Abstract
The one-to-one laptop support, WiFi and hotspots may have begun closing the digital divide. Many cities took a leadership role and initiative to provide free internet access by prioritizing the improvements in their digital infrastructure to help those families who fell into poverty due to the effects of the pandemic. However, there are many challenges in the field of educational technology, for example, the lack of professional training of the latest educational technology, the inequity in education, mental health issues, and cyber safety concerns. This paper will discuss the current landscape, emerging trends in K-12 from a global perspective, future directions in education, and cyber safeguards.
Keywords: educational technology, trends, challenges, possibilities, cyber safeguards
Challenges and Possibilities for the Future of Educational Technology
If any good came out of the pandemic, it was the federal and state funding and the gracious donations from small and large donors that came to the districts and schools to help bridge the digital divide. The one-to-one laptop support, Wi-Fi and hotspots may have begun closing the divide. Many cities also took a leadership role and initiative to provide free internet access by prioritizing the improvements in their digital infrastructure to help those families who fell into poverty due to the effects of the pandemic. Sultanaa and Tamannab (2021)’s study reveals that technology helps “people find saving time the most potential in the education sector. The factor denotes that the teachers get enough time to prepare and manage class” (p.4) and provide abundant learning resources for students. However, there are many challenges for the future of educational technology such as the “widening of the digital divide” (Horizon report, 2019, p.7), “educational inequalities” (Sabates and Karki, 2019. p.2), and “safeguard privacy and the safety information and intellectual property” issues (Schrum and Summerfield, 2018, p.207).
Current Landscape
Rapidly developed technology is revolutionary in what is possible in education. It ensures students and teachers have a more convenient and connected learning environment with tools such as the one-to-one Chromebook, improves learning outcomes by bringing lesson plans to life with the immersive 3D, modernizes networks to protect costly cyber attacks, and integrates data on a common cloud-based platform. However, technology does not guarantee quality education. “Even with these resources, students and teachers struggled with charging, software management, and breakage” (Ames, 2022, p.1). When students forget to charge their Chromebooks, they can not access the learning materials in class when others are doing the assigned digital activities or classwork. Sometimes students encounter problems with the charger, problems with their log in, or students encounter problems because of improper use of the laptop leading to a broken keyboard or screen. Schrum and Summerfield (2018) ask “is it possible that a machine will do all the grading of assignments” (p.17)? LiveTiles (2021) argues that the Artificial Intelligence (AI) grading “lacks personal connections: While smart machines improve the education experience, they should not be considered a substitute for personal interaction. Relying too much on these machines to grade or tutor may lead to educational oversights that hurt learners more than help” (p. 2). There is a transition from the traditional printed textbooks to the digital textbooks in many schools. “EBooks are more accessible and widespread than ever before, making them an affordable and convenient classroom standard” (Lynch, 2017, p.4). However, there are some teachers’ resistance to switching from textbook to Ebooks. Another challenge of educational technology in the classroom is that technical difficulties happen during the instruction when using the Promethean interactive board. While many educators think the digital screen Promethean with the built-in whiteboard is more interactive, others still prefer to use the traditional whiteboard.
Backfisch et al. (2016) state “technology integration commonly refers to teachers' adoption of educational technologies during teaching and learning such as the use of distinct hardware or software applications to realize specific teaching processes” (p.2). Terada (2020) argues that “Good technology integration is not about using the fanciest tool, it is about being aware of the range of options and picking the right strategy—or strategies—for the lesson at hand” (para.1). The professional development with the topic of integration technology across curriculum should be provided to teachers. Technology integration learning is a trend for 21st Century education because it can help learners gain decision-making skills, develop creativity, make impossible teaching and learning in traditional settings possible, and increase technology skills. However, Backfisch et al. (2016) suggest “from a teacher education perspective, teachers have to be aware of the influence of contextual aspects such as their motivation, as well as the quality and quantity of their technology integration” (p.18).
Noguera-Fructuoso and Valdivia-Vizarreta (2022)’s research reveals that during the remote learning mode, teachers “experienced difficulties in lack of literacy in online pedagogies and work overload among lecturers; privation of physical presence and fluent communication among students. Students are dissatisfied with the learning experience, although they value the opportunities for flexible learning and saving time on commuting. Students valued more traditional teaching strategies (i.e. combinations of lectures and tutoring)” (p.1).
Recent Developments
Based on the current trends and research, I anticipate the top three trends of educational technology in the following five years include the hybrid learning models, increased use of learning technologies, and the rapid growth of STEM in schools. The top three trends in ten to twenty years might be the increased use of artificial intelligence (AI) in education, collaborative classrooms, and student-led classrooms. In the following section, these emerging educational technology trends will be discussed.
