Timeline by

Printing Press 1455

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-11 20:49:45 UTC

The first printing press was invented in China, but no one knows for sure who or when. The printing press was brought Europe in 1455 when it was perfected by Johannes Gutenberg. Before then books were handwritten and very slow to make. This invention made the printing and distributing of books possible, thus making books more accessible to all.

A&E Television Networks. (2025, February 27). Printing press. History.com. https://www.history.com/articles/printing-press

Industrial Revolution 1760-1840

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-11 20:50:26 UTC

The industrial revolution was a time of advancement and invention. It brought about many technological innovations that were ground breaking at the time. Inventions includes the Telegraph, the Telephone, and the Incandescent Lamp.

Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. (n.d.). Inventors and inventions of the Industrial Revolution. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/list/inventors-and-inventions-of-the-industrial-revolution

The Telegraph 1844 early social media

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-11 20:56:01 UTC

The development of social media is driven by the human desire to communicate and make connections. While the Telegraph wasn’t technically social media in modern terms, as the first electronic message it was a very important point towards long distance communication.

Wordpress, 2U. (2024, April 24). The evolution of social media: How did it begin, and where could it go next?. Maryville University Online. https://online.maryville.edu/blog/evolution-social-media/

Crayons (1903)

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-16 16:28:19 UTC

Before the crayon’s appearance in 1903, children had sticks of chalk. They may have looked nice on a slate but on paper they were not very good. The same guys (Edwin Binney and C. Harold Smith) who invented a dustless chalkboard chalk and held the rights to barn red, put together carbon black and paraffin wax to make a colorful stick. Edwin’s wife, Alice, was actually the one to come up with the name Crayola which came from two French words meaning chalk and oily.

Py-Lieberman, B. (n.d.). The colors of childhood. Smithsonian Magazine . https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-colors-of-childhood-36067809/

Learning Management Systems (LMS) (1924)

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-16 16:29:39 UTC

The first LMS was invented in 1924 by Sydney L. Pressey and was called the Teaching Machine. It looked like a typewriter but with screens that would display questions and show your typed answer. If you typed the correct answer, you could advance to the next question.

Of course that doesn’t sound much like what we think of with modern LMS, however it was this invention that started the ball rolling that brought along the eventual invention of open source LMS like Moodle.

Prasad, Dr. R. (2021, May 12). A brief history of the LMS. eLearning Industry. https://elearningindustry.com/brief-lms-history

Corkboards (1925)

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-16 16:33:24 UTC

Though corkboard existed before 1925, it was in that year that George Brooks patented the use of corkboard as a bulletin board. Prior to this patent, corkboard was used for insulation purposes. Not much is known about these early bulletin boards besides the patent. However, because patents were only good for 17 years at this time, when the patent ran out others were able to manufacture and bring bulletin boards to a more widespread market.

Education and teaching. A History Of The Corkboard. (n.d.). https://www.streetdirectory.com/etoday/a-history-of-the-corkboard-uoupup.html

Fireside Chats (1933-1944)

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-16 16:35:36 UTC

At a time when uncertainty was high, President FDR used the radio to address the people and provide information through his fireside chats (a term actually coined by the station manager of CBS). He used his fireside chats to explain what the government was doing about the Great Depression and later WW2. It was news that didn’t require the ability to read, it was news that anyone could listen to.

In many ways, this was the very first podcast! Much like FDR used the radio to inform the people of America, we can use podcasts to educate the students of today.

Margaret Biser Research Intern, Biser, M., & Intern, R. (n.d.). The fireside chats: Roosevelt’s Radio Talks. WHHA (en-US). https://www.whitehousehistory.org/the-fireside-chats-roosevelts-radio-talks

Whiteboards (1950s)

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-16 16:37:25 UTC

The exact origin is debated but the framework ideas came from two men.

Martin Heit was a photographer who discovered he could write on film negatives and then wipe it away. This is thought to be the first inspiration for a reusable writing surface.

Albert Stallion, a steel industry worker, discovered the uses of enameled steel as a very durable writing surface.

These two discoveries laid the foundations for the modern white board to be made by Dri-Mark when Heit sold them his ideas. It was marketed as a less messy chalkboard alternative and it gained wild popularity.

Ed artifact - the writing’s on the wall: The history of the whiteboard. Learn Magazine - University at Buffalo. (2025, June 4). https://ed.buffalo.edu/magazine/issues/spring-2025/ed-artifact.html

Classroom projector (1950s)

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-16 16:38:32 UTC

The classroom projector was originally created in France in 1850 but didn’t make its way to American classrooms until the 1950s and 60s. This device was super popular in classrooms until its peak in the 1990s when it began to taper off. Today, though it’s not as popular, many teachers still use these machines in classrooms.

Ed artifact - the overhead projector aims to help students Shine Bright. The overhead projector aims to help students shine bright - Learn Magazine - University at Buffalo. (2023, November 13). https://ed.buffalo.edu/magazine/issues/fall-2023/ed-artifact.html#:~:text=It%20was%20created%20in%20France,their%20way%20to%20American%20classrooms.

Virtual reality (1968)

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-16 16:40:29 UTC

In 1965, Ivan Sutherland wrote a paper describing what he called “the Ultimate Display”. He described it as being connected to a computer to generate and maintain the world in real time. This ”Ultimate Display” could be “the Wonderland into which Alice walked.” Sutherland’s paper became the blueprint for modern VR.

A mere 3 years later, Sutherland would invent the “Sword of Damocles”. While this was not the first vr headset, it was the first VR/AR headset connected to a computer and not a camera.

History of virtual reality. Virtual Reality Society. (2020, January 2). https://www.vrs.org.uk/virtual-reality/history.html

The Internet (1983)

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-16 16:41:07 UTC

1960 saw the start of internet as a way for government researchers to share information. These early computers were huge, immobile units. You could not access their information unless you went to the physical location or had a tape sent by mail.

1983 is considered the official birthday of the internet because this was when “Transfer Control” was invented. This was a communications protocol that allowed different types of computers on different networks to communicate and share information with each other.

https://www.usg.edu/galileo/skills/unit07/internet07_02.phtml

Interactive whiteboard (1991)

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-16 16:41:44 UTC

The very first interactive whiteboard was unveiled in 1991 by Smart Technologies. The Smartboard Interactive Whiteboard could be computer controlled while also being touchscreen. This was groundbreaking technology that has changed classroom setting with new developments continuing even to today.

When was the smartboard invented? A comprehensive history. METZ Display. (n.d.). https://metzdisplay.com/blogs/news/when-was-the-smartboard-invented-a-comprehensive-history#:~:text=The%20Introduction%20of%20the%20First,applications%20directly%20from%20the%20board.

Kahoot (2012)

suttonmikayla01 — 2025-09-16 16:42:28 UTC

In 2012, Kahoot! was founded by Morten Versvik, Johan Brand, and Jamie Brooker. The technology for Kahoot! was based on research done by Morten Versvik for his Masters degree at NTNU.

In 2013, Kahoot! was opened to the public with the mission to make learning awesome!

About Kahoot!: Company history & key facts. Kahoot! (2025, May 5). https://kahoot.com/company/