Educational Technology is an exciting field and process for educators to help enliven learning. It is an evolving process of discussion, design, evaluation and rejigging to ensure that technology and techniques are used to make the learning process the best it can be.
Let’s look at what educational technology is for, what it involves as well as some concrete examples from the classroom and learning environment.
Why Is Educational Technology Important?
Educational technology is a field of study that focuses on improving teaching and learning, and so is important as it makes sure that education is constantly improving.
It does this by taking a structured approach to investigate the process of analyzing a method for its effectiveness, then designing and implementing that method to get the most out of both the educator and the learner.
A follow-up process of evaluating the instructional environment and their parts, such as learning materials, learners, and the learning process all come together to form educational technology.
Educational technology enables teachers to engage their students in unique and innovative ways while also making sure the best use of the newest technology and methods are being implemented.
What Are Some Examples of Educational Technology?
Educational technology comes in many forms including transformative approaches to learning, use of multimedia, internet-enabled learning such as blackboard-style systems, and personal tablets or digital readers.
Digital readers enable a veritable library of information to be at a student’s fingertips, all without having to lug around heavy textbooks.
3D printing is a way to easily create models and components to help with learning in math, physics, biology and many other subjects. There are large databases and websites containing many free designs that can be used with any 3D printer.
Virtual reality and augmented reality give engaging audiovisual experiences that are really only limited by the software and creative direction behind it. This is the perfect way to conduct tours and visit historical sites without needing to organize expensive travel.
Gamification is a way to turn mundane or boring tasks into more like a game, which can help drive engagement and even a sense of competition among learners. Gamification should be approached warily but it can be a highly effective and addicting tool.
Websites designed around educational technology will have class plans, worksheets, learning activities and much more so that a student can get the most out of it.
How Does Technology Help Educators?
There are many websites designed to help educators, especially by leveraging technology and research on educational technology and containing large collections of materials.
One example is Twinkl. This is a huge database of teacher-created planning, assessment materials, and teaching resources aligned to the curriculum you need.
Color by Number teaching resources on Twinkl cover age ranges of over 9 categories, from 0 to 5 years old, and then every year above that to 14 and over. They range in difficulty and teachable subjects, and can be filtered by age range.
Color by Number sheets tick many boxes for both teachers and students. The interactive nature helps draw kids in, while the use of colors and sections helps guide students about how to be creative in a simple yet effective manner.
For math-based sheets, the colors offer a handy way for students to self-check as well as require little instruction for them to start working on it, making it useful for students who sometimes get lost with more complex tasks.
Color by Number is also the perfect holiday activity as it doesn’t require constant supervision, and preparation time is very minimal, especially if provided over a digital learning system which removes the need to do mass amounts of printing.
It is also enjoyable for very young children pre-adolescents, meaning you can cover a large age range with engaging activities and help them process symbols, practice following logical instructions and also see a finished, coherent product.Â
