EdTech Magazine

DECEMBER 20, 2023

K–12 education is on the precipice of change in 2024. School IT administrators need to be ready to adapt as numerous shifts at the federal level create impacts throughout the education landscape. Affecting many schools’ budgets this year, the final round of the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funding expires in September. Many K–12 institutions relied on this funding to sustain new educational technology programs, including providing devices to teachers and students.

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EdTech Magazine

DECEMBER 20, 2023

Distributions from the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund helped schools acquire much-needed technologies. With that winding down in 2024, K–12 school leaders are worried about how they will sustain the essential IT upgrades they’ve made. The ESSER funding cliff presents risks. “With that federal funding coming to an end, school systems are suddenly going to have holes in their budgets.

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EdTech Magazine

NOVEMBER 3, 2023

The Consortium for School Networking has put together a guide to make the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s Cybersecurity Framework more accessible to K–12 IT leaders. On its website, CoSN has aggregated resources aligning to the NIST Framework, breaking them out into categories that align with each of the five areas of NIST’s guidance: Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond and Recover.

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EdTech Magazine

SEPTEMBER 22, 2023

While there is no doubt that artificial intelligence and generative AI are disruptors in the world of education, they can never replace highly trained, compassionate and dedicated human teachers. The U.S. Department of Education recently released guidelines for AI that echo this sentiment: “A top priority with AI is to keep humans in the loop and in control.

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EdTech Magazine

JUNE 6, 2023

As more school districts implemented one-to-one programs over the past few years, they were faced with a challenge. They needed a way to give students access to applications that could scale rapidly, be accessed from anywhere and seamlessly integrate with one another. The solution? Software as a Service. Cloud-hosted software has essentially become a default for educational applications, with districts largely opting for cloud-based versions of learning management systems, productivity tools, co

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EdTech Magazine

MAY 24, 2023

Cerebral palsy confined Mercy, a third grader at Jenks (Okla.) Public Schools, to a wheelchair and prevented her from speaking or fully participating in learning activities. That was until a team of teachers, therapists and technology staff worked to find a solution. They attached a tablet loaded with text-to-talk software to her chair, and those educational technology tools changed her life.

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EdTech Magazine

MAY 11, 2023

As K–12 schools adopt one-to-one device programs, they have the opportunity to introduce more assistive technologies into classrooms. These accommodations can help bring equity into schools, and in ways that don’t make students feel singled out. “When I started teaching, students who needed anything outside of that traditional pen-and-paper environment had to leave the environment in general education to be able to access those things,” Laura Hess, executive director of special education at St.

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EdTech Magazine

MARCH 28, 2023

It’s one of the biggest challenges facing educators today: K–12 students who missed lengthy stretches of school because of the pandemic are still expected to meet the benchmarks of their grade level. So, a student who missed all of second and part of third grade, for example, will still be tested at the third-grade level. Without the proper preparation, this sets up students for failure and reflects poorly on school districts when low test scores come back.

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EdTech Magazine

MARCH 27, 2023

Some 2.5 million students are smoking e-cigarettes, according to the 2022 National Youth Tobacco Survey. Concerned school leaders are turning to technology to catch students and discourage the use of these devices on campus. Possession of vaping devices in most places is illegal for those under 18. But because the vapor from e-cigarettes evaporates quickly, school authorities may find it challenging to pinpoint when an infraction has occurred.

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EdTech Magazine

MARCH 10, 2023

Junior Gunner Kimble typically gets to Johnsburg High School around 7 a.m., but by 7:30 he’s heading out the door again. Kimble makes this quick departure because he participates in a dual-credit program through Illinois’s College of Lake County. A bus takes him and other participants to the college’s Advanced Technology Center, where they’re learning trade skills.

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EdTech Magazine

MARCH 9, 2023

More than a year after Congress passed the 2021 K–12 Cybersecurity Act, the nation’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency released a report sharing best practices for K–12 schools. The law charged CISA with reviewing the risks schools face and sharing recommendations to mitigate them. Earlier this year, the agency released its report, “Partnering to Safeguard K-12 Organizations from Cybersecurity Threats.

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EdTech Magazine

FEBRUARY 17, 2023

Data storage is critical to modern education, particularly in K–12 schools. With the increasing use of technology in the classroom, the amount of data being generated and stored is growing rapidly, and that brings an issue schools must consider: bit rot. Also known as data decay, bit rot is the gradual corruption of data that occurs over time. This phenomenon can lead to the loss of important information and significantly impact schools’ data storage systems.

