Tag: STEM

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A Vision of the Future of Higher Education

Every new generation sees changes in the landscape of higher education, but the essential tenets have always remained the same. Students live in dorms or student apartments and go every day to sit in classrooms where they hear lectures from professors.

However, many things we used to take for granted about the college experience may be changing. In fact, the higher education of future generations may be unrecognizable to those of us who came of age in the 20th century.

Here are some of the changes that seem to be emerging.

Adaptive learning

We are already witnessing technologies that adapt to learner needs. These tools can track student progress, making learning far more personalized. Students will no longer have to adjust to the lecture styles of various instructors. Instead, their online teachers will easily adapt to them. As AI (Artificial Intelligence) becomes more advanced, technology will adapt even more intuitively, responding to physical gestures and facial expressions.

Changes in concepts of the classroom space

The increasing popularity of the flipped/blended classroom models foreshadows a reimagining of the classroom space as we know it. Universities will investigate more creative approaches to learning spaces, similar to the global microcampuses proposed recently by the University of Arizona. As devices become smaller, classrooms themselves may be equipped with “smart” functions, able to adjust to the students that enter them as well as to connect to a wide range of teaching materials from around the world.

Equity around the globe

Institutions of higher learning are taking on the mission of making education accessible to students from a wide variety of ethnic, cultural and economic backgrounds. Massive Online Open Courses (MOOCs) have opened up a whole world to people that never could have considered a college education before. Although some issues of digital equity still remain, future generations will find educational opportunities increasingly available to the geographically remote and the economically disadvantaged, leveling the playing field to a greater degree than ever.

Collaboration

Technological advances have broken down walls, connecting students to real-world problem-solving and to leaders in their chosen field. Soon, possibilities for partnership between academia and the corporate world will surpass what anyone could have previously imagined. In addition, students and instructors will have the capacity to problem-solve together, resulting in deeper and more relevant learning experiences.

It seems clear that higher education of the future will turn our expectations upside down in many ways. It’s time to prepare to meet this brave new world.

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My Vision for the Future of Education Leadership

Education leadership is changing, and so must our perception of what it is to be a leader.

My vision for the future of education leadership places leaders in a dynamic environment in which they will find themselves collaborating with other stakeholders. To be effective, future education leaders must understand how they will impact the lives of the people around them, what role technology will play in learning, and their ability to foster meaningful change.

Impact

Making an impact and understanding the implications of that impact are two different things. Future leaders in education will do both.

Educational leaders consistently impact academic achievement, whether through commission or omission. A good leader in education will influence others and create a ripple effect that carries learners far into the world.

In my vision for education leadership, future leaders recognize their impact, and they understand what that impact means for their future.

The role of technology

Educational leaders will rely on edtech for a variety of functions, and they will integrate its use seamlessly in schools.

Having lost their mistrust of digital learning, future leaders will incorporate technology with ease. Edtech will be a common tool in classrooms everywhere. Leaders will integrate digital technology as they prepare for the future.

Students will engage in application based learning – the kind that is hands-on and helps learners connect with their world. You will find a greater number of STEM classes, and the approaches used in STEM will permeate other subjects as well. Social studies and English language arts classes will become more hands-on in response to the demand that instruction becomes more aligned to our findings in neuroscience. For example, students may interact with holistic images of authors and historical figures.

Edtech’s role in this change is to equalize the playing field in the classroom, giving every learner the opportunity to access the individualized learning.

Change agents 

Education leaders of the future will be change agents who create disruptive learning. The leadership may come from the classroom or other unlikely areas, but they will all have one thing in common: they will no longer accept the status quo. Ultimately, education leaders of the future will have the capacity as well as the conviction to bring about meaningful change.

In my vision for the future of education leadership, our leaders will come from diverse backgrounds, and they will embrace digital technology as a way to improve learning.

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Why Digitizing Traditional Teaching Isn’t Innovation

Technology has been hailed by many as the answer to every problem in education. Digital technology is supposed to allow students to learn in entirely new ways, bringing new innovations to every classroom. But this isn’t always the case. In fact, many EdTech programs and tools are simply digitizing traditional teaching—and it isn’t innovation.

When schools and teachers bring technology into the classroom, they must ask themselves what their goals are. Using technology simply for the sake of checking off a box and saying that your classroom is in the 21st century is a waste of time, money, and resources. Teachers who want to use technology must do so for the right reasons.

