Educational Tools Teachers And Students May Find Useful
By Melissa Burns
Do you know how much the educational technology market is expected to be worth by 2018? Many people are surprised by the high expectations ($60 billion!), but no one can deny that there is huge potential in this industry, and teachers and students couldn’t be any happier with the improvements.
New educational apps and tools are being constantly promoted, but that doesn’t mean you should start using every single tool that hits the market. Let’s take a look at some innovations that are really worth trying.
1. Skitch
You have surely heard of Evernote, but have you started using its full potential? Skitch is an ingenious tool for visual communication, which increases the potential of “Bring Your Own Device” classrooms. Skitch enables both students and teachers to get their point across easily, without using too many words. Now they can express themselves through sketches, shapes, and annotations.
Skitch makes the communication within the classroom easier, which has an inevitable effect of increasing the level of collaboration between the students.
2. Writinghouse
The assiduous task of proper source referencing can be tiresome and distracting. Writinghouse is a solution to that problem, allowing students to concentrate on their ideas and the writing process while applying all references automatically with the use of this tool.
Writinghouse is extremely simple to use, it’s quite fast, and completely free. It supports MLA, APA, Chicago, and Harvard referencing style, which means that every student and teacher working on academic content can finally stop worrying about bibliography and citation issues.
3. Easel.ly
Visualization can make even the most complex concepts understandable. Easel.ly enables teachers to create simple infographics that will make the lessons memorable for students. There is no need to possess any particular knowledge of designing to start using Easel.ly; the tools and boxes are incredibly easy to implement into the creation of a decent infographic.
Students can also use this tool to visualize the information for the projects they work on.
4. TutorsClass
The tutoring business has been entirely revolutionized with the concept of online tutoring. Students no longer need to search for a tutor in their local area and arrange awkward meetings that fail to deliver the expected results. The entire process is much easier and more effective when conducted in an online environment, and TutorsClass provides all the right tools for students to learn and tutors to teach.
Besides being a great place for students to find perfect tutors for their needs, TutorsClass is also a great website for every educator who wants to start tutoring more students in a convenient online environment. They will have full control over their business and organize a virtual classroom for one-on-one lessons or group classes.
5. Basecamp
This is one of the most effective collaborative tools available at the moment. It is incredibly easy to use for both teachers and students, enabling them to create and manage projects in a fun way. Teachers can control the privacy of the projects and share them with particular students, meaning they can create groups within the class and make them responsible for different projects.
Basecamp also features a calendar tool, which enables teachers to track the project deadlines and be aware of all meetings, holidays, and other important dates.
Conclusion: There is a right educational tool for everyone!
There are many wonderful edu tools available today, but that doesn’t mean that every tool is perfect for every teacher and students. It takes some experimenting to come up with the right combination of tools that will enhance the classroom’s productivity, but the choice of particular tools listed above will make the trial process easier.
There is no need to delay the implementation of tech tools in the educational process; you can start increasing your productivity today if you make the right choice!
Melissa is a graduate student of the faculty of journalism. She is a passionate blogger and writer. Now she dreams od publishing her owm novel.
