The Tech Edvocate

Top Menu

  • Advertisement
  • Apps
  • Home Page
  • Home Page Five (No Sidebar)
  • Home Page Four
  • Home Page Three
  • Home Page Two
  • Home Tech2
  • Icons [No Sidebar]
  • Left Sidbear Page
  • Lynch Educational Consulting
  • My Account
  • My Speaking Page
  • Newsletter Sign Up Confirmation
  • Newsletter Unsubscription
  • Our Brands
  • Page Example
  • Privacy Policy
  • Protected Content
  • Register
  • Request a Product Review
  • Shop
  • Shortcodes Examples
  • Signup
  • Start Here
    • Governance
    • Careers
    • Contact Us
  • Terms and Conditions
  • The Edvocate
  • The Tech Edvocate Product Guide
  • Topics
  • Write For Us
  • Advertise

Main Menu

  • Start Here
    • Our Brands
    • Governance
      • Lynch Educational Consulting
      • Dr. Lynch’s Personal Website
      • Careers
    • Write For Us
    • The Tech Edvocate Product Guide
    • Contact Us
    • Books
    • Pedagogue
    • Edupedia
    • The Edvocate Podcast
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
  • Topics
    • Assistive Technology
    • Child Development Tech
    • Early Childhood & K-12 EdTech
    • EdTech Futures
    • EdTech News
    • EdTech Policy & Reform
    • EdTech Startups & Businesses
    • Higher Education EdTech
    • Online Learning & eLearning
    • Parent & Family Tech
    • Personalized Learning
    • Product Reviews
  • Advertise
  • Apps
  • Tech Edvocate Awards
  • The Edvocate
  • P-20 Ed Careers

logo

The Tech Edvocate

  • Start Here
    • Our Brands
    • Governance
      • Lynch Educational Consulting
      • Dr. Lynch’s Personal Website
        • My Speaking Page
      • Careers
    • Write For Us
    • The Tech Edvocate Product Guide
    • Contact Us
    • Books
    • Pedagogue
    • Edupedia
    • The Edvocate Podcast
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
  • Topics
    • Assistive Technology
    • Child Development Tech
    • Early Childhood & K-12 EdTech
    • EdTech Futures
    • EdTech News
    • EdTech Policy & Reform
    • EdTech Startups & Businesses
    • Higher Education EdTech
    • Online Learning & eLearning
    • Parent & Family Tech
    • Personalized Learning
    • Product Reviews
  • Advertise
  • Apps
  • Tech Edvocate Awards
  • The Edvocate
  • P-20 Ed Careers
  • Product Review of 5 Dice: Order of Operations Game

  • Product Review of Toontastic 3D

  • Product Review of ToonDoo

  • Product Review of Too Noisy

  • Product Review of Tommy the Turtle

  • Product Review of Todo Math

  • Product Review of Titans of Space

  • Product Review of TinyTap

  • Product Review of TINgr

  • Product Review of TimeSavr

Digital & Mobile TechnologyEdTech & Innovation
Home›Digital & Mobile Technology›The Digital Revolution in Schools: It’s Not Just Remote Learning

The Digital Revolution in Schools: It’s Not Just Remote Learning

By Greg Copeland
February 16, 2021
5123
0
Spread the love

The Covid-19 pandemic has forced change on everyone, perhaps none more so than teachers and students. Education, that central pillar of civilization, was forced to go digital essentially overnight.

The most visible aspect of this remote learning, with its evident tradeoff: Everyone in the world can now access the foremost expert on a subject – but the cost is the loss of easy interaction.

The pandemic will wane, and most educational activity will return to the schools. But some of the new ways will be adopted, where they are useful. 

Indeed, schools have long lagged behind in the digital revolution, whether due to costs, conservatism, or bureaucracy. The past year may be remembered for helping bridge that gap – and there is much more to this than remote learning.

Here are some of the issues that will be with us to stay.

Digitizing Records

Virtual teaching also called for virtual resources, placing pressure on schools to digitize fast. Studies suggest that by digitizing educational curricula, you allow students to engage on their own terms and possibly more deeply. Digitization also grants students remote access to quality education. 

Many schools faced challenges in finding, sorting and sharing necessary documents and paperwork. As school buildings closed entirely, faculty was cut off from critical information stored in filing cabinets.

