Rethink Edtech time in the classroom

Key points:

Districts throughout the country are looking at budget deficits and increasingly reduced reserves now that stimulus funds have decreased, forcing superintendents to make difficult decisions about what to reduce, what to consolidate and how to reduce costs.

I've been there.

As a district superintendent for three separated counties of Virginia before being appointed Superintendent of Public Instruction for the State, I often saw myself forced to reduce costs in years of tight budget. With a good reason, one of the key questions asked by educational leaders is how “something is being used. After all, we are responsible for being good taxpayers dollars, and use is a often intuitive way to determine What ends in the tax cut block.

But when it comes to evaluating the return of edtech's investments, that line of thought can be disappointed.

The great teachers are masterful when it comes to weaving digital resources in the classroom experiences to obtain a preview of topics or provide critical reinforcement outbreaks. They could captivate a land science class with a 5 -minute video about volcanic formations. Or inject an animation in class to incorporate an entertaining or identifiable explanation of a concept of physics before teenage eyes begin to glaze. When it comes to supplementary content, bursts of short use do not mean that the material lacks value. In fact, it is often the opposite.

The relatively small “doses” of the lessons of supplements of digital content and the learning of cement students, among other things, compromise and motivate students, fill the gaps in the central instruction material, provide specific support or reinforcement of Concepts or connect lessons with real world scenarios. It is the educational equivalent of adding powder protein to your morning shake.

Over time, the educational impact of these resources often overlooked can add. Consider the concept of “added marginal gains”, the idea that if it improves in a consistent but minimal way, even in just 1 percent, those small profits eventually become notable improvements. We see this everywhere in our lives, from saving small amounts of money over time to starting a regular physical exercise routine. Small quantities, few improvements and incremental progress can cause great increases.

But don't take my word for that. The research has long backed the value of supplementary lessons, showing again and again that the high quality content has a positive impact on the students' scores.

The data collected in five states showed statistically significant increases (“moderate” evidence, in ESSA terms) in mathematics, English language arts and science scores among students who had access to complementary resources in the classroom. A separate analysis, validated by Learnplatform (Essa Tier III), showed a 28 percent increase In literacy skills competition for what some administrators might think as a “light touch” intervention.

Of course, when facing a flooded market of edtech companies that has sells apparently endless supplementary programs and promise to change the career of students' performance, it can be a challenge to evaluate what works.

But there are best practices. The recommendations of the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium include ensuring that lessons include information based on real events that are historically precise; That learning is woven along the games or videos, from beginning to end; And that games, videos or other material come with support for teachers on how to use them effectively in a classroom. Perhaps the most important thing: they urge the adoption of supplementary material that is really fun.

Of course, none of this is new for the great teachers, who understand how to carefully integrate and merge digital resources into their pedagogical practices in a way that motivates students and explain concepts that are more relevant to contemporary students. They understand that even small moments in the classroom can generate learning opportunities.

I do not envy those who deal with these decisions, trying to weigh the value of a line in a budget against another. While looking with cloudy eyes on a financial spreadsheet, some might be tempted to give up anything other than a central instructional activity. As the rapid approaches of the budget season and district leaders begin to draw their financial path without pandemic help, they must remain aware that when it comes to edtech, time and results are not always correlated.