It’s the last Eduporium Weekly post of the year and, as we get set to see what excitement 2020 will bring for us and the education community, we’re looking back at the most impactful topics we covered this year. Like every year, there were, of course, some important points to be made and key topics to be discussed by educators and educational leaders. And, as always, there were plenty of new EdTech trends to be tried, dissected, and ruled on. So, we invite you to take a moment and relive some of the most popular topics of 2019 in this post and we wish everybody in our community a safe a happy start to 2020 as you enjoy your Holiday break for the next few days. 

Artificial Intelligence in Education

One of the biggest topics on the minds of many in the education arena in 2019 (likely continuing into 2020) has been the implementation of artificial intelligence in education. This technology is likely not close to being fully developed, but has already made an impact on the way that teachers teach. Being able to personalize learning for today’s students presents them with such a huge advantage and artificial intelligence is one of the leading technologies for making that possible. We know that each student learns in a different way, but it’s not always obvious to educators how they should be teaching them. With the help of AI-enabled tools, educators are more likely to see the weak points in their instruction, understand the gaps in the ways a child learns, and use the technology to come up with a solution that works for all. 

In one of our most popular Eduporium Weekly posts of the year, we discussed artificial intelligence and the impact that it could have on teachers, students, and the education community. One of the biggest topics surrounding AI in schools, as we mentioned, is the ability to create greater personalization. It’s already made an impact on what we would describe as at a basic level, helping teachers gain insights into what each of their students needs in order to maximize their growth. The way it works is by collecting more precise and extensive data on students, filling in the gaps that teachers might miss. The more data that educators have on their students, the more effectively they can teach them by focusing on their strong suits. 

The rest of the post covered other relevant topics when it comes to artificial intelligence in learning. We discussed how teachers can use AI to help students develop certain sets of skills and prepare them for a future in which they might be working with artificial intelligence tools a lot. Despite its potential for completely shifting education into something more efficient and personal for each student, AI still has a long way to go before it’s ubiquitous and a lot of what’s going on in the space right now are just predictions. Like we said, once we find a way to use AI to create ideal educational content (that’s both efficient and affordable), it seems likely that educational leaders will want to take advantage of that to maximize efficiency and save money. 

Exploring STEM Careers

Next on our rundown of most popular Eduporium Weekly posts of the year has to do with potential STEM careers for today’s students. We know that there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding just what types of jobs today’s students will be walking into and even greater debate about the kinds of skills they’ll need to succeed at them. While not every student will wind up with a job that falls somewhere within the world of STEM, a large percentage of them probably will due simply to where the demand currently is and where it is projected to be. With this prediction in mind, we wholeheartedly encourage teachers and school leaders to get students excited about STEM education and help them understand that this kind of learning can have a massive impact on their futures. 

Titled ‘Exploring STEM Careers,’ this edition of the Eduporium Weekly was written with the intention of getting educators to try new approaches for inspiring students towards STEM. We started by offering some tips for teachers on how they could help generate some interest in STEM careers among their students. Part of the reason there are so many vacant STEM jobs is because there are not enough qualified workers to fill them and part of the reason there are not enough qualified workers to fill them is because so many kids lose interest in STEM early in their lives. One of the most effective solutions for combatting this is for schools or districts to set up large-scale job training programs so that kids can get actual experience in any number of STEM environments, allowing them to see what it’s like before deciding something is not for them. 

In the remainder of the post, we covered strategies educators could use to help students gain a better understanding of the relationship between STEM and future careers. Knowing the statistics, including how much STEM jobs are increasing and which fields are the most in-demand, is something we feel is worth students’ attention. With this knowledge, it gets a little easier for teachers to help students see the connection between STEM and a promising career in the future. We wrap up the post discussing some of the specific jobs today’s students might be able to obtain if they keep working hard, including those in the area of robotics and some potential next-gen tech careers. But, for now, since we don’t know quite what careers will look like in five or 10 years, we’ll keep helping teachers keep their students’ minds sharp—and open to anything. 

The EdTech Buying Process

Back in June, one of our Eduporium Weekly posts focused on the EdTech buying process, including ways in which educators can get smarter about their purchasing. Since we’re always trying to get educators to see the value certain educational technologies have in their classroom rather than just jumping into purchasing the first cool thing they see, this is typically an important topic for us. At the same time, there are so many options that educators could choose from, so we’ve found it especially helpful for them to come up with a process that works well for them, their resources, their budget, their students, and their school. Like we said in the first paragraph of the post, the EdTech purchasing process should be something that’s enjoyable rather than stressful. 