Current Issues Facing the Field
The issues that educational leaders, teachers, students grapple with concerning technology include digital divide, mental health, and cyber safety. Schools and parents are encouraged to work together closely to provide students with equitable technology access, improve their social emotional learning, and increase cyber safety. The one-to-one device program helps to close the digital gap to meet students’ digital learning needs with equity. It is important to keep checking all the devices and recharging cables to work appropriately, so that students can collaborate and interact with peers and teachers in the classroom and do their homework and submit assignments outside the classroom. Teachers should be provided the updated software on their district laptops and cartridges for the classroom printers to prepare lessons and print out needed materials. When teachers mindfully guide students to use technology in learning, demonstrate to students how to explore information, train students concentration skills, and teach them cyber safety skills, we can recognize that technology as a beneficial tool in education, instead of a distraction. In addition, Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is crucial to foster students’ skills of self-awareness, self-management, decision making, and building relationships. Unfortunately it took a pandemic to make everyone realize that students need an SEL curriculum. The pandemic isolation intensified the need, but students always have always needed SEL instruction and strategies. The implementation of SEL is one of the best practices that can help students to learn the content by using technology.
Emerging Trends in K12 from a Global Perspective
I predict the first trend of educational technology in five years is the hybrid learning models. According to the 2021 EDUCAUSE Horizon Report (2021) “The past year’s disruptions and rapid changes, which forced so much of teaching and learning to be done remotely, have made digital technologies even more vital to higher education. What those technologies are, how they are deployed across the institution, and the ways in which they themselves continue to evolve may very well be one of the defining stories of higher education in the years ahead” (p.8). Horizon Report states “learning models that enable flexible movement between remote and in-person experiences will help institutions minimize disruption and ensure continuity of course delivery through future crises” (p.8). Many schools offer in-person instruction and virtual classes after returning to in-person learning mode at the beginning of the school year of 2022-2023. Virtual Academy was launched to offer students the option to continue taking online classes. For example, in my school district, Lynwood Unified School District (LUSD), “all students enrolling in Virtual Academy have the option of classroom instruction in a traditional school program within their home district. Enrollment is continuously voluntary. The objective is to enable the student to keep current with grade level studies. Students are provided with teacher support services, textbooks, curriculum guides, workbooks, technology, and related instructional materials. All curriculum and methods of study are consistent with established LUSD guidelines and California State Content Standards” (LUSD Virtual Academy 2022-2023 Master Agreement for Grades K-12, p.2). Virtual Academy will become more and more popular because it allows students to do an online independent study model using technology that promotes creativity while providing flexibility and an academic pathway for a curriculum to meet their needs. Therefore, in the next five years, we will see the increasing growth in the hybrid learning mode of in-person and virtual education.
The second trend is increasingly using learning technologies in education. One of the trends appearing on the Gartner Hype Cycle for emerging technologies is “Digital ecosystems” which refer to “web-like connections between actors (enterprises, people and things) sharing a digital platform” (2019, p.8). In the field of educational technology, the most popular digital platform is Google Classroom which allows students to submit assignments, teachers input the grade and offer the comments. From the interviews with teachers of different subjects, I notice that technology is widely and increasingly used across curriculum. English teachers introduced me to the free online resource called Commonlit they use for teaching. It aligns with CCSS and provides a comprehensive and full year English Language Arts curriculum. “It allows students to read a wide variety of passages at different levels, each passage includes an image and is structured in easy-to-follow paragraphs that make it more enjoyable to read, and teachers can download a PDF or assign it to students and set a time window for completion” (Commonlit, para.3). Geometry and Algebra teachers attended UCLA math training to increase the use of technology and incorporate hands-on activities to improve student engagement. Math department uses Desmos and DeltaMath to teach and assess students. The chemistry labs include the use of technology in the form of scales, thermometers, pH meters, and electrolysis apparatus. In Film class, students get to explore technology in a new way by filming and editing videos. With a thriving Theater Club, students learn how to work lighting, sound, set design, and backstage management. As access to technology and digital tools have continued to develop, the Special Education Department has implemented the use of tools such as Shared Drive and Calendar to share resources, improve communication, centralize data, and continue to foster a collaborative environment. District training provided professional development of using Academic Intervention and Monitoring for Students to access the information of our English Learners in each classroom. Almost all teachers across the curriculum have students use Google Classroom to submit assignments in the form of paper, quiz, videos recordings and many more. With the built-in rubric function, teachers give very specific feedback with rubric scores and comments. Google for Education states that “schools are incorporating emerging technologies into the classroom to create more innovative and engaging teaching methods” (p.7). As departments and teachers continue to transition toward the full inclusion model of educational technology, it is expected that innovations will occur along the way. Nonetheless, we strongly believe that this transition shows our commitment to providing the least restrictive environment and accessible learning opportunities for all students. Google for Education states “schools are incorporating emerging technologies into the classroom to create more innovative and engaging teaching methods” (p.27). It is a trend in the future that teachers will have more educational technology tools to adjust instruction with diverse materials to meet students’ learning needs. Students will be able to access more well designed and developed resources that can help them think critically and work collaboratively on diverse topics.
