Online Education
Article | July 12, 2022
Spotlight on Strategies (SOS) are research-based instructional strategies for integrating Discovery Education digital curriculum resources in meaningful, effective, and practical ways. These strategies are flexible and can be used as part of in-classroom, virtual and hybrid learning environments to support critical thinking and student engagement. Tech for Tomorrow was developed in partnership with The Tech Interactive, a museum in San Jose, CA, and is designed to highlight the ways technology and innovation can better our world.
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Continuing Education
Article | November 15, 2022
K-12 teachers and learners are witnessing a shift in learning methods, and much of the change is driven by technology. In the face of the pandemic, many schools adopted classroom management software as a temporary measure, but it is fast becoming the norm. If your school is still considering refining your classroom management or switching to a new platform, it is essential to understand the advantages it offers for administrators, educators, and learners. Here are three ways classroom management enriches K-12 education and why you should embrace it in 2023.
Student Security
The emergence of the use of laptops, tablets, and other devices has exposed students to not just increased screen time but also cybersecurity mishaps. Classroom management solutions offer extensive security modules that enable educators to keep a firm grasp on the safety of students online. These solutions offer visibility across devices used by students, which can prove to be mission critical in the case of data leaks. The two features that address device management concerns that can be addressed with these solutions are:
Web filtering
This software protects students by restricting access to inappropriate, objectionable, and harmful content that can impact students and risk the school’s network security. Combined with classroom management, web filtering provides richer insights into devices and fosters effective learning.
Mobile device management
Technology investment doesn’t come cheap. This is why mobile device management, or MDM, is so valuable. It helps the school’s technology department to keep a close eye on the access and user management, permissions, application deployment, remote access, lost equipment tracking, and so much more in order to prevent any kind of security breaches, and is especially handy in a hybrid classroom environment.
Collaborative Activities
Classroom management solutions can prove to be a meaningful investment only if they can address the most important need of a classroom, i.e., collaborative learning. Thanks to technology, collaboration in the classroom has become seamless and more engaging than ever before. Here are some ways that it is creating rewarding learning experiences.
Screensharing
Screensharing allows teachers to share their screen with the whole class and even allow certain students to share theirs. This encourages collaboration and allows teachers to conduct two-way discussions during each class.
Secure messaging
Classroom management solutions specialize in providing teachers with complete control of the online class and maintaining decorum. Teachers can lock screens and even devices, close tabs, and even message students individually to keep them engaged.
Student Support
One of the best features to ensure student engagement is an avenue for students to reach out to teachers. This way, students are able to stay in the loop, get their queries cleared, and avoid neglecting doubts and problems due to the inability to connect with their teachers.
Better Learning
Being able to cultivate ample learning opportunities in a creative, fun setting is one of the best ways to use classroom management platforms. Here are some ways that such solutions reduce the hurdles that many schools and educators face in creating conducive and enriching learning environments.
Flexibility
Classroom management promotes learning by supporting multiple settings for learning, like in-person classes, remote and mixed modes of instruction.
Higher teacher efficiency
Increasing teacher efficiency is another benefit schools can look forward to when equipping classes with classroom management solutions. Thanks to features like pop quizzes and report card generation, classroom management eliminates extensive paper work and promotes teacher efficiency.
What’s the Word?
There is little doubt that technology can propel learning and education to new heights. With the above features, it is easy to see why classroom management is a substantial piece in the puzzle for schools trying to figure out their long-term game plan for learning delivery methods. The right solution will not only be important, but it will also be a turning point in improving educational outcomes in K–12 schools, which are always looking for ways to make learning more fun and interesting while also making teachers' jobs easier and reducing teacher burnout.
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Education Technology, Continuing Education
Article | August 8, 2022
In 2021, Class, a virtual classroom app that combines with Zoom, neared unicorn status after receiving funding from SoftBank Vision Fund II. But, with just 10 months and a string of top edtech U.S. investors to back it up, the app’s spectacular rise only speaks to the boom in online education in the past two years.
Online learning has changed. It went from centering around accessibility to becoming the primary delivery method almost overnight. So when it comes to screen time, this newest addition to our already screen-filled lives is uninvited. Especially for children, it only meant that screen time was highly monitored during lockdown. And that change came with struggles. Between configuring the technicalities of accessing online classrooms and figuring out how to engage students, teachers have faced an uphill battle all along.
There is plenty of research to suggest that too much screen time has negative health implications, but education has to continue at all costs. 2021 was full of stories of students finding creative ways of avoiding classes or not attending them. One 8-year-old found a loophole in Zoom’s app last year that locked her out of her Zoom class. Even Zoom’s technical team failed to find the issue. It led to a goose chase into discovering that the child was locking herself out by inputting the wrong password over 20 times.
