EdTech Tools

The most important characteristic of any piece of technology an educator uses is its ability to help the teacher get the most out of the face-to-face time with students. Today's TeachThought #ReflectiveTeacher challenge is to "Name the top edtech tools that you use on a consistent basis in the classroom, and rank them in terms of their perceived (by you) effectiveness." Here it goes:

1. Sophia/Google Forms: I am a strong believer in the flipped classroom, especially in math and science. The driving question behind the flipped class movement is "how can I get more out of my face-to-face time with my students?" I have been flipping for 3.5 years and was until this year, the only person in my school doing it on a regular basis. At the end of last year, a handful of my colleagues made the decision to flip and are all-in this year. Throughout the district, teachers are using Camtasia, Screencast-o-matic, PowToons, NearPod, and EdPuzzle. I prefer to use Sophia with Google Forms. I am able to see how long students spent on the site and get instant responses to the questions on the embedded Google Form. Students walk into class and I already know what they know about the upcoming lesson so I can use every bit of class to help each individual improve.

2. Plickers: If you haven't seen this, you have to try it out. Each student holds up a unique card and your smartphone or tablet reads the classes answers to multiple choice questions. It gives instant analysis of who got it correct and a bar graph for the entire class. If you are or can be using multiple choice questions for formative assessment, try Plickers.

3. Apperson Data Link: For the multiple choice portion of our tests, we use Apperson software that gives a ton of data. You see individual results, question by question breakdowns, and whole class results. It even has a formula to tell you if a specific question was good, based on the class results and how students who did well answered that question. If you're just looking to get a grade from a multiple choice test, stick with Scantrons. If you're looking to use the results to guide your instruction, look into Apperson.

4. Laptop Cart: I have 12 laptops housed in my room which come in handy often. Students that didn't do their flipped homework are able to do this before school or during class while the rest of the students are engaged doing some other activity. We also have online assignments through sites like Desmos and Graphingstories.

5. Other: I use these in class, but not as regularly: Geometers' Sketchpad, TI CBRs, iPevo Document Camera, and iPevo Interective Projector.

6. Google Hangouts: I am putting this last because it is something I will be using regularly and I think will have a big effect on learning, but I am not starting until this week. I am going to have a hangout for each of my classes 1 night a week where they can log in and ask questions. I'm going to treat it like a college professor would office hours, but multiple students will be able to get help at once. I am really excited because it will be like adding an extra class per week without having to leave my house!