School nurses who had not digitized their files were unable to access student medical files, severely restricting their ability to perform their job. Most states require that schools keep student and employee records for decades. This has made the jobs of human resources professionals in the K-12 worlds incredibly difficult to do remotely. How can you access an employee file from your living room if it’s locked in a file cabinet in the basement of a school? 

Teachers have also reflected on the scramble of going digital as one of the more stressful adjustments, especially those who had always relied on paper copies. 

The overall goal moving forward should be to drive smarter technology integration that makes educators, administrators and students lives easier and more accessible. By digitizing files, forms, and paperwork, you not only increase preparedness for remote education but also centralize information making it available at the push of a button.  

Nimble Evaluation of Digital Tools

In a list of ways the pandemic will forever change schools, the top spot was innovating with technology.

Platforms such as Zoom and Webex reaped immediate benefits of the sudden switch to virtual communication. CNN Business reported that Zoom’s revenue soared as much as 169% in just the first three months of the pandemic. Zoom’s success led to the rise of many platforms with similar functions. 

The range is daunting, including the familiar tech of Google Classroom, Microsoft Teams, Skype and WebEx to the more bespoke products like Blackboard Collaborate, Bloomz, BlueJeans, BrainCert, Buncee, Electra Live, Edmodo, Eliademy, EZ talks Webinar, LiveBoard Interactive Whiteboard, Virtual Classroom and WizQ.

How, then, to choose? According to Edweek, there are nearly 13,598 K-12 school districts in the U.S, all with different curricula and needs based on their individual constituencies. More complicated, however, is the individual procurement structures for each of these districts. 

Schools and government procurement processes are not designed to quickly evaluate new technologies. Most of these structures were put in place for good reason — to add transparency to how schools spend their public funds — but these can present roadblocks to adopting the latest digital tools. 

Looking towards the future, with more and more operations moving to remote, schools would be wise to adopt more agile procurement processes to allow them to evaluate and deploy new tools quickly, before they become obsolete. 

Security 

The growing use of remote access naturally gives rise to cybersecurity concerns. And while most in-person learning may resume in 2021, some K-12 operations may very well stay remote. 

American School and University Magazine wrote, “Public K-12 education agencies across the nation reported 348 cybersecurity incidents during 2019”, this number nearly triples the reported number from 2018 and is predicted to be far worse now. 

Doug Levin, founder and president of the K–12 Cybersecurity Resource Center, told Education Week that with more teachers and students online and from different locations, “in many cases, all it takes is for one person to make a mistake in a school community for a school district network to get infected, or a data breach to happen.” Phishing is one of the largest cybersecurity threats in schools. EdTech Magazine advises that, “school leaders must also keep privacy compliance top of mind as they increasingly rely on digital platforms to share information with each other.” 

This issue pushed many schools to invest more money and pay more attention to IT. A piece in Security InfoWatch discusses how the use of platforms like Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams created immediate threats to cybersecurity stating that it “became quickly clear these apps never had features in place to support K-12 school districts and the minors using them.”

Going digital is far more than just creating a virtual classroom. With the distribution of a vaccine underway, there is hope that traditional in-person schooling will resume soon. But just as with remote work, some of the pandemic model will remain – largely because the infrastructure is now in place and the public has grown accustomed. K-12 leaders should take the lessons learned from this challenging time and use them to inform their long-term planning. 

***

Greg Copeland is the founder and president of FileBank Inc., a family owned enterprise content management company. 

Previous Article

3 Perks of Network Management on a ...

Next Article

Teaching Intelligence: Digital Literacy In the ‘Alternative ...

Greg Copeland

Related articles More from author

  • Digital & Mobile TechnologyProduct Reviews

    Product Review of Blackboard Madness: Math

    April 22, 2022
    By Matthew Lynch
  • EdTech & Innovation

    How To Build Strong Relationships During The Edtech Coaching

    October 9, 2020
    By Matthew Lynch
  • EdTech & Innovation

    7 Ways That Digital Technology is Changing the Face of Education

    April 17, 2017
    By Matthew Lynch
  • EdTech & Innovation

    10 Tips for EdTech Entrepreneurs

    March 17, 2017
    By Matthew Lynch
  • EdTech & Innovation

    Personalized Learning Starts with Less Teacher Talk, More Student Voice

    June 24, 2017
    By Matthew Lynch
  • Digital & Mobile TechnologyProduct Reviews

    Product Review of Chamilo

    May 1, 2022
    By Matthew Lynch

  • Early Childhood & K-12 EdTechHigher Education EdTech

    Why Print Textbooks Will Never Die

  • Early Childhood & K-12 EdTechHigher EducationHigher Education EdTech

    Tech Should Only Be Used to Enhance the Teaching and Learning Process, Not Replace It

  • Early Childhood & K-12 EdTech

    Creating Powerful Learning Experiences in Google Classroom

Search

Login & Registration

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Newsletter

Signup for The Tech Edvocate Newsletter and have the latest in EdTech news and opinion delivered to your email address!