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EdTech Magazine

DECEMBER 12, 2022

Wi-Fi 6E, the latest version of Wi-Fi 6, adds support for new spectrum in both the U.S. and Europe. School IT managers may find it hard to keep up with each new iteration of the wireless protocol and what actions they should be taking. Here’s what they should know before making the upgrade. Should I Upgrade My School to Wi-Fi 6 or 6E? Wi-Fi is a mature technology, and most of the advances over the past few years are about fine-tuning and improving a very stable service.

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EdTech Magazine

OCTOBER 20, 2022

For many years, regardless of the industry, IT was siloed. K–12 education was no exception. However, today’s school IT leaders must contend with a hydra of challenges: limited staffing, uncertain budgets, a growing number of devices on the network, cybersecurity risks, securing the physical campus, leading digital transformation and so much more. This means IT leaders must think more broadly.

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EdTech Magazine

OCTOBER 19, 2022

The darkened classroom glows with multicolored LED string lights and lighted keyboards. Unlike your average classroom, this one looks ready for a gaming competition; that is, until you notice a young student pull up a split screen and begin to code. “Game-based learning is different,” says Nadine Ebri, a specialist with the technology innovation department for Duval County (Fla.

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EdTech Magazine

SEPTEMBER 23, 2022

With mental health in students continuing to decline, according to Forbes, K–12 schools and educators are looking for the best ways to support those who are struggling without sacrificing learning. A renewed focus on social-emotional learning in K–12 classrooms is one way districts are trying to help students overcome the increased levels of stress and trauma many have experienced during the past two and a half years.

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EdTech Magazine

JULY 14, 2022

Today, as districts get back to in-person classes after a pandemic that saw online learning thrust upon teachers and students, K–12 schools are again taking up the virtual mantle, establishing full-time programs designed as a permanent alternative to in-person learning. They are also outfitting dedicated physical spaces with technology to facilitate high-quality and engaging online education.

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EdTech Magazine

JUNE 22, 2022

Are we adequately preparing students for the 21st century digital world they will inherit? This question looms large among policymakers, educators and parents when assessing the state of computer science curriculum in K–12 schools. Among U.S. high schools, only 51 percent offer computer science coursework, according to the 2021 State of Computer Science Education report by Code.org, the Computer Science Teachers Association and the Expanding Computing Education Pathways Alliance.

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EdTech Magazine

JUNE 1, 2022

Even in its infancy, the metaverse has become a buzzword that remains a bit difficult to pin down. So, what exactly is the metaverse, and why is it such a big deal? Vriti Saraf, founder and CEO of k20 Educators, a global social learning community, explains that the metaverse is “a virtual version of everything you can do in real life. It is interoperable, owned by no one, and allows a lot of different platforms to live within it.

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EdTech Magazine

MAY 5, 2022

In the late 1990s, a computer virus shut down Val Verde Unified School District. The only solution at the time was to take a floppy disk to each computer at each school building. In those days, the IT team comprised just six people, but the district was back up and running in only two days’ time. It was all possible thanks to a team of tech integration experts, which the district has used to decentralize IT support to its school campuses for about 22 years.

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EdTech Magazine

MARCH 16, 2022

School administrators and teachers face many questions as they plan for the fast-approaching 2022-2023 school year. After more than two years of teaching under pandemic conditions, what can we expect for next school year? Will we need to plan for teaching students remotely? Will supply chain issues continue to snarl procurement of resources — especially classroom technology needs?

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EdTech Magazine

MARCH 15, 2022

Could upgrading the technology teachers use every day in their classrooms help make their work easier — and stem the tide of educators leaving school districts? According to some educational technology experts, it certainly can’t hurt. At Bay District Schools in Panama City, Fla., Rhonda Sumpter is on a mission to improve technology in support of teachers.

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EdTech Magazine

MARCH 14, 2022

Performing well in today’s digitally driven workforce requires learning the relevant skills and putting in hard work, no matter the profession or industry. But success on the job also relies on employees having access to a variety of technological tools, including software and hardware that support collaborative work, data searches and mobile operations in our 21st-century economy.

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EdTech Magazine

FEBRUARY 4, 2022

In recent years, K–12 institutions’ classroom technology investments have been gradually ticking upward. In 2019, 40 percent of teachers reported an increased use of digital-based core curriculum resources for one or more core subjects. Fifty-six percent said they were using digital supplemental materials more frequently. The onset of the pandemic certainly didn’t slow down the need for new tech.

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EdTech Magazine

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

With quarantines, staffing shortages and virtual learning days, a technology problem is the last interruption educators need when they have students’ attention. Whether a teacher is using a computer to present supplementary materials or take the class on a virtual field trip, there’s often a small window of time to capture and maintain a student’s interest.