Screen Time Vs Screen-Tied
Screen time has five types: television, video games, social media, music, and reading. The key is not just to regulate screen time but also the content that is being consumed. Technology may have evolved, but our ability to use it for long durations and to conduct sensory tasks like learning over the internet hasn’t. Between education, video-games, social media and TV, distribution meant calibrating what type of content should be consumed in order to reduce the negative impact.
Approximately 75% of all teenagers own a smartphone today. In addition, a majority of young adults report video games as their go-to activity in their free time. While research on the use of video games may be inconclusive, prolonged exposure is nevertheless known to rewire developing brains. There’s also a high risk to susceptible minds with regards to unfiltered and harmful messages from social media, which is a massive source of increased screen time for children and teenagers.
All these issues call for a meaningful control of screen time. But in a sea of endless information and uninterrupted content, how do you identify the right balance?
Culling Unnecessary Content
For educators, the aim is clear: to balance screen time so precariously that children do not lose their will to learn or play. Parents and educational institutions must identify the following objectives through the content they are letting their families consume:
Developing digital skills to prepare children for higher education and digital careers
Raising digital citizens that use online mediums to contribute to their communities
Exposing learners to new ideas and concepts in a safe context
Acquiring creative skills, interpersonal expression, and etiquette for engagement online
There is no dearth of educational content online, but it is important to achieve a balance between the educational and the entertainment consumption of learners. On occasion, both can be combined through interactive shows and programs that do not expose learners to addictive behaviors.
Designating screen-free times, activities, and even locations like meals, traveling, or bedrooms can help learners build a habit of controlling their screen time.
To Wrap It Up
There is no doubt that the pandemic provided online learning with a much-needed shot in the arm. This also means that screen time has exponentially increased. Thanks to both virtual schools and a complete lockdown on going outside, young learners were left with no option but to turn to their screens. Whether to connect to their peers, attend classes, or spend their free time, learners are faced with a barrage of screen time that can affect their ability to navigate a post-pandemic world. Parents and educators must take it upon themselves to lay down the guidelines that drive the harmonious use of electronics without encouraging total dependence on them.
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Education Technology
Article | January 18, 2021
Due to the increased exposures and positive COVID-19 cases, the educational industry is adapting to the fourth industrial revolution more swiftly than intended. Both students and educational institutions are realizing the requirement of technology to support the learning process. It has also led to the development of digital badges and the adoption of blockchain in this sector.
But, why should we adopt blockchain? Blockchain which is originally known as being the support of digital currencies like bitcoin is not new to the academe. Blockchain can be used as a validation tool for learning. With blockchain as the backbone of the educational system, institutions will become able to list courses, manage training badges, and issue certificates to the students. It will in return reduce the chances of issuing fraudulent certificates. Moreover, having high-end encryption, even the most experienced hackers will not be able to tamper the credentials.
And, what’s a digital badge? A digital badge validates the accomplishment, skills, and certifications of students. It can also be offered to the student after completing internships.
In the educational sector, a digital badge can be acquired by a student after learning a skill or completing a course. It should be considered by every institution to help students in showcasing their skills in the job market as well. The digital badges are multipurpose. It can be used for certifications to show the acquired skills, transparency for other universities or schools to collect key details of the student, and validation to show that the individual has participated in a workshop or training program.
Besides the basic reasons discussed, how these digital badges can help and why should institutions opt for digital badges?
Why Should Educational Institutions Opt For Digital Badges?
Among numerous reasons why an educational institution should go for digital badges, let’s check some of the most important reasons.
Personalized Learning
Micro-credentials help in dividing the part of the subjects into certain skills that enables students and educational institutions to design plans according to their needs. With the availability of personalized learning, a learner can complete the course anywhere regardless of the time and earn a badge.
Skill-Based Learning
A digital badge can enable students to showcase their skills while applying for an internship or part-time job. These badges must be connected with professional capabilities that confirm that it is worthy to the students. These skill badges either can be for technical skills like programming or soft skills like leadership, teamwork, and so on.
Open Standards
As we know that digital badges are verifiable, it offers a chance for students to learn something outside their typical classroom. It increases the achievement and abilities of the students creating a new opportunity for them at the time of recruitment.
Some of the companies and institutions that are using digital certifications include Certif-ID, Stamford University, Georgetown University, and MIT. For those who want to implement blockchain and digital badges in their educational institutions, you can easily hire developers that will build a powerful system to glorify the entire education process.
Wrapping it up!
To maintain educational records, a digital badge is the most innovative solution. Moreover, the education industry is gradually moving towards record maintenance on blockchain to eliminate fake degrees due to which many deserving candidates lose their chance to attain better opportunities. It is also beneficial for the companies as they will not have to hire less staff for cross-checking the information which will increase their profitability and productivity as well. Despite the increasing acceptance of digital badges and blockchain in the education sector, many educators are unaware of their power. Plausibly, it is about to change soon.
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