Interactive white boardThe big challenge of tech in education isn’t just getting the gadgets out there. It’s actually using them to foster learning. And in that regard the news isn’t all good. From Business Reporter in the U.K., via Ingram’s Wayne Keegan on LinkedIn:

“Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s survey” of U.S. educators “found that 97 per cent use digital content, while more than half use apps, websites or digital games in classrooms.”

Yes—97 percent or nearly all American educators!

“However,” the article says, “two thirds say digital tools are used infrequently for learning purposes, with only 23 per cent using the most prevalent form of classroom technology on a daily basis.

“And 58 per cent were ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ concerned about their students’ data privacy.”

How to fix the above?

Teaching students to love e-books and read them properly—not the same as navigating and otherwise dealing with paper books—could go a long way as one solution.

As for privacy, yes, we need stricter laws to protect kids and others.

So what are your own solutions?

Related: More on the survey. Full report available.

1 COMMENT

  1. If you consider that a majority of students’ text is in the form of paper textbooks, it’s obvious why the numbers are skewed in the direction of paper. Most systems can barely afford old textbooks so I doubt they’d be eager or able to add digital content to the mix or as a replacement.

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