Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

37 predictions about edtech’s impact in 2023

As we close the door on 2022, we approach 2023 with clear-cut priorities for edtech and education as a whole. Education and student well-being are stretched thin, and lingering learning gaps, exacerbated by the pandemic, present hurdles for all students–especially underrepresented students groups who were already at a disadvantage.

Digital learning cemented itself as a “must have” in schools this year, and equity remained front and center, too, continuing conversations around inequitable technology access, along with racial and socioeconomic disparities and discrimination.

We’re headed into a fourth year of learning in the pandemic’s shadow. While massive COVID quarantines and school closures have diminished, we’re still grappling with the impact of learning during a global pandemic. This begs the question: What’s next for education?…Read More

65 ways equity, edtech, and innovation shone in 2022

Each year, we share our 10 most-read stories. Not surprisingly, many of this year’s Top 10 focused on innovative ways to engage students, digital resources, and online and hybrid learning strategies related to post-pandemic teaching. This year’s 6th most-read story focuses on the predictions educators and industry experts made for learning in 2022.

As we wrapped up 2020, we thought for sure that 2021 might bring us a reprieve from pandemic learning. Well, it did–but it also didn’t. Virtual and hybrid learning continued into the spring, but then classrooms welcomed back students for full-time in-person learning in the fall. Many silver linings emerged and digital learning cemented itself as a “must have” in schools. Equity remained front and center, too, raising issues of inequitable technology access, along with racial and socioeconomic disparities and discrimination.

2021 brought with it new COVID-19 variants, the dreaded school COVID quarantine, and renewed calls to support the nation’s educators, who have worked tirelessly (and constantly) to support students’ learning, social and emotional needs, and more.…Read More

Discovery Education and Social Impact Partners Present Engaging Resources Supporting STEM Day Observances

Charlotte, NC.— Discovery Education and select social impact partners are offering engaging, high-quality digital learning resources to students and teachers to support observances of National STEM Day. Held annually on November 8th, National STEM Day unites communities in celebrating the importance of teaching science, technology, engineering, and math to students in grades K-12. Discovery Education is the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports learning wherever it takes place.  

Discovery Education offers educators, students, and families hundreds of no-cost resources tailored to STEM teaching and learning wherever it takes place. Among the resources created in collaboration with leading social impact partners now available to support observances of National STEM Day are:   

Engaging Classroom Activities 
Integrate STEM into instruction with activities from the STEM Careers Coalition™ – the first-of-its-kind national STEM initiative powered by corporate and non-profit leaders and anchored in schools by Discovery Education. These activities span a broad range of STEM topics and feature important skills, as well as step-by-step guides for implementing activities in your classroom.  …Read More

Teachers using technology report stronger connections, community with students

Educators who use technology as part of their teaching practice report that they are more aware of their students’ individual needs (61 percent) and more likely to be leveraging technology purposely to tailor learning for their students (61 percent), according to results from a national survey from education nonprofit Gradient Learning.

What’s more, teachers using technology are more than twice as likely to report that they spend more one-on-one time with their students.

Teachers using digital learning tools are more likely than teachers on average nationwide to see a stronger connection between the effective use of technology and positive changes in their instructional practice. …Read More

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3 ways the E-rate program helps level up learning

The federal E-rate program continues to provide expanded access to technology, including edtech tools, digital learning resources, and high-speed internet access, to schools, according to an annual report that takes stock of the program’s progress.

The findings come from E-rate compliance services firm Funds For Learning‘s 12th annual E-rate Trends Report. The report is designed to understand how the program can best serve schools and libraries. Stakeholder input is compiled and delivered directly to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to inform program administration.

Key findings from the 2022 report include:…Read More

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New research offers major insights into post-pandemic learning

Educators are noticeably more comfortable giving students autonomy over their learning–and this is just one of the long-term impacts the pandemic has had on K-12 education, according to insight from the nonprofit Project Tomorrow.

In its annual Congressional Briefing, the nonprofit presented this year’s Speak Up Research Project findings. This year’s results indicate patterns across digital learning for students and teachers coinciding with the effects that the pandemic had on learning.

The Speak Up Research Project is a national research initiative and free service to schools and districts. Since the Fall of 2003, Speak Up has helped education leaders include the voices of their stakeholders in annual and long-term planning. ed.Web.net hosted the briefing, which featured keynote speaker Kristina Ishmael, Deputy Director of the Office of Ed Tech at the U.S. Department of Education.…Read More

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Discovery Education and Social Impact Partners Present Engaging Resources to Support Cybersecurity Awareness Month Observances

Charlotte, NC. — Discovery Education and select social impact partners are offering engaging, high-quality digital learning resources to students and teachers to support observances of Cybersecurity Awareness Month. Established in 2004 by Congress, Cybersecurity Awareness Month seeks to raise awareness about cybersecurity and online safety. Discovery Education is the worldwide EdTech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports learning wherever it takes place.   

Observed annually in October, the 2022 theme – See Yourself in Cyber – puts people at the center of cybersecurity. In support of this theme, Discovery Education is providing educators and students access to curated digital resources that can be used to educate students about the importance of online security in all learning environments. Among the no-cost resources created in collaboration with leading social impact partners are:  

Classroom Activities 
In this 30-minute classroom activity from the STEM Careers Coalition™ – the first-of-its-kind national STEM initiative powered by corporate and non-profit leaders and anchored in schools by Discovery Education – students step into the role of a security employee at a technology company and explore the importance of cybersecurity. The activity also features important STEM skills and a step-by-step guide for implementing activities into your classroom.  …Read More

Why E-rate is critical for school technology access

Every year, schools and libraries have access to billions of dollars of funding through the FCC’s E-rate program. Unfortunately, many don’t take advantage, oftentimes because of confusion over who is eligible and what services are available. In this post I’ll break down the importance of E-rate, how it works, and the types of technologies it makes available that are crucial to education.

The importance of E-rate

For students in the 21st century, it’s almost impossible to overemphasize the importance of the internet and digital learning technologies. There is a growing dependence on these resources across the U.S., and they are often seen as critical for connecting students and teachers and preparing students for lifelong learning and jobs.…Read More

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3 tips to balance the back-to-analog edtech transition

During the “emergency teaching” era of the COVID-19 pandemic, digital resources and edtech tools were used by educators worldwide in an effort to maintain students’ continuity of learning. Tremendous investments were made by school systems in an effort to rapidly scale digital learning.

With many of the COVID-era restrictions receding, it is tempting to think that we’ve entered into a new, highly digital era of education that will be far less dependent on pencils and paper. But, in the famous words of college football insider and former coach Lee Corso, “Not so fast my friend!”  

Interestingly, the post-COVID teaching environment has so far, in my opinion, been marked by a strong desire to see things done with pencil and paper. In my district, I hear from educators, students, and families alike that they wish to see what they learned online to be applied in hard copy. After a two-year period where “virtually” everything was done on an iPad, parents have a thirst to see their children bringing home papers in their backpacks again.   …Read More

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Is it time to fire up gaming consoles in classrooms?

Digital learning has become a significant part of education as a result of the pandemic, and schools are continually finding innovative ways to engage and motivate students online. So, with Ofcom revealing six in ten children played games online in 2021, what might the use of video gaming in the classroom look like to engage students with a model they’re already invested in?

Historically, gaming has been associated with recreational activities rather than as a medium used to boost the diversity of learning techniques, despite it being an actual benefit to a child’s literacy, empathy and imagination.

The question is: Does gaming have a viable role to play right now, as digital learning continues to claw its way to the forefront of education, or is it simply an unwelcome distraction?…Read More

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