  • Recent

  • Popular

  • Comments

  • Product Review of 5 Dice: Order of Operations Game

    By Matthew Lynch
    May 27, 2022
  • Product Review of Toontastic 3D

    By Matthew Lynch
    May 27, 2022
  • Product Review of ToonDoo

    By Matthew Lynch
    May 27, 2022
  • Product Review of Too Noisy

    By Matthew Lynch
    May 27, 2022
  • Product Review of Tommy the Turtle

    By Matthew Lynch
    May 27, 2022
  • 20 Top Virtual Reality Apps that are Changing Education

    By Matthew Lynch
    March 11, 2017
  • 7 Ways Technology Is Impacting Modern Education

    By Matthew Lynch
    March 4, 2017
  • Why Mobile Technology Enhances Instruction

    By Matthew Lynch
    December 14, 2016
  • 7 Roles for Artificial Intelligence in Education

    By Matthew Lynch
    May 5, 2018
  • Digital Literacy is the Most Important Lifelong Learning Tool

    By Matthew Lynch
    December 30, 2017
  • 5 Reasons Why an MBA can Boost Your Career - Appeio
    on
    May 26, 2022

    How Distance Learning Fosters Global Collaboration

    […] and distance learning ...
  • 4 Ways EdTech Companies Can Involve Faculty in Research - WGU Labs | Advancing Innovation in ...
    on
    May 17, 2022

    25 Ways that EdTech Benefits Teachers and Students

    […] EdTech products can ...
  • What is a professional learning network? - What Type Degree
    on
    May 16, 2022

    What is a Personal Learning Network?

    […] What is a ...
  • Digital Branding is Key for Everyone In Education | Edtech Magazine
    on
    May 15, 2022

    Tips To Conduct A Gap Analysis For Your LMS Marketing Strategy

    […] How do you ...
  • 7 Ways to Approach Financial Decluttering in Your Life - Amida Wealth
    on
    May 15, 2022

    The Best External Hard Drives Of 2022: All The Best Options For Backing Up Your Device’s ...

    […] and updating your ...

EdTech Policy & Reform

  • Adaptive LearningCurriculum & InstructionDigital & Mobile TechnologyDigital Age TeachersEarly Childhood & K-12 EdTechEdTech & InnovationEdTech Policy & ReformInstructional Technology

    Exploring New Ideas: Student-Driven Remote Learning

    Spread the loveRemote learning is taking its toll on our students. They miss the social side of school. Not seeing their classmates or teachers is leading to nervousness, anxiety, and ...
  • Digital & Mobile TechnologyEdTech & InnovationEdTech Policy & Reform

    Implementing Education Technology by Pursuing Technology Education

    Spread the loveTechnology is used for many great things in our world. It’s a powerful tool when used correctly. As such, this powerful tool can be used to transform learning.  ...
  • EdTech Policy & Reform

    How Much Bias Is Okay in Your School?

    Spread the loveThe algorithm has proven itself to be a handy tool when it comes to solving education problems. It’s also not without bias.  You may be wondering how some ...
  • EdTech Policy & ReformFeaturedFresh

    Edtech Should Complement Good Pedagogy, Not Attempt to Replace It

    Spread the loveThe newest generation of edtech is downright amazing; it’s no wonder that various education stakeholders might be a little excited about its potential to transform education. However, edtech ...
  • EdTech Policy & ReformFeaturedFresh

    How to Teach Kids to Communicate in This Digital Age

    Spread the loveWhen even the youngest children are spending the equivalent of a full work day looking at screens, it is perhaps no surprise that parents are wondering how to ...