The true purpose of technology in the classroom should be to change the way we teach, not to digitize what we already do. Yes, it’s possible to have students take notes in a Google Doc or create a PowerPoint instead of a poster. But in the end, students won’t be using technology to its full potential with such assignments.

Assignments like these, and others that simply take what teachers have always done and add technology, can be fun for students. However, they don’t create the kind of engagement that’s possible with technology.

Instead, teachers should be looking for ways to use technology to get students active. That doesn’t mean physically active, but mentally active. With technology, it’s possible to get students to do more critical thinking, evaluating, and creating. Students can take responsibility for their own learning.

Teachers can achieve this through models like the flipped classroom. With a flipped classroom, students read information or watch videos from home, then come into class the next day to discuss what they learned or practice their new skills. Instead of sitting in their seats and listening to a teacher lecture, students are interacting with one another or creating a product themselves.

This is the kind of innovation we need when it comes to EdTech. Technology gives students the power to research, create, and explore. By simply digitizing traditional teaching, we give up opportunities to engage students in these kinds of meaningful activities.

Next time you have the chance to bring technology into the classroom, ask yourself—is this really enhancing my lesson, or is it just a way to do the same old things with more technology?

How do you use technology to bring your lessons to the next level? Tell us about it in the comments below.

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What Are the Pros and Cons of EdTech in the Classroom?

No matter how much value edtech adds to your classroom, there will always be skeptics hovering close by. On the flip side, if you’ve never been an edtech supporter, it’s likely there are educators in your district advocating for an online math tutorial or digital textbook.

If you’re looking to educate yourself on the widespread edtech debate, we’re breaking down arguments that parents, teachers, students, and policy makers on both sides have contributed to recent conversations about classroom technology.

Pros

  1. Access to Infinite Information: If a student has a specific question, they’ll find the answer online. If a student watched a video related to your lesson plan, teachers can find the video immediately and discuss its relevance with a classroom of students. If a child wants to glance through a specific database, there are ways to access that information online. Technology destroys the limitations that paper textbooks and traditional materials often create.
  2. Automate Tedious Tasks: As a teacher, you’ve got so much to think about. Are my students grasping this concept? Can I make this subject easier to understand? What’s the best lesson plan for this group of kids? You shouldn’t be bogged down by busy work that technology can plow through instantaneously. There are tools that streamline grading and programs that automatically send messages to students and parents when there’s a schedule change or classroom update.
  3. Digital Citizenship, Media Literacy & Professional Etiquette: Mastering email formats, having to wade through a variety of online resources, troubleshooting glitches on a tablet, and getting comfortable creating aesthetically pleasing digital presentations, helps students master tools they’ll need both personally and professionally to thrive in a tech-based world. There are teachable ethics associated with online behavior, there are endless benefits to being the tech savvy employee in a corporate meeting, and there is value in understanding hidden messaging behind video advertisements. Edtech helps create a generation of citizens who understand the digital landscape and can use that understanding to develop new resources. Not to mention, get that promotion at work!
  4. Customized Learning: Figuring out what each individual child needs is difficult, especially if you’re overloaded with students, overwhelmed with new faces, and severely understaffed. There are countless adaptive learning programs designed to track students’ progress and figure out what helps them understand certain material. Supplementing your classroom with adaptive software will help you understand each student and develop effective lesson plans accordingly.

Cons

  1. Possible Distraction: If boundaries aren’t established for students or effective filtering devices aren’t implemented immediately, students will be tempted to play with their resources rather than stay on task. More likely than not, several students in a classroom will have a greater understanding of computers than their teacher and can find ways to text friends via tablet or avoid blocking software. Figuring out how to balance students’ natural inclination to inappropriately use technology and your inclination to encourage media literacy is difficult.
  2. Promotes Inequality: Not every student has access to technology outside of the classroom. If not every student can complete homework, instructors must refer them to libraries. Even so, it’s unlikely there are feasible options for students who must rent tablets or download specific programs to public
  3. Loss of Human Connection: Students need interpersonal skills in addition to digital literacy. There are articles upon articles discussing the millennial generation’s anti-social inclinations as a result of excessive social media use. Similar articles are outlining the benefits of strong relationships on professional success and overall happiness. Many are concerned that over time, students will lose the ability to communicate verbally and fail to learn skills necessary for a fulfilling social life.
  4. May Replace Teachers: There’s no substitute for human instruction, but some believe the progression of edtech will eliminate jobs for teachers. Most edtech is designed to support However, there is a possibility that digital instruction will become the norm. After all, education budgets feel tighter each year, and there is something to be said for technology that personalizes its instruction based on the user. And it’s no secret that other industries like agriculture and manufacturing have faced similar tech takeovers.

