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Technologies that not only create new industries but eventually change the
world have been dubbed disruptive technologies. These technologies have
the potential to radically change the means by which users engage and interact
with the world. In the case of educational technology, there have been few
disruptive technologies; however, in the past five years, a number of smaller
technologies have been developing which have changed the way students interact
with their teachers, their parents, and each other.
One of