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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.

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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Gamification tools that increase student engagement

Who out there doesn’t enjoy some form of game? Whether it be watching or playing a sport, a card game, a board game, or video games, most people would say they at least enjoy one.

Games are part of many people’s lives–so why not use them to benefit students when teaching?

From a 5th grade teacher lens, it is evident that students are more likely to engage in an educational activity when it is “gamified,” and even more so when it is gamified with technology. …Read More

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How esports promotes inclusion and belonging

I grew up a casual gamer, half-decent at a few games like ‘Yoshi’s Island’ and ‘Rush.’ The most intense PC games I ever played were ‘Minesweeper’ and ‘Frogger.’ Esports and gaming weren’t something I thought would be a major part of my career.

Had you told high school me that I would be a computer science and information technology teacher, she would have not believed you. On top of that, to tell high school me that she would be heavily involved in growing esports throughout the state of Utah, and she would have audibly laughed at you. Seriously–gaming was not on my radar AT ALL. 

But let me tell you how esports found me–and why I’m so happy it did.…Read More

How teachers use Wordle–and other games–for next-level engagement

“Did you get the Wordle today?” What initially began as something Josh Wardle created to serve as a personal daily game has become a household name, with users sharing their Wordle progress on social platforms and urging friends to start playing. And now, teachers are using Wordle, along with other games with viral status, to boost student engagement.

The popular game tasks users with guessing–in six guesses–a five-letter word. When users guess a word, a green square indicates they have guessed a correct letter in its correct spot. A yellow square indicates that the letter is in the word, but the user has put it in the wrong spot. And a gray square indicates that the letter is not in the word.

In a January tweet, teacher Samantha Morra shared how teachers can create their own custom Wordle words of any length–a great way to add longer and more challenging vocabulary or other relevant words and concepts to a lesson.…Read More

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Discovery Education and Venture Valley Partner to Launch New Educational Initiative Teaching Financial Literacy Through Games and Resources

Silver Spring, MD. (Monday, March 7, 2022) – Venture Valley video game team and Discovery Education announced today a new educational initiative – Discover Venture Valley – helping students build financial literacy and business skills. Discover Venture Valley empowers students in grades 6-12 to build financial and business basics through a suite of standards-aligned resources and by taking on the role of a budding entrepreneur in the new Venture Valley video game. Discover Education is the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports learning wherever it takes place. The Venture Valley game is a project of the Singleton Foundation for Financial Literacy and Entrepreneurship. 

Discover Venture Valley helps students discover and develop their entrepreneurial spirit by exploring the financial and business basics explored in the Venture Valley game. Accompanying digital resources – including classroom activities, a video topic series, and educator guides – align to learning standards across multiple disciplines including English language arts, math, business, and financial literacy. 

“We believe that financial competence empowers individuals to do great things for themselves, their communities and the world. We are excited to launch this partnership with Discovery Education, as they share our commitment to enriching and empowering students with an interactive and exciting digital game,” said Roger Hector, Executive Producer for the Venture Valley game. “Discover Venture Valley builds and sustains student interest in financial literacy through entrepreneurship and play, and is the perfect complement to Venture Valley, which lets those interested in becoming entrepreneurs learn basic business concepts and skills by applying them in a game.” …Read More

PresenceLearning Partners with Hasbro to Bring Beloved Characters and Classic Games to the PresenceLearning Therapy Platform

NEW YORK, February 18, 2022 – PresenceLearning, the leading provider of online therapy solutions for schools and clinicians, has partnered with Hasbro, a global play and entertainment company, to bring some of the most-beloved characters and classic games to the PresenceLearning therapy platform.

Through this partnership, speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, and behavioral and mental health professionals will be able to use PresenceLearning’s exclusive digital adaptations of Potato Head, Candy Land, and Clue Jr. with students during online therapy sessions conducted on the company’s award-winning therapy platform. PresenceLearning has modified the traditional games to facilitate cooperative play, problem-solving skills, and visual perception skills. With the addition of Hasbro properties, the company continues to invest in building a content library that can help personalize each student’s therapy session. 

