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.

What makes a good digital math tool?

During the COVID-19 disruption to education, the use of edtech tools surged. In fact, according, recent research, downloads of education apps in the U.S. increased by 130 percent. 

Within this surge, math saw the biggest jump in edtech tool usage. Math has historically been board-based in the classroom and paper-based at home. And while students had used digital tools like math games and at-home practice apps, these were strictly supplemental. Over this last year, however, as a result of COVID-19, teachers and students have had to adapt to using digital math-related tools, some for the first time. 

Since March of 2020, the usage of Texthelp’s own STEM application, EquatIO, has risen by more than 150 percent. …Read More

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How to use social media in the classroom

Today’s educators have a love-hate relationship with social media. They recognize that five-year-olds know how to use tablets better than their parents and that many kids have smartphones by the time they are 12. Digital natives live and breathe on social media platforms, sending messages and posting pictures and videos almost constantly. In fact, a recent CNN study on social media and teens found that among the 8th-graders surveyed, the heaviest social media users check their feeds up to 100 times a day.

A new generation of education apps is gaining traction in the classroom by combining the powerful features of social media with a focus on helping teachers. Some of the most successful ones include Seesaw, ClassDojo, and Flipgrid. By analyzing what they do well and how they improve the learning experience, we can get a better sense of what it takes to harness the power of social in education.

3 social media platforms for teachers to try
1. Seesaw uses a social media-like platform to record and organize students’ work; at its center is the concept of a digital portfolio. Students record their work in blog-like posts, and the app organizes their portfolio of work by subject area, project, or class. Students can create posts by adding videos, recording audio notes, and using drawing or caption tools to comment on what they are showing. By encouraging students to comment on the work in their Seesaw portfolio, teachers gain insight into their learning process in a way they could not by simply viewing the finished product.…Read More

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What’s APPening: 100 apps for education

Need an app? You don’t have to look far

app-100There really IS an app for that, whatever “that” may be.

Need help taking notes or staying organized? Do you want an on-demand guide to coding and computer programming? Whether you want a resource for reference, early learning, math, science–the list goes on and on.

Straight from Microsoft comes a list of 100 apps, with information on age and grade levels, price, categories, and descriptions.…Read More

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New: 11 of the best iOS and Android apps

Educational apps, aimed at students and teachers, can help boost productivity and achievement

apps-2014Apps are some of the most popular tools in education, and with good reason–they’re easily accessible on mobile devices and can provide quick and targeted help.

Understanding how, when, and why to use apps gives teachers and students deeper understanding of how these relatively new tools can support student learning, teacher instruction, and day-to-day organization and management.

Here, we’ve gathered 11 apps that are useful, educational, help with organization, or are just plain fun. Do you have a favorite educational app that you use with students, colleagues, or for yourself? Be sure to mention it in the comments section below.…Read More

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‘Hackathons’ to create education apps

The New York Times reports that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Facebook plans to hold two “hackathons” this month, bringing together software developers and educators to create new Facebook applications for teaching and learning. The first HackEd 2.0 event will take place at Facebook’s Menlo Park headquarters in California on Tuesday, when teams will build apps for “college-going, social learning, and out-of-school study,” a Facebook representative said by e-mail. Judges will award $5,000 for the best apps.  There will also be several all-female teams from the Hackbright Academy, a 10-week programming training course for women. On April 24, another hackathon will take place at Facebook’s London office, where the top education app development teams will be given prizes of £1,000 — or $1,500 — £3,000 and £5,000…

Read the full story

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Readers: Here are our favorite apps for education

Suggestions from readers ranged from elementary math apps to assessment apps for teachers.

In our recent story, “10 of the best apps for education,” Assistant Editor Jenna Zwang listed several apps for mobile devices that can help classroom processes or present new ways to learn.

Many eSN readers weighed in with their own suggestions as well, naming not only their personal favorites, but also education apps that have been tried and tested with success in the classroom, and with administrators and teachers.…Read More

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10 of the best apps for education

As iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches become more integrated in classrooms, educators and students are looking for new ways to apply them to the learning process. Applications on all of these devices can help automate current classroom processes or present new ways to learn that previously had been unexplored.

In this special feature, we’ve assembled a list of education “apps” for Apple devices that we think are noteworthy. Five are free, and the other five range in price from $0.99 to $9.99. What do you think of these apps? And, which apps for Apple devices are you using now that aren’t on our list? Share your thoughts in the comments section of this story.

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