When we talk about technology in education, we usually talk about Canvas, AI, or PowerPoints, and it is not surprising why we would focus on those tools. PowerPoint is a classic and reliable tool to easily build presentations for class, our whole campus seems to run through Canvas, and AI is the new frontier, and Wild West, for modern education. With that all being said, educational technology can serve a variety of purposes that often go overlooked (Kirkwood, 2009), including:
- Increasing enrollment
- Providing flexibility to teaching and learning
- Increasing participation and diversity
- Preparing learners to use technology in their future workplace
Technology, when used carefully and intentionally, can be an incredible tool in the classroom. As you create your lessons for the remainder of the year, consider these alternative presentation tools, quiz software, and video recording tools to help you increase your students’ understanding of the content and their participation in class. As a note, there are limits that you will face by using the free versions of some of these tools versus purchasing a subscription, so be sure to keep that in mind as you decide what is best for you and your classroom.
Presentation Tools: The tools below are alternatives to PowerPoint that can help by providing engaging and interactive presentations.
- Microsoft Sway – Microsoft Sway is one of the tools that is available to you through the Microsoft Suite. There is a learning curve associated with it, but it will be a nice change of pace for you and your students.
- Canva – Canva is a user-friendly option that lets you choose between their free version and the Pro version, which is a subscription-based service. While the Pro version gives you many more options, the free version can still be a valuable asset to you because of its variety of tools and options. It will help you make anything from traditional presentations to infographics!
- Mentimeter – Mentimeter is unique in that it is not a PowerPoint/Slides inspired tool, but rather it allows you to take interactive surveys with your students in real-time. This is especially useful for starting discussions with your class using student polls or word clouds! There are three plans available to you. The free version only allows you to have 50 participants per month, then the Basic plan allows you unlimited participants.
Quiz Software: These tools are excellent ways to review information with your students.
- Quizlet – Quizlet allows you to create flashcards, quizzes, and games for all of your students to work on individually. Generally, Quizlet is not used as a class participation tool, but it is an excellent way to review information, nonetheless. There is a free version that includes almost everything that you would realistically want to use on the website, but the paid version makes the experience a little smoother for students and provides you insights into how they were doing as they review the material.
- Kahoot – Kahoot is one of the most popular websites to help gamify your classroom. It is another great review tool that allows students to compete with one another while going over the material. While it does have many options, the most common use for it is as a competitive quiz where students earn points by selecting the correct answer the fastest. Kahoot technically has a free plan, but the maximum session size is 10 students, so you would most likely need to at least pay for the Bronze tier.
Video Recording Software: Inevitably, you will have to miss class, or you may not have covered everything that you would’ve liked to cover in the limited time that you have. Instead of having the students learn the material on their own or waiting until the next class period to cover it, you can use the options below to record a video for your students.
- Canvas Studio – Canvas Studio is one of the features available to all students and faculty members that allows them to record videos from within Canvas. While it is not great if you want to edit any of your videos, it is excellent at recording and embedding videos in your Canvas class for easy access and has a very user-friendly captioning tool. You can find it at the bottom of Canvas’ side bar above the “Help” button.
- WeVideo – WeVideo is an easy-to-use tool that is best at making introduction and/or content highlight videos for your lessons. It comes with a variety of templates for you to use so that you can quickly create and export what you made. There is an initial 5-day free trial, then it is $89 per year for a Single Teacher plan.
While all of this technology can help students, help you, and increase retention rates across the board, it will not do any good unless it is paired with your experience teaching and expertise in your content area. Also, adding new tools and technologies into your classroom can be challenging and have adverse effects if you are not confident with the tool that you are implementing. If you have any questions or concerns with any of the tools listed above or any that you find on your own, please contact our Student Success Instructional Technologists (SSITs) with Faulkner Online. They would be more than happy to help you!
Kirkwood, A. (2009). E-learning: you don’t always get what you hope for. Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 18(2), 107-121.