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.

35 edtech innovations we saw at FETC 2023

This year’s Future of Education Technology Conference landed in New Orleans, and the conference was abuzz with post-pandemic learning recovery tools, solutions to promote equity among students and parents, strategies for digital access, student mental health, social and emotional learning tools, and more.

Here’s just a glimpse of what we learned about during FETC 2023:

AVer Information Inc. USA, announced the launch of the A30, the world’s first All-in-One Camera with AI Audio for the Classroom. The A30 is a multi-functional classroom tool that enhances the teaching experience by combining a document camera, web camera, microphone, and speaker. With easy-to-use plug-n-play connectivity, the A30 speaker connects to computers, IFPs, and monitors to provide clear classroom audio up to 20 feet away. …Read More

Is blockchain the key to college success?

A student’s credentials and accomplishments, stored on and secured by blockchain technology, can set students up for college acceptance and college success, said Joshua Samuel, the CEO of Coins for College.

During a session at FETC 2023, Samuel explored how blockchain can be used in real world to solve problems like knowledge gaps, student motivation, attendance, teacher compensation.

Blockchain technology holds the promise to change much of what’s plaguing education today, he asserted. Blockchain relies on methods of cryptography, which secures data from unauthorized access and keeps students’ information safe.…Read More

How to use Minecraft Education in your classroom

It’s easier than you think to begin using Minecraft Education in your classroom. During an FETC 2023 session, technology specialist Kristen Brooks from the Cherokee County School District offered an overview of how she engages her students with Minecraft Education.

“When kids use Minecraft in the classroom, they’re so engrossed in what they’re doing that they forget they’re actually learning,” Brooks said. “Students excel in their learning when they’re encouraged to create projects in a style or format they prefer.”

Here are some of her tips to get started and sustain enthusiasm for Minecraft Education:…Read More

27 digital tools and edtech resources from FETC

As aspects of pre-pandemic life slowly emerge from nearly two years of masking, testing, and social distancing, educators are once again gathering at edtech conferences to experience the latest and greatest solutions, digital tools, and professional learning opportunities.

In Orlando, the Future of Education Technology Conference (FETC) kicked off with keynotes and sessions from top edtech experts and real-world practitioners.

Here’s a sampling of new digital tools and announcements from edtech solution providers.…Read More

Promethean Partners with Radix to Expand Device Management and Security

Today at FETC 2021, Promethean®, a leading global education technology company, announced a premium device and application management solution for the seamless management of virtually any device in a school’s technology ecosystem. This new offering is the result of focused efforts between Promethean and Radix, a cutting-edge device management solution provider. This solution will directly reduce IT administrators’ work time and introduce new opportunities for efficient centralized remote control of devices, including the Promethean ActivPanel® Elements Series from a single web console.

As classrooms have seen rapid evolution over the last year, new guidelines required schools to quickly transform educational settings for remote and hybrid learning. This resulted in a proliferation of new edtech devices within educational ecosystems that were already complex. Managing all these devices and keeping them secure in hybrid and remote learning environments has never been more important.

Promethean Panel Management simplifies device management by deploying mass updates, grouping devices, and setting ActivPanel® Elements Series configurations. With the implementation of Radix VISO, users can greatly expand management to cover prior generations of ActivPanels and the ever-growing number of other devices within schools. Radix VISO device management and Promethean Panel Management together deliver comprehensive device management, allowing IT teams to manage growing infrastructures more efficiently while improving security and ensuring a seamless user experience.…Read More

Here’s why you should attend FETC 2020

Celebrating any anniversary is exciting, but this year, educators, administrators, and support staff can all celebrate the 40th anniversary of FETC- Future of Education Technology Conference in Miami, FL.

For those of you who have attended this conference in previous years, the Miami Beach Convention Center is a new venue jam-packed with “game-changing” keynotes, workshops, concurrent sessions, learning labs, and so much more. FETC will not disappoint with its focus on innovation, creativity, collaboration, and personalized learning strategies for our students.

Related content: 5 components of educational innovation…Read More

The 7 coolest edtech products I saw at FETC

I saw many interesting products at FETC 2019 in Orlando last week, but here are the ones that resonated most strongly because of their uniqueness and immediate classroom application.

1. Lucid for Education

Lucid is one of those companies that you may not have heard of, but you definitely should! They have a visual learning toolkit that helps students learn to collaborate using 21st-century skills while making deeper connections to prior knowledge. By creating digital resources and presentations with other students and educators, this tool makes the classroom appear more like today’s workplace of today than anything else I’ve seen.

…Read More

FETC 2019: Day One

Not the driving rain or 50-degree temperatures could keep edtech enthusiasts from the opening day of FETC 2019 in Orlando. Wearing winter coats and braving the harsh Florida weather, lines formed early for the 8 am workshops.

Because this is my 13th FETC, I confidently walked into the conference center as a tour guide for an FETC first timer. However, in its usual manner, FETC changed it up for the better. Though I do miss seeing Hawaiian shirts and skateboards at the Surf conference that shared the south side of the Orange County Convention Center, the extra space taken over by FETC makes the conference workshops more accessible, convenient, and right in the heart of the main concourse. The new and improved conference registration location is an upgrade from its previous place in the corner of the Expo floor.

The Expo floor did not open until 4:30 pm on Monday, but educators and administrators were able to choose from 100 workshops, Apple and Microsoft concurrent sessions, and an all-day Blueprint for Technology in Education Summit. The FETC Experience, in its second-year, models personalized learning with tracks that identify attendee relevant workshops and sessions. The edtech administrators, information technology, educator, early learning, and inclusion and special education tracks ensured that there was something for everyone.…Read More

Creating the future of education

The power to create the future of education technology is very appealing. The ability to fabricate and then implement a technological universe that could lead our future generations of learners might be our generation’s greatest achievement. If I were going to put together a formula, I would probably do the following:

1. Identify around 1,000 of the best available education minds from all over the world.
2. Assemble these big thinkers in one place, and over a period of four or five days have open discussion and lively debate around some carefully thought-out subject areas.
3. Include areas of innovation, academics, emotional intelligence, and the business of technology.
4. Invite at least 10,000 working educators and administrators to join in the discussion.
5. Watch carefully as the magic happens.

If I could put together this much firepower in one place and ask the right questions, imagine what could be accomplished.…Read More

What’s happening at FETC 2018?

Even if you didn’t need a reason to travel to sunny Orlando in January, the opportunity to attend FETC should have you packing your comfy walking shoes and an extra suitcase for all the swag. This is my 12th year attending FETC and I have never been more excited about the edtech trends being highlighted at this conference.

Security and data privacy workshops/sessions at FETC have tech leaders packing the house. With devices now integral tools in learning environments and so many of these devices in students’ hands, school districts, parents, and community members are hammering to find the right security options for their students. Cybersecurity companies are focusing their attention on providing school districts and parents with insurance that student safety and privacy both at school and in the home are guaranteed.

Educational scavenger hunts such as Breakout EDU peppered many of the sessions. The sessions focused on both professional-development applications and classroom applications. Microsoft OneNote was even a presence at some of the sessions. These types of educational scavenger hunts are trending as participants must work together to solve a variety of clues to open the Breakout EDU strongbox. The sessions I attended demonstrated the problem-solving skills needed to reach the goal and the teacher energy was through the roof!…Read More