The third trend is the rapid growth of STEM in schools. According to Schrum and Sumerfield (2018), “STEM-typically Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics-has become a guiding star for education. STEM is a curriculum based on the idea of educating students in these four specific disciplines using an interdisciplinary, hands-on approach that relates to real-world applications” (p.8). “STEM is important because it teaches critical thinking skills and instills a passion for innovation. Beyond the benefit of learning science, technology, engineering, and math, STEM assists in the problem-solving and exploratory learning that fuel success across a variety of tasks and disciplines” (Barone, 2018). “Each year, P21 highlights a cohort of early learning centers, K–12 schools, school districts, and beyond school programs in the U.S. as 21st Century Learning Exemplars” (Battelle for Kids, para.1). Many exemplar schools address Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) instruction. For instance, Saint Ambrose School (OH) partners with STEM Accelerated Coding, as part of their program funded by NASA, to design the optimal way to extract water from Mars to place into a robot harnessing solar energy. Vineyard STEM Magnet School (CA) With 87% of its student population qualifying free or reduced lunch, Vineyard believes high-quality STEM education should be accessible to all. Vineyard integrates all core content with STEM. At a middle school in my district, students participate in the STEM Academy and interact with current individuals who are employed in the field of Engineering, Medicine and Technology. Students attend field trips to local agencies focused on STEM. They are expected to participate in a year-end showcase as a culminating project. The selected students will have the opportunity to mentor students from the elementary school in the district STEM Academy Service Learning Project. More and more school districts emphasize on STEM subjects and continue to expand with an elementary robotics course and a TK-2 iPad initiative, which gets young students involved in computer coding through games and robots. Many community adult schools provide classes in which students build parametric models of parts and 3D parts and assembly modeling.
Future Directions in Education
The first trend is increased use of AI in education in the upcoming ten or twenty years. Schrum and Summerfield (2018) state that “basically, AI could take tedious tasks away from educators, and instead use massive data sets to assist in students’ metacognition or assume virtual assistant tasks” (p.207). According to Market Trends (2021), “as artificial intelligence and robotics continue to grow exponentially, we can achieve many things with the help of robotics in the field of education.The incorporation of new technologies in the education sector can improve interdisciplinary learning environments where teachers can help students in developing their creativity and cognitive abilities” (p.12). The robotics in education will be more advanced, diverse, and competitive. In the next ten to twenty years, more school districts will emphasize on STEM subjects, promote the adoption of AI in education, continue to expand with an elementary robotics course and a TK-2 iPad initiative, which gets young students involved in computer coding through games and robots. Google for Education shows “40% of new students in Germany are enrolling in STEM degrees, as these areas are seen as ‘safe’ career paths” (p.21). With the rapid development of technology, we will witness the increased number of students in STEM degrees in the upcoming future. In my Mandarin Chinese class, I use the AI powered Chinese learning platform, Ponddy Reader, to enhance students’ reading comprehension. “Ponddy Education uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology to create language-learning products and services that make teaching more effective and learning more efficient. Affinity Knowledge Learning SystemTM groups and categorizes elements that share properties and often appear together into Radical, Character and Word Ponds for optimal learning. Ponddy Library has over 1000 authentic leveled contents covering rich topics” (para.1). “In Japan, the education ministry is rolling out English-speaking AI in 500 Japanese classrooms to improve students’ oral and written English skills. In Germany, 48% of teachers report a willingness to try VR out in the classroom”, says Google for Education, “As with any new technology, implementation is still in its early stages, as educators weigh the potential benefits with the challenges of navigating public perception and regulatory environments” (p.49). One of the trends appearing on The Gartner Hype Cycle for emerging technologies (2019) is “advanced AI and analytics that is the autonomous or semi-autonomous examination of data or content using sophisticated tools. This is the result of new classes of algorithms and data science that are leading to new capabilities, for example transfer learning” (p.8). In the upcoming ten to twenty years, we will experience the advanced AI and analytics in education to do the more sophisticated tasks, such as teaching and grading students’ handwriting in Chinese with the audio and video instructions.