“Our partnership with Hasbro is part of a broader initiative to offer a next-generation therapy platform that helps providers deliver fun, engaging and effective therapy sessions,” said Kate Eberle Walker, CEO of PresenceLearning. “We’re excited for the potential to create more dynamic therapy experiences by incorporating these iconic characters and games into therapy activities. When children carry over content experiences from their therapy sessions into their play at home, it helps them to make connections and practice skills that can support their progress.”…Read More

Osmo From BYJU’s Names Kar-Han Tan, Ph.D., Head of Computer Vision and Machine Learning

Palo Alto, CA–Feb 10, 2022–Award-winning STEAM brand, Osmo from BYJU’S, announces Kar-Han Tan’s appointment as Head of Computer Vision and Machine Learning, effective immediately. With three decades leading teams in robotics and AI research and development, Tan will further thedevelopment of a world-class computer vision and AI platform that aids in the creation of new products, games, and devices incorporating gains made in deep learning technology. In addition, he will lead a growing global team to research, develop, and optimize new algorithms for computer vision and AI-enabled features such as object detection, object recognition, hand tracking, pattern matching, and hand-drawing analysis, among others, all in an effort to create the best learning tools and outcomes.

“We were impressed by Kar-Han’s extensive experience leading R&D teams in robotics, AI, and deep learning,” says Mark Solomon, Senior Vice President of Products and Platform at BYJU’S. “His background will help Osmo expand the usage of computer vision technology across BYJU’S various products and platforms, further meeting the needs of learners of all ages everywhere.”

Tan, who was born and educated in Singapore, most recently founded Helpful Robotics LLC, which designed and built an AI-enabled autonomous assistive robot from the ground up, and fostered a collaboration between scientists and engineers located in the San Francisco Bay Area, including the University of California San Francisco, and at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.…Read More

Discovery Education and TrueSport Partner to Present a Unique, Virtual Town Hall Exploring the Life Skills Students Need for Success Beyond Sports

Silver Spring, MD (Thursday, January 27, 2022) — TrueSport – the outreach education arm of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) dedicated to transforming the culture of youth sport – and Discovery Education today announce a partnership providing powerful educational tools to equip students with resources that help build life skills and core values for success on and off the field of play. Discovery Education is the worldwide edtech leader whose state-of-the-art digital platform supports learning wherever it takes place. 

The partnership has produced The Mindset of a TrueSport Champion Town Hall, which premieres February 1 at 1 PM ET in time for the 2022 Winter Olympic Games. In an engaging 24-minute video, students meet with Olympic, Paralympic, and Team USA athletes to explore how the values of sportsmanship, character building & life skills, and clean & healthy performance drive their success in both athletics and life. Included in the Town Hall are Team USA weightlifter Abby Raymond, wheelchair basketball Paralympian and three-time medalist Trey Jenifer, and Olympic boxing silver medalist Richard Torrez, Jr. Learn more about The Mindset of a TrueSport Champion Town Hall here.  

“The lessons and values learned through sport prepare young people to be more successful now, and in the future. The Mindset of a TrueSport Champion Town Hall is designed to inspire students, educators, coaches, and families to reflect on their choices and core values so that youth sport is about more than just winning,” said Dr. Jennifer Royer, the Senior Director of TrueSport and Awareness at USADA. “With Discovery Education as a partner, we are thrilled to take our mission of transforming the culture of youth sport through education even further.”  …Read More

Slooh Brings Space Exploration to Classrooms Worldwide with ‘The Online Telescope for Teachers’

Washington Depot, Connecticut, January 18, 2022 – Slooh, the only organization offering live online telescope feeds to students, is now offering an affordable way for teachers to bring the power of its network of online telescopes to all students with The Online Telescope for Teachers. This solution can change how teachers teach astronomy by providing opportunities for students to explore and analyze more than 1,000 real-world space objects and events. 

“Slooh’s innovation is that an unlimited number of teachers and students can share online telescopes in a manner that includes an exchange of ideas and opportunities to learn from each other,” said Michael Paolucci, founder of Slooh. “Just as kids learn to play video games by watching other people play, the sharing inherent in the platform enables students to learn from the amazing things other teachers and students do with our online telescopes.”

In addition to online telescope access, this new solution provides elementary through college-level teachers integrated curriculum-based lesson plans that can be used with students and ongoing professional development to help educators easily use the technology.…Read More

How to bundle education device management

Technology has opened up endless possibilities in classrooms around the world. For one, access to education has been significantly broadened, facilitating a wide range of teaching strategies and learning styles. The pandemic accelerated the adoption rates of educational technology solutions. In some cases, demand far outstripped supply, leading to backlogs of requests for laptops, tablets, Chromebooks, and other school-issued devices. With the flood of school-issued devices, the need for education device management is fast becoming the norm rather than the exception.

Schools are always looking for ways to keep their students engaged and learning–and implementing technology can do that. Technology is changing the way we teach and learn. In today’s world, where children are already familiar with tablets and smartphones from watching videos on YouTube or playing games at home, learning through technology will likely become more exciting than daunting (and this goes for teachers too).

One of the most important aspects of using technology in schools is responsible and secure management: ensuring devices are protected from viruses, malware, and other threats that can cause significant disruption to critical school operations.…Read More

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