The Information Era dramatically changed the way we educate our children. We live in a world of rapid change and the resemblance to yesterday is fleeting. There are so many ways that academics are enhanced by technology that simply did not exist ten years ago.

We are living in the midst of tremendous upheaval in the fields of technology and communication. Advances in technology have influenced every aspect of modern life and are having an enormous impact on education. Technology can promote student engagement, immerse students in real-world issues, enhance discussions and workshops, and facilitate formative assessment.

Technology is transforming the teaching and learning process into one that is more interactive. Instead of waiting to see how much a student knows at the end of a term, progress can be measured in real-time – and adjustments can be made. Teaching is becoming less instructor-centric and more of a communal process. We have seen a lot of advancement in education technology designed for the classroom, and to be effective, PreK-12 and Higher Education teachers/professors and administrators need to stay abreast of these new technologies and trends.

The new technological advances can be helpful, but there are some associated problems. Students may spend too much time using their devices and the Internet includes information that may be harmful as well as helpful. Without clear parameters, teachers may become overly focused on technology to the detriment of information transfer.

Although there are pros and cons to most forms of technology and most technology-related education concepts, there is so much to look forward to when it comes to PreK-12 and Higher Education classrooms. The concepts and technologies that I have discussed will allow educators to better prepare students for the rest of their academic careers and for lifelong success.

Love it or hate it, today’s educators must embrace technology as a way of life in their classrooms. Resistance is futile at this point so educators must find a balance between the flash of technology and its practical benefits in the learning process.

To sum it up, communication has changed, and an enormous variety of information is now accessible to almost everyone at the click of a mouse or swipe of a finger. Old-fashioned classrooms equipped only with books and chalkboards are long gone. In their place, we have new teaching techniques such as Internet research, experience-based education, virtual learning, and online live assessments are being introduced to meet educational needs in the Information Era.

Since technology is not going anywhere and does more good than harm, adapting is the best course of action. That is where The Tech Edvocate comes in. We plan to cover the PreK-12 and Higher Education EdTech sectors and provide our readers with the latest news and opinion on the subject. From time to time, I will invite other voices to weigh in on important issues in EdTech. We hope to provide a well-rounded, multi-faceted look at the past, present, the future of EdTech in the US and internationally.

Some particular areas that will receive attention on The Tech Edvocate include:

  • EdTech News
  • eLearning and Online Learning
  • Digital & Mobile Technology
  • Personalized Learning
  • Assistive Technology
  • Early Childhood & K-12 EdTech
  • Higher Education EdTech
  • EdTech Futures
  • EdTech Startups and Businesses

We started this journey back in June 2016, and we plan to continue it for many more years to come. I hope that you will join us in this discussion of the past, present and future of EdTech and lend your own insight to the issues that are discussed.

We Don’t Mean to Brag

Below you will find a sampling of the awards and accolades that have been garnered by The Tech Edvocate and its staff:

Our editor, Matthew Lynch, was named by Engati as one of the 40 Top EdTech leaders transforming education and learning experiences.

Ranked Blogs lists The Tech Edvocate as one of the Best Edtech Blogs.

Our editor, Matthew Lynch, made Engati’s list of 222 TOP influencers you need to follow for 2022. The introduction to this list states, “These influencers have excelled in their fields and have been an inspiration to all of us. Their experience and insights are unbeatable! These 222 influencers can rightly be called “Influencer of the year 2021!”

Edtech Magazine included our Editor, Matthew Lynch, on its annual list of 30 K–12 IT Influencers Worth a Follow in 2020.

Our editor, Matthew Lynch made Edtech Magazine’s 2019 Dean’s List: EdTech’s 30 Must-Read Higher Education IT Influencers.

Mimio Educator, an influential edtech blog, named our editor, Matthew Lynch, the #1 edtech influencer in the world for 2019.

PowerUp What Works ranks our @lynch39083 Twitter account as #1 on their 2018 list of “Our Favorite Twitter Accounts for Teachers.”

In July 2018, The Edvocate launched Edupedia, the world’s first digital encyclopedia of education.

Below you will find a sampling of the awards and accolades that have been garnered by The Tech Edvocate and its staff:

The Tech Edvocate was named to Edtech Magazine’s 2018 Dean’s List: EdTech’s 30 Must-Read Higher Education IT Blogs.

The Tech Edvocate was recently named to Edtech Magazine’s 2018 Honor Roll: EdTech’s Must-Read K-12 IT Blogs.

Agilience ranks our editor, Matthew Lynch, as the #1 authority in education, the #1 authority in learning materials and pedagogy and the #9 authority on teachers.

Disruptor Daily has named our editor, Matthew Lynch, as one of the 25 edtech influencers to follow on Twitter in 2018.

Our Editor in Chief, Matthew Lynch was named to the TrustED 20 (November 2017), an annual list of 20 education thought leaders who are driving the online conversation about K12 change and innovation.

Our editor, Matthew Lynch, was recently named one of the three edtech voices to follow by Forbes.

In July 2017, Getting Smart named our @AdvocateforEd account as one of the best Twitters feeds to follow for EdTech News & Media. It also named our editor Matthew Lynch as one of the education thought leaders to follow on Twitter.

Time to Know, a global edtech company, named our editor Matthew Lynch as one of the “Top 10 Digital Learning Thought Leaders to Follow Right Now.”

The Edvocate has been featured on the Teachers of Tomorrow’s 2017 List of the Top 50 Teacher Websites for Seriously Dedicated Educators.

Onalytica ranked The Edvocate #49 on its annual list of the “Top 200 Brands in Edtech and Elearning (2016)”.

Onalytica ranked our founder and Editor in Chief, Matthew Lynch, on its annual list of the “Top 200 Influencers in Edtech and Elearning (2016)”. He came in at #38, up 51 spots from 2015.

Our Editor in Chief, Matthew Lynch was named to the TrustED 20 (November 2016), an inaugural list of 20 education thought leaders who are driving the online conversation about K12 change and innovation.

Onalytica ranked our founder and Editor in Chief, Matthew Lynch, on its annual list of the “Top 100 Influencers in Edtech and Elearning (2015)”. He came in at #88. We demand a recount! Honestly, we are honored. He expects to be in the “Top 25” next year! Want to view the rankings?

Hanover Research named our founder and Editor in Chief, Matthew Lynch, as one of the “K-12 Influencers to Follow (2015)”.

Check Out Our Apps

We have developed several free apps along with our sister site The Edvocate, and they are located below. Click on the link provided to visit each app. This is just the beginning as some of our upcoming apps will involve using artificial intelligence to solve problems within the education sector.

Edupedia is a digital encyclopedia/glossary/dictionary hybrid that allows its user to find well-researched information on any education-related topic. Some entries are only a few sentences and define basic educational terms. Other listings are one to two paragraphs long, cover foundational educational concepts and resemble your traditional glossary entry. The last type of listing is more expansive, includes several sections and resembles full-length encyclopedic entries.

College GPA CalculatorAllows college students to calculate and save their college GPA, record their semester performance and track out their entire academic career.

High School GPA Calculator Allows high school students to calculate and track their high school GPA, record their scores and keep a handle on their cumulative academic performance.

Cumulative GPA CalculatorAllows high school and college students to calculate and save their cumulative GPA, and find out how their future and current grades will affect their academic performance.

Grade Calculator Allows students to find out what their class grade is by adding together their assignments to calculate their total score.

Weighted Grade CalculatorAllows students to swiftly calculate their weighted class grade by adding each assignment and its total value.

Final Grade Calculator Allows students to calculate what score they must receive on their final exam to achieve their desired final class grade.