Looking for some practical ways to get more out of your classroom tech? Check out these eight tips for ideas on how to use technology to enhance your students’ learning:
1. Take a virtual field trip – You may not be able to take your students to the Louvre in person, but you can use the web to find photos, videos, articles, and guides that let them go there virtually. Use this virtual field trip idea to connect your students to literature, art, history, science, current events, and more without ever leaving the classroom.
2. Let everyone answer – Get a feel for how well students understand a concept by using electronic response devices. This handheld technology allows students to answer questions in real time. You can then display the class’s responses (individual student answers are not shown) and talk about topics that may need additional clarification. This is a great alternative to raised hands since it allows all students to participate and engage with the discussion directly.
3. Collaborate with the class – If you have set up a classroom wiki, now’s the time to start. Wikis allow students to get involved in the curriculum by sharing ideas and collaborating with each other. You can use these for a number of projects including group reports, stories, discussions, debates, questions, and more, or you can use them simply as a way to help the class interact and learn together by allowing students free expression.
4. Brainstorm with the right tools – There are a number of excellent brainstorming and mind mapping tools out there—Bubbl.us is a free one—that can help you and your students draw out your ideas in a usable way. These tools can be used when planning art projects, mapping math concepts, and more.
5. Use more monitors – Get more than one monitor for your desk. Working with multiple monitors can simplify tasks like reporting grades or creating worksheets. There are many places that sell cheap & quality monitors online.
6. Keep up to date on new apps – New and amazing educational apps are being released every day. Be sure to keep up to date on the latest and greatest apps that you can use in the classroom. When you see something that you think would work well, don’t be afraid to try it out.
7. Educate yourself – One of the most useful ways you can use technology is to keep yourself up to date on the latest developments in the education field—what are other teachers doing? What resources are out there to help you help your students learn? What should you do when you run into problems? Read blogs (like Edudemic) and get active on social media (Twitter is a great place to connect to other educators) to find ideas, advice, encouragement, tools, and more.
8. Get organized – Once you start finding all these great resources, it’s important that you keep yourself organized so that you don’t lose track of them. Use bookmarking sites to keep track of websites that you like. Create spreadsheets to help you remember what that awesome idea for next week’s class was.
What are some tech tips that you’ve found useful?
About the Author:
Brian Jensen works with Dell. In his spare time he enjoys traveling, cooking and spending time with his family. He has a passion for learning and writing about all things technology. To see some deals Dell has going on used computers, visit Dell Auction today.