No matter your point of view, it’s important to consider the pros and cons of edtech before implementing or advocating against new technology. Edtech isn’t right for every learner, and you must understand the needs of your classroom before making any decision.

However, at the end of the day, there’s no harm in giving tech tools a shot. Experiment with edtech because, whether or not new tools directly improve your students’ understanding, learners will benefit from exposure to new resources. Consider feedback from both students and teachers, assess the overall experience, and make the best choice for your classroom.

 

 

 

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9 Ways to Tell If a New App Is Ready For Classroom Use

At last count, there were over 80,000 educational apps available to teachers. While many of these may be a dream come true for educators, the dizzying array of choices is also a nightmare. Teachers just don’t have time to filter through thousands of apps to find the one that works best for the needs of their students.

To make this process less agonizing, here are the hallmarks of a classroom-ready educational app.

  1. It has clear connections to the curriculum. Classroom time is valuable, and can’t be wasted on games and apps that do not clearly align with curriculum goals. These connections must be clear throughout the user experience, rather than just a brief nod here and there.
  2. It gives students the opportunity for active learning. Intellectual involvement is essential to student success. Ensure that the app offers more depth than simply mindless scrolling.
  3. It supports the meaningful assessment of student performance. Does the app provide clear data that teachers can use to further customize learning experiences for students? And even more importantly, is it the right kind of data, or merely a distraction?
  4. It is engaging to students. A good app provides students with plenty of good, old-fashioned fun. It should be sufficiently enjoyable that they will want to continue to use it outside of school hours.
  5. It encourages collaboration. Social interaction is a key component of learning. A good app gives students access to meaningful collaboration with other students through such means as teamwork or videoconferencing.
  6. It provides meaningful connections to student’s lives. Does the app present real-world skills that students encounter in their day-to-day lives? Or are the skills presented vague and abstract?
  7. It addresses the needs of students and teachers. The best apps were designed with teachers in mind. Ideally, educators are represented on the team of developers.
  8. Students receive meaningful feedback within the app. The app should provide a clear reward for success (such as advancing to the next level). Students also need to have the ability to ask for hints and help when needed.
  9. The app is relevant and accessible to diverse students. The app should have built-in scaffolding for struggling readers, second-language English learners, and other diverse students. Students of a variety of racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds should be represented in the app.

Creating classroom-ready apps is a necessary service to teachers and will make their edtech experience rewarding and enjoyable.

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Want to Build an Educational App? Read This First

Teacher-made materials have always been a part of classrooms.

That’s because teachers can see better than anyone else what students need to understand a concept, especially if it’s an abstract one. As a result, teachers have made games and developed hands-on activities that support classroom instruction.

The use of supplemental aids made from aluminum foil, manila folders, and other inexpensive household items is becoming a thing of the past, thanks to the availability of educational apps.

What’s stopping a teacher from building an educational app?

Not much.

You can build an educational app if you do these things.

Know your app’s purpose

The idea behind having an app is to extend the teacher’s availablity to his or her students. The app isn’t meant to replace the teacher. Apps allow students to learn around the clock because the app can serve as a tutor 24/7.

To build an educational app, you must first consider how it will be used. If you think of an app, or an application, as a process, you may begin thinking of new ways to incorporate apps into instruction.

What processes do students need to learn? Two- and three-digit multiplication? How to add suffixes to root words? If you can think of a process that can be broken down into teachable steps, you may have the beginnings of an app.

What goes into an app?

Your app must solve a problem. If it doesn’t provide a solution, it’s likely an entertainment app rather than an educational app.

What’s on your dream list? Decide what you’d like your app to do, and consider user experience as well as measurable objectives.

Next, determine what content goes into your app. If your app will assist ESL students with practicing past tense verbs, for example, will you include only regular verbs, or will you also introduce irregular verb forms?

How will you reward students who get questions right? Validation and feedback come into play here. Positive instant gratification releases the feel-good chemical dopamine in the brain, and that causes app users to want to play even more.