EdTech Startups & Businesses

  • Digital LeadershipEdTech Startups & BusinessesProduct Reviews

    Product Review of Collegix

    Spread the love This is a comprehensive ERP solution for colleges and universities that provides modular, totally integrated learners services, finance, HR, and advancement. Collegix provides online and offline workarounds ...
  • Early Childhood & K-12 EdTechEdTech Startups & BusinessesProduct Reviews

    Product Review of Discovery Education

    Spread the love Discovery Education is a big player in EdTech. The company has established itself as the leading provider of digital curriculum resources, digital content, and professional development for ...
  • EdTech Startups & BusinessesProduct Reviews

    Product Review of AptaFund

    Spread the loveAptaFund is a business management software that provides essential functions to educational institutions, such as web access to educators, parents, and learners. It allows elementary schools and other educational ...
  • EdTech Startups & Businesses

    Understanding the Fundamentals of a Sales Script in Your Customer Interaction Journey

    Spread the loveSales scripts are crucial to any business and can be the main difference in achieving the set targets. A well-written sales script that factors in customers from different ...
  • Digital & Mobile TechnologyEdTech Startups & BusinessesTeachers

    Top 5 Things to Consider When Designing an LMS

    Spread the loveCovid-19 has changed many things in our world, and education is one of them. More students lean toward using online schooling. Therefore, learning management systems (LMS) are becoming ...

Digital Equity

  • Digital & Mobile TechnologyDigital EquityDigital Literacy

    Teaching Learners Digital Content Creation Skills

    Spread the loveContent curation is nothing new and has always been a coveted skill. It has been this way for hundreds of years — think of art galleries, museums, or ...
  • Digital & Mobile TechnologyDigital EquityEdTech & Innovation

    Promoting Online Access With Hotspots, Laptops, and Planning

    Spread the loveWhen becoming a leader in the field of education, it is important to consider equity. Some students may not have access to devices or the internet from their ...
  • Digital EquityDigital Leadership

    How Can You Assess the Tech Needs of Your Students Outside of School?

    Spread the loveToday, I received an email from the middle school principal in Los Angeles. She explained to me that the school that she ran was in one of the ...
  • Digital Equity

    It Is Time for the Edtech Industry to Stop Denying Its Equity and Race Problem

    Spread the loveThe EdTech industry is dominated by white employees, white leaders, and white entrepreneurs. If you doubt this statement, just attend an Edtech conference. Admittedly, educators and others don’t ...
  • Digital Equity

    How OER Can Help Overcome the Higher Education Equity Barrier

    Spread the loveThe cornerstone of the American dream is the ability to succeed in life regardless of one’s family of origin. And, for most people, that requires a college education. ...

EdTech Futures

  • Adaptive LearningAssistive TechnologyEdTech FuturesInstructional TechnologyTeachers

    Will AI Replace Teachers?

    Spread the loveThrough the years, robots have taken over many jobs. First, they replaced horses and wagons and horses and plows, then they started to replace people. A few examples ...
  • EdTech FuturesHigher EducationHigher Education EdTechUncategorized

    The Future of Higher Education Must Avoid Returning to the Past

    Spread the loveColleges and universities can make higher education safer, smarter, and more accessible through automation and collaboration technologies – if they commit to it. Author: John Hulen, Director of ...
  • EdTech FuturesOnline Learning & eLearning

    IT Trends To Watch As Higher Education Moves Into a New Decade

    Spread the loveEdtech couldn’t have hoped for a better launch into the new decade than the push the industry received from COVID-19. Even the most tech-resistant institutions and individuals have ...
  • EdTech Futures

    4 Emerging EdTech Trends in 2022

    Spread the loveCovid-19 has not only changed education as we know it, but it has forced education technology (EdTech) to up its game. EdTech has been crucial since the start of this ...
  • Adult EducationEdTech & InnovationEdTech FuturesEducation LeadershipEducational LeadershipHigher EducationHigher Education EdTechThe Future of Education

    Education Technology and the Future of Higher Ed Leadership

    Spread the loveEducation Technology (EdTech) has had a more significant impact on education than anyone expected. Now its effects are reaching into the field of higher education. In this article, ...

About Us

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.

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.

Newsletter

Signup for The Tech Edvocate Newsletter and have the latest in EdTech news and opinion delivered to your email address!

Contact Us

The Tech Edvocate
5322 Markel Road, Suite 104
Richmond, VA 23230
(601) 630-5238
[email protected]

Follow us

Copyright © 2022 Matthew Lynch. All rights reserved.