I remember back to when I was in the first grade at the Bagnall School in Groveland, Massachusetts. Our teacher told us about an exciting new room that no other class had been in. We would be the first group of students to try out the school's new computer lab! I remember walking into the room, basically a converted storage room with no windows and about 15 huge Apple computers. My fondest memories of using technology in elementary school included playing the games "Oregon Trail" and "Where in the World is Carmen San Diego." As a reflective educator, I also recall learning how to type and having pen pals with dog sled racers in Alaska.
Fastforward to 2015. I have been teaching for seven years and have already gone through a full "edtech trend." I consider an edtech trend something that hits the market and every teacher wants, though they don't know how to use and are not sure on its success for integration into actual lesson plans. Some trends work and some do not. One trend that has seemed to make it through the years and has proven itself time and time again is the overhead projector....these days known as an "Elmo." The teacher can write on a piece of plastic and it will be projected for students to view and interpret.
Unfortunately, as trends increase, so do their prices. In my opinion, the Smart Board trend needs to leave fast. So many schools have invested over $2,000.00 per classroom for something that actually provided real "a-ha" moments for one student at a time. I used a Smart Board for my first few years of teaching. I recognized pretty quickly that it was a glorified white board. It only provided access for one person to use at a time as it was not multi-touch. Then I made my own interactive white board using Johnny Chung Lee's software, a wii remote, and infared pen which totaled about $50.00 in price.
So what is the next big trend? There are three things which are going to happen in the next few years. Teachers are going to have a hard time adapting as they are going to happen so quickly, mainly because prices are so cheap. Smart Board inventory took years for most schools to get into each classroom. The current trends for new technology are not that expensive and so they will get into classrooms quicker. A big issue however is that with the recession, many technology integration specialist positions were cut. Now teachers are on their own to learn about technology...which might be a blessing in disquise.
So what's hip in education for the next three years:
1. 3D Printers and Maker Spaces
2. 1 to 1 Laptops
3. Google Classroom
Part A: 3D Printers
I truly believe that this is going to be the most dynamic shift in education since we started using computers. Students will be able to actually take what they learn and make physical objects. Some would label this project-based learning. Some would say this it they type of thing Finland does in every lesson. Both are true. Are we ready for 3D printers in schools?
It seems as though we are in a very strange grey area. There are teachers who want to get 3D printers in their classrooms but do not know how to justify them to administrators for financial approval. Some adminstrators see the trend and want to jump on but are unsure how teachers would actually use them in a classroom. After doing some research online, it does seem that 3D printing in school is very new. After the expense of Smart Boards, many now will question any new technology before purchasing. Smart Boards by the way, our now being replaced with much cheaper interactive TV's or even just TV's connected to AppleTV or GoogleChromeBox.
The fascinating thing about 3D printing is that it is part of a whole Maker Movement across the country. It is in our libraries and maker spaces are opening up charging monthly membership fees. So this trend is more then a trend-it is real and we as educators should be jumping on board. We really need to get rid of the notion that a lesson is reading a few paragraphs from a book, answering questions and then getting tested on it at the end of the week. Students need to be creative and set their own learning agenda. 3D printing will revolutionize every classroom. We are going to need leaders in the field to quickly get in there and start drawing up amazing lesson plans.
Part B: 1 to 1 Laptops
It is now common for middle and high schools to have one-to-one laptop programs. The cost for a Google Chromebook has gone down below $200 and will go down even further. With PARCC testing occurring online, I give it about four more years before the majority of schools in Massachusetts are one-to-one at the secondary level. Some schools that are unable to afford it are doing a leasing program and offering free laptops to those on free and reduced lunch. One snag I realized while administrating the S.A.T.'s last year was that they do not allow laptops for the math portion, only graphing calculators. I would hope this would change. I know that Google is coming out with a new usb device which basically turns any monitor with a usb input into a computer. This will be a great way for schools to keep their current desktop screens, saving lots of money when getting rid of old computers.
One thing that needs total upgrading for one-to-one programs to work is the internet and bandwidth. In so many schools it is just too outdated and is unable to handle having so many students online all at once. This will need to be fixed rather quickly.
Part C: Google Classroom
I am so impressed with how far Google Classroom has come since if first came out this fall. It is super easy to use for students, teachers and parents. We are all awaiting for a few upgrades including a better gradebook and unit based organization instead of the "stream" where content is displayed by the date/time it was published. One of the biggest challenges with any learning management system is exporting out the grades to whatever software program a school uses to report to the state. In many school districts this might include Aspen X2 or MMS. Rumors are that some of these companies are working on adapting solutions to integrating with Google Classroom.