The app itself

A lot of planning and decision-making goes into building an educational app.

If you’re still thinking about building an educational app, you may be interested to know there’s an app for that. App builders like Appypie and Appmakr will help you create an educational app for use as a supplement to your instruction.

Educational apps are likely to be the trend of the future. What’s stopping you from building yours?

 

 

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What Is the Best Time of the Year to Sell to Schools?

Selling your edtech products directly to schools is a big undertaking. If successful, school and district sales can be the breakthrough for your edtech startup. However, top-down sales are time-consuming and take a lot of investment on the front end. It’s important to understand the process of district purchasing to succeed. One major question posed by edtech entrepreneurs is, when is the best time of the year to sell to schools?

Unfortunately, this can be a tricky subject with multiple variables. Here are some tips for determining the right time to approach schools about your edtech offering.

Spring Fling

The most common time for startups to contact districts is the spring. That is because budgets for the coming fall are being approved and schools are often shopping for products to implement. While the spring season is busy, it may not be the right time for your product. Take into account the type of product you’re offering and what kind of financial commitment you’re pursuing.

Schools are inundated with sales requests through the spring, and if your proposal isn’t on their priority list, you won’t get a meeting. Spring sales should be reserved for products with whole school implementation which will be used for the coming school year. Software products take longer to approve than hardware, so if you’re pitching a new LMS get in with the spring rush.

Additionally, if your product takes a significant investment, spring is the time to approach schools. You will need to come in on a new budget, not pick up the slack of the previous year.

Summer Sales

Conversely, if you’re offering smaller applications for individual use or hardware, you may have an easier time in the summer. School officials only have so much time for sales calls. So, approaching them when they’re less busy with more substantial purchases will be a smart strategy.

Summer is also an ideal time to contact teachers if you’re using a bottom-up model. Teachers are busy in the spring and fall. Furthermore, most teachers plan their coming year in the summer months. Offering a system to help with classroom organization or provide interactive lesson plans will be more successful during the planning phase.

Winter Wonderland

While the budgets of most schools will be tapped by winter, you may be able to pull in some last minute sales. Smaller purchases like supplementary tools and hardware can be offered to use any unallocated funds before the new budget year.

Autumn Strategy

Regardless of your product, remember that schools officials are excessively busy in the autumn months. They will have a lot on their calendars with implementation of new software, student orientation and smoothing out bumps. The fall season is the best time for relationship building with current and potential clients.

Instead of pitching ideas, helping with product setup or giving teachers and administrators one on one attention is best. Making yourself an asset to teachers and administrators will be a smart move for future contact. Selling to schools is just like any high stake sales industry and requires a bit of schmoozing which will undoubtedly help you land meetings during the summer, spring and winter months.

The process of selling to schools is slow. Some purchases take weeks for approval; others may take up to nine months. Patience, resilience, and planning are the keys to success in edtech sales.

What plans have you found successful for school sales? How do you get your foot in the door with administrators? We’d love to hear your feedback.

 

 

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A Vision for the Future of Virtual Reality in Education

Virtual Reality (VR) is slowly taking over our entertainment industry. But what are the implications for other areas of our lives, such as business, health, and even…education?

While the educational realm generally takes longer than anyone else to embrace new technology, VR brings many implications for the schools of tomorrow.

Here are some ways in which VR might change the face of education in the future.

Experiencing “Real” Life

Students can get some idea of what life was like in ancient Rome through descriptive passages in a textbook, but this just doesn’t seem real to them. You could show them a video about the life of Syrian refugees, but it just won’t be the same as experiencing it.

Education as we know it today often falls short of presenting students with hands-on experiences. What if you could take your students right now on an immigrant ship as it arrives on Ellis Island? What if you could put them deep in the ocean to observe the habits of marine life firsthand? VR has the potential to bring these experiences to life for them and give them a deeper, more authentic understanding.

More Empathy

The bubonic plague. The Holocaust. The rigorous lives of the early American pioneers. We want our students to learn more than mundane facts and dates about these events. We want them to develop the capacity to feel what others feel and to empathize. Such empathy gives them a deeper and wiser perspective on events in the world today, and they cannot get this simply by reading a textbook or writing an essay.