The second trend is collaborative classrooms. “As schools put a focus on openness, flexibility and collaboration, they are redesigning classrooms to match” (Google for Education, p.29). “A landmark study found that classroom design alters students’ academic progress over a school year by 25%” (Edutopia, 2018, para.7). Western Governors University defines “a learning environment is more than just a classroom—it is a space in which students feel safe and supported in their pursuit of knowledge, as well as inspired by their surroundings” (2020, para.1). One of the 21st Century Learning Exemplar schools (2019) EVSC New Tech Institute (IN) “focuses on the whole child. With extensive opportunities for collaboration and clear schoolwide learning outcomes, New Tech Institute fosters a welcoming close knit environment where students can grow and thrive. With increased agency and embedded citizenship practices, students actively engage in conflict resolution, look for opportunities to mentor and collaborate with others, and promote a positive learning environment” (p.8). According to Buck Institute for Education, “Project Based Learning is a teaching method in which students learn by actively engaging in real-world and personally meaningful projects” (p.1). What draws my attention is a school in Winooski (Vermont) used a Project Based Learning unit not only to combine science and math, but also to cooking dumplings “to explore the many cultures that make up their community”, says Keller and Wild (2022), “our project celebrated the diversity of our students and opened the door for cross-cultural exchange” (p.3). At my school, a mini boat named Freddy was built by the Environmental Engineering students and the MESA club collaboratively. The boat’s name is Freddy. It was exciting to students and staff when Freddy was launched into the ocean. It is a sailboat that has a GoPro, GPS and Temperature sensors. Freddy began sending data and posting it on the web site in October, 2021.Freddy was deployed ⅓ of the way to Hawaii by hitching a ride aboard the E/V Nautilus. The Nautilus is completing a mapping cruise across the Pacific from Los Angeles to Hawaii. In future, more integration technology collaborative projects will be created to allow students to work together discovering the world.
The third trend is student-led classrooms. “As the world around students changes-be that due to changes in values, societal shifts or technological innovations-the education landscape needs to shift in response “ (Google for Education, p.53). “Knowledge and mastery of the key subjects is very important. However, to move forward in the 21st Century Learning stage, instruction must also incorporate approaches that are student-centered, inquiry-based, and project-based” (21st Century Learning Readiness Assessment). According to Jones (2015), a student-centered classroom “is a place where we consider the needs of the students, as a group and as individuals, and encourage them to participate in the learning process all the time. The teacher’s role is more that of a facilitator than instructor; the students are active participants in the learning process” (p.2). Professional development (PD) mainly focuses on the teaching of key subjects at my school. In order to expand the expertise in teaching, PD also should promote the growth mindset. In the upcoming future, one of the transformations of mindset is switching from teacher-centered to student-centered instruction to foster 21st Century students’ critical thinking skills, autonomy, and problem-solving abilities.
Safeguards
Educators should take the protection of student and staff data very seriously and focus on effectively counteracting the actions of those who wish to access data by implementing the following: the framework which detects all threats to the organization, which is done through the devices, user authentication, and networks. The approach of cloud computing allows the security infrastructures protect the cloud hosting providers’ services, such as Gmail, Google Drive, and Aeries Gradebook. This built-in security automatically detects and prevents online threats. Some school districts including my school district implemented a combination of cybersecurity tools that allow the technology department to detect, monitor, and control cybersecurity and safety risks including next-generation endpoint device protection and full attack visibility. In the department of technology and innovation of my district’s organizational chart includes a Computer Security Analyst position whose sole responsibility is monitoring the security of our technology services and applications. In collaboration with the district, schools should be refining, developing, and implementing mandatory cybersecurity responsibility professional development training at all school sites. This includes the use of simulated phishing attacks which provides increased security awareness training. As cyberattacks continue to increase and become more sophisticated, school districts should continue working to strengthen practices in a way that is purpose-built to schools and community needs while also continuously improving our ability to protect valuable information and data.
In addition, “Today's adolescents show high rates of internet and smartphone use, so much that the incidence of technology-based behavioral addictions is significantly increasing” (Mancinelli et al., 2022, p.5). “Increased media use seems associated with the levels of depression and anxiety symptoms, stress, and anger specifically, were shown to significantly contribute to Problematic Smartphone Use severity” (Mancinelli et al., 2022, p.7). School districts should also provide workshops to parents to inform them of what is happening in the complicated digital world where children are concerned, demonstrate the types of challenges children are facing with actual recent news stories, address the importance of parental monitoring, and equip parents with tools they can use for decision-making and monitoring.
In my opinion, the public schools should allow students to express their belief in God, pray, and recite the Pledge of Allegiance or salute the flag again because it provides the moral foundation for students and staff. Strong belief in God and morals are the most powerful safeguard toward any form of temptations, anxiety, or risk.
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