Out of all the different learning management systems out on the market, Google Classroom will be the best mainly because it interacts with its sharing software for docs, presentations, etc. Other learning management systems don't offer such an easy-to-use collaborative space.
Fastforward to 2015. I have been teaching for seven years and have already gone through a full "edtech trend." I consider an edtech trend something that hits the market and every teacher wants, though they don't know how to use and are not sure on its success for integration into actual lesson plans. Some trends work and some do not. One trend that has seemed to make it through the years and has proven itself time and time again is the overhead projector....these days known as an "Elmo." The teacher can write on a piece of plastic and it will be projected for students to view and interpret.
Unfortunately, as trends increase, so do their prices. In my opinion, the Smart Board trend needs to leave fast. So many schools have invested over $2,000.00 per classroom for something that actually provided real "a-ha" moments for one student at a time. I used a Smart Board for my first few years of teaching. I recognized pretty quickly that it was a glorified white board. It only provided access for one person to use at a time as it was not multi-touch. Then I made my own interactive white board using Johnny Chung Lee's software, a wii remote, and infared pen which totaled about $50.00 in price.
So what is the next big trend? There are three things which are going to happen in the next few years. Teachers are going to have a hard time adapting as they are going to happen so quickly, mainly because prices are so cheap. Smart Board inventory took years for most schools to get into each classroom. The current trends for new technology are not that expensive and so they will get into classrooms quicker. A big issue however is that with the recession, many technology integration specialist positions were cut. Now teachers are on their own to learn about technology...which might be a blessing in disquise.
So what's hip in education for the next three years:
1. 3D Printers and Maker Spaces
2. 1 to 1 Laptops
3. Google Classroom
Part A: 3D Printers
I truly believe that this is going to be the most dynamic shift in education since we started using computers. Students will be able to actually take what they learn and make physical objects. Some would label this project-based learning. Some would say this it they type of thing Finland does in every lesson. Both are true. Are we ready for 3D printers in schools?
It seems as though we are in a very strange grey area. There are teachers who want to get 3D printers in their classrooms but do not know how to justify them to administrators for financial approval. Some adminstrators see the trend and want to jump on but are unsure how teachers would actually use them in a classroom. After doing some research online, it does seem that 3D printing in school is very new. After the expense of Smart Boards, many now will question any new technology before purchasing. Smart Boards by the way, our now being replaced with much cheaper interactive TV's or even just TV's connected to AppleTV or GoogleChromeBox.
The fascinating thing about 3D printing is that it is part of a whole Maker Movement across the country. It is in our libraries and maker spaces are opening up charging monthly membership fees. So this trend is more then a trend-it is real and we as educators should be jumping on board. We really need to get rid of the notion that a lesson is reading a few paragraphs from a book, answering questions and then getting tested on it at the end of the week. Students need to be creative and set their own learning agenda. 3D printing will revolutionize every classroom. We are going to need leaders in the field to quickly get in there and start drawing up amazing lesson plans.
Part B: 1 to 1 Laptops
It is now common for middle and high schools to have one-to-one laptop programs. The cost for a Google Chromebook has gone down below $200 and will go down even further. With PARCC testing occurring online, I give it about four more years before the majority of schools in Massachusetts are one-to-one at the secondary level. Some schools that are unable to afford it are doing a leasing program and offering free laptops to those on free and reduced lunch. One snag I realized while administrating the S.A.T.'s last year was that they do not allow laptops for the math portion, only graphing calculators. I would hope this would change. I know that Google is coming out with a new usb device which basically turns any monitor with a usb input into a computer. This will be a great way for schools to keep their current desktop screens, saving lots of money when getting rid of old computers.
One thing that needs total upgrading for one-to-one programs to work is the internet and bandwidth. In so many schools it is just too outdated and is unable to handle having so many students online all at once. This will need to be fixed rather quickly.
Part C: Google Classroom
I am so impressed with how far Google Classroom has come since if first came out this fall. It is super easy to use for students, teachers and parents. We are all awaiting for a few upgrades including a better gradebook and unit based organization instead of the "stream" where content is displayed by the date/time it was published. One of the biggest challenges with any learning management system is exporting out the grades to whatever software program a school uses to report to the state. In many school districts this might include Aspen X2 or MMS. Rumors are that some of these companies are working on adapting solutions to integrating with Google Classroom.
Out of all the different learning management systems out on the market, Google Classroom will be the best mainly because it interacts with its sharing software for docs, presentations, etc. Other learning management systems don't offer such an easy-to-use collaborative space.
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