Help for Struggling Students

Traditionally, it has always been challenging to deliver a quality educational experience to students with special needs. With VR, such students have a way to easily access deep learning regardless of their developmental or cognitive challenges. Virtual Reality levels the playing field, giving the same learning opportunities to all.

Imparting More Relevance in Traditional Learning Experiences

VR experiences can inform and enhance more traditional learning activities. A student who needs to write an essay about a Shakespearean play will gain a deeper perspective by experiencing the play virtually. If your class is learning a language by corresponding with a class from another country, this exchange can be more meaningful after witnessing life in the target culture first-hand.

Initially, Virtual Reality may be slow to take off in the educational sector. But once it does, it can offer our students an educational experience that has never been imagined before.

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How Early Should Kids Begin STEM Education?

Current research results are in favor of early childhood experiences for students, especially those who are disadvantaged. This education is the great equalizer because it provides a rich, common foundation for children who may have diverse backgrounds and experiences.

So what does that mean?

Students are capable of learning far more than you think they can. Most teachers will tell you that children will rise up to the standard you set, so you may as well elevate the bar for learning.

And that brings us to STEM education in early childhood. That’s right – early childhood is the perfect time to begin science, technology, engineering, and mathematics instruction.

Early is not too early

STEM learning fits in every grade level because the material is adaptable to the developmental age of the child. You may think there is no way for a child that young to engage in advanced engineering or mathematical concepts, but kindergartners have been doing algebra forever. You won’t see four and five-year-olds huddled in groups as they fervently work out quadratic equations, but you will see them solving for X.

Early childhood teachers routinely teach pattern recognition to their students. Walk down the early childhood hallway in a school, and you’ll see student work that displays their interpretations of patterns: circle-circle-square, circle- circle -square, circle-circle -square or square-diamond-circle, square-diamond-circle, square-diamond-circle.

Teachers ask their students to figure out what comes next in the pattern. Students may not realize they are solving for X (a difficult abstract concept), but they can recognize patterns in mathematics and science. The foundation for algebra – and other advanced concepts – takes place in kindergarten.

What does early STEM education look like?

Here are more ways young children can participate in STEM learning:

  • Science – Give students the chance to explore and understand the world around them with a variety of lessons in science.
  • Technology – Something as small as being able to differentiate between serifed and non-serifed fonts is a critical thinking skill learned in early childhood.
  • Engineering –Building a structure from given materials is an example of engineering.
  • Mathematics—Teach lessons that incorporate number sense and representation.

STEM lessons engage young students, satisfying the natural curiosity of a child, through fun, interesting and hands on projects.  Begin the lessons early.

A proverb from the Buddha states, “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” It’s about having the right teacher at the right time, and early childhood can be the right time for STEM.

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Can Digital Equity Close the Achievement Gap?

Closing the achievement gap has been a focus of those looking to improve education for decades. The term “achievement gap” refers to the gap between the test scores of low-income students (or students of color) and their wealthier (or white) peers. There are dozens of theories on why this gap continues to exist and what we can do to bring low-income students’ achievement levels up. In recent years, one idea has come to light that has promise—using digital equity to close the achievement gap.

Digital equity has also been the focus of education advocates for some years now. As digital technology becomes an integral part of our world and our schools, a gap has emerged in access to technology. Students from wealthier backgrounds tend to have greater access to the internet and digital technology when compared to their peers who come from poverty. This puts wealthier students ahead and adds another barrier for schools with a high poverty rate to overcome.

Some education experts now say that digital equity could help to provide a level playing field for all students. If all students have access to the same technology, it could help to close the achievement gap. It has already been established that students without access to technology have trouble completing homework assignments. While more than half of teachers assign homework that requires internet access, there are millions of children who live in homes where they can’t get online.

In theory, closing this digital divide could have tremendous effects for low-income students. Giving students from poverty access to technology certainly improves outcomes. Researchers at Stanford have found that, when used correctly, technology does indeed help boost test scores for low-income students.

However, digital equity is not a magic fix for closing the achievement gap. The achievement gap existed long before the invention of the internet. Creating true equality for all students is far more complex than simply giving them all laptops. Further studies have shown that even when students in high-poverty schools have greater access to technology than their peers in low-poverty schools, their test scores remain lower.

While digital equity is a part of closing the achievement gap, it’s not the solution. Digital technology can be used to widen the achievement gap or to help close it.

How has your school used digital technology to try to close the achievement gap? Do you think digital equity can close the achievement gap?