their practice, empower students and rethink traditional approaches to education.

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2.6a  Foster Student Ownership of Learning

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2.6a  Foster Student Ownership of Learning

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Foster a culture where students take ownership of their learning goals and outcomes in both independent and group settings.

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The ISTE Educator Standards challenge educators to deepen their practice, empower students and rethink traditional approaches to education.

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Students use digital tools to visually communicate complex ideas to others.

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The ISTE Student Standards guide educators toward student-driven learning practices that prepare students to thrive in an evolving technological landscape.

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Students set learning goals, develop strategies leveraging technology to achieve them and reflect on the learning process to improve learning outcomes.

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The ISTE Student Standards guide educators toward student-driven learning practices that prepare students to thrive in an evolving technological landscape.

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Students build networks and customize their learning environments in ways that support the learning process.

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The ISTE Student Standards guide educators toward student-driven learning practices that prepare students to thrive in an evolving technological landscape.

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Students build networks and customize their learning environments in ways that support the learning process.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The ISTE Student Standards guide educators toward student-driven learning practices that prepare students to thrive in an evolving technological landscape.

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Students set learning goals, develop strategies leveraging technology to achieve them and reflect on the learning process to improve learning outcomes.

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The ISTE Student Standards guide educators toward student-driven learning practices that prepare students to thrive in an evolving technological landscape.

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Students demonstrate empathetic, inclusive interactions online and use technology to responsibly contribute to their communities.

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The ISTE Student Standards guide educators toward student-driven learning practices that prepare students to thrive in an evolving technological landscape.

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Students build knowledge by actively exploring real-world issues and problems, developing ideas and theories, and pursuing answers and solutions.

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The ISTE Student Standards guide educators toward student-driven learning practices that prepare students to thrive in an evolving technological landscape.

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Educators continually improve their practice by learning from and with others and exploring proven and promising practices that leverage technology to boost student learning.

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The ISTE Educator Standards challenge educators to deepen their practice, empower students and rethink traditional approaches to education.