In terms of making the best EdTech decisions, it’s important for educators to remember not to rush into it. The most valuable EdTech tools are the ones that will impact students in both the short term and the long term rather than something that’s cheap or trendy right now. And, there is no best EdTech tool that’s guaranteed to boost every student’s achievement or make every teacher’s job easier. The simple truth is that the best EdTech tool is different for everybody. Knowing what will work best in your classroom environment, with your level of tech expertise, and with your students’ learning styles is the most important starting point. This is what will likely help educators the most when they’re doing their research and help them to get smarter with their dollars. 

It wouldn’t be a blog post from us without our two cents when it comes to tech tool suggestions for teachers. In this particular post, we provide some common recommendations for maker tools that are versatile enough to make a positive impact in a lot of different learning environments. If you are looking to tweak the way you go about making EdTech purchasing decisions, we definitely recommend giving this post a read and gaining some insight into how to avoid wasteful purchases with your valuable dollars. Finally, we give suggestions for revising the purchasing process, like maybe giving your normal routine a shakeup or buying some trial units to make sure a technology is a good fit. We hope you give it a read! 

The Factors Driving Today’s STEM Education

The fourth-most popular Eduporium Weekly post we had this year was just from the end of November. For this post, we talked about some of the reasons STEM education is so popular and important, the roles that various technologies play, how educators can create positive STEM experiences, and more. Essentially, we were trying to convey that there are a lot of reasons that a STEM education has become increasingly important for today’s students. With the skills they’ll develop through all of their STEM experiences, students will be much better positioned for the real world. So, whether it’s the state of the economy, the creation of new jobs, the continuous evolution of the workplace, or something else, a lot goes into creating the ideal STEM education experiences for today’s students. 

One of the ways that teachers and school leaders can create positive experiences for students is simply by starting small. Pedagogical approaches to STEM are always changing and this is partly due to the availability of new technologies in education. One of the approaches that’s proven to be successful is taking the time to lean on analytics. Students provide a lot of data in terms of what they learn, how they learn, and how quickly they learn. Gathering actionable data at the start of a STEM rollout can really help teachers create experiences that matter for students. Besides that, we touched on some of the technologies that are driving today’s STEM learning, including wearables, digital games, and virtual reality devices. Plus, there’s always coding tools that are easy for educators to integrate in lots of different environments without doing anything too big. 

As technology continues to advance, much of it is finding its way into classrooms. This includes things like virtual reality, the Internet of Things, and more—all of which are going to likely play a larger role in how STEM concepts are taught throughout the next few years. Finally, we touch on ways that educators can facilitate positive experiences for students and how STEM fits into early education. These include creating communities within which students are regularly engaged with high-quality STEM experiences and helping to facilitate high-quality projects. And, as always, don’t be afraid to try STEM in the early grades. The early experiences students have with STEM learning in the classroom after school, or through enrichment programs can go a long way in determining how well they’re prepared for a STEM-filled future. 

Integrating 3D Printing in Education

For the final section of this week’s Eduporium Weekly, we’re looking back at a post all about 3D printing. This educational trend designed to spark creative engineering, problem solving, and collaboration among students in school makerspaces has been very popular for years now. As it gets more common, educators have learned a lot about how to best integrate 3D printing into curricula and which printers are the most practical. With all of the external factors in mind, we provided some tips for how to most successfully integrate 3D printing into education, including what it takes to bring manufacturing into schools, the benefits of 3D printing in the makerspace, and even some of the skills students can learn. 

The post starts off explaining some of the benefits that 3D printing in schools has for students, including the fact that it helps them turn conceptual ideas into physical renderings, excites them more about learning, and gives kids the freedom to design. Since 3D printing can be incorporated in almost any academic subject, it’s fairly easy for educators to find a place for it within the curriculum, too. As students take part in 3D printing projects, they’re able to build creative skills through active learning. At the top of this list are critical thinking and collaboration—two of the most important 21st century skills and two that can be developed through 3D printing. Students are free to create just about anything they’d like. 

Next, we talked about how the addition of a makerspace can help teachers bring 3D printing to their students. In makerspaces, there are so many ways to incorporate 3D printing and educators can use this opportunity to help students develop a maker mindset. If classroom 3D printing is more your scene, we shared some ideas for that, too. Since 3D printers are more portable and functional than ever, teachers can use them more easily in multiple subjects or in multiple instances in a given lesson. Finally, we attempted to combat any nerves that educators may have by detailing some troubleshooting processes and covering some helpful basics. So, there you have it—some of the top topics to hit our blog in 2019! As we head into 2020, we wish you and your school communities continued success and a very happy new year!


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