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EdTech Magazine

JANUARY 11, 2022

Despite the increased cyber risks K–12 schools face, some still don’t have a formal cybersecurity plan in place. A poll from EdTech: Focus on K–12 in October found that, of the first three phases of a proactive cybersecurity strategy, prevention is the area where K–12 IT leaders feel they need the most help. However, nearly half of respondents said they needed help with all three of the phases or had no cybersecurity plan in place at all.

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EdTech Magazine

JANUARY 10, 2022

If there is one piece of flexible technology that’s become essential in our schools, it is the projector. Newer technology now allows more schools to provide high-quality visual experiences nearly anywhere on campus. However, not all projectors are created equal. I recently had a chance to test Epson’s PowerLite L730U, a powerful laser projector that’s not “lite” on features.

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EdTech Magazine

DECEMBER 16, 2021

Christine Pinto and Jessica Twomey, the duo behind Innovating Play, face unique challenges when it comes to integrating technology into their classrooms. “They’re just learning their letters, and capitals usually come first. So, with lowercase letters on Chromebooks, they’re all over the place,” says Pinto, who teaches kindergarten at Arcadia Unified School District in Southern California.

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EdTech Magazine

NOVEMBER 2, 2021

At St. Lucie Public Schools in Florida, students engage in competitive video gaming, known as esports. But behind the team of players, there’s another team of content creators — student journalists, graphic designers, broadcasters and others. “The entrepreneurial spirit that they’re learning through the club activities is priceless.

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EdTech Magazine

OCTOBER 13, 2021

Student engagement is a high priority for educators across K–12. In its 2021 State of Engagement Report, GoGuardian’s research insights underscore the value of learning experiences that address the whole child — creatively, cognitively and emotionally. Strong and meaningful teacher-student relationships can help make this vision a reality, especially when digital tools are used to bring students in at every step of the learning process.

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EdTech Magazine

SEPTEMBER 3, 2021

CDW announced last month that it had acquired Focal Point Data Risk, a leading U.S.-based cybersecurity services firm that specializes in cyberstrategy, governance, risk and compliance, development and data privacy services. The company, which has managed the unique challenges of protecting data within school districts, also has expertise in identity and access management, cloud security and digital transformation.

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EdTech Magazine

SEPTEMBER 2, 2021

When it comes to choosing educational technology, K–12 IT leaders have the opportunity — after more than a year of using whatever was available to achieve learning — to choose tools intentionally. Educators, administrators and technology specialists have the chance to take what they’ve learned during remote learning, evaluate what they’ve implemented and decide how they want to move forward with ed tech.

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EdTech Magazine

AUGUST 13, 2021

Rachelle Dené Poth brings educational technology into all of her classes. A teacher at Riverview Junior-Senior High School in Pennsylvania, Poth focuses on digital citizenship, artificial intelligence, and augmented and virtual reality with her STEAM students, but she also incorporates the technology into her other classes. “I do a lot of those same things in my Spanish classes as well because I love all the possibilities that are out there,” says Poth, one of EdTech’s 2021 K–12 IT influencers.

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EdTech Magazine

JULY 26, 2021

The switch to online learning was a difficult transition for many students and educators. In the past year, however, many have gotten more comfortable with using Zoom, Microsoft Teams and other videoconferencing platforms as their classroom. Some students have gotten so proficient in the applications that they’ve begun to experiment with little tricks and funny alterations, playing “pranks” on their classmates and teachers.

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EdTech Magazine

JUNE 29, 2021

The daily car ride to her brick-and-mortar school used to fill Chloe with so much anxiety that it made her physically sick and caused her to miss a ton of classroom time. Soon she was falling behind on her schoolwork, but then she discovered Poudre Global Academy, a hybrid school in Fort Collins, Colo. Now that she can choose to go into a physical classroom only two days each week, her teachers say she is thriving.

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EdTech Magazine

JUNE 29, 2021

Virtual learning had existed for more than 20 years when the pandemic shifted all students and teachers online. This unprecedented experience opened many students up to the idea of learning remotely full time, and as a result, schools across the country are considering some virtual-only options for fall. During ISTELive 21, we spoke with John Watson, founder of the Evergreen Education Group, and Claudio Zavala Jr., digital designer for Burleson Independent School District, about the lessons K–12

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EdTech Magazine

JUNE 28, 2021

While technology played a key role in education over the past 18 months, it’s not a panacea, Al Kingsley, CEO of NetSupport, warned a room of virtual attendees during a Saturday session at ISTELive, the online gathering of the International Society for Technology in Education. During his session, “Shaping your School Digital Strategy – Hints and Tips,” Kingsley outlined how to confidently create an effective digital strategy, including pointers for “bringing people along for the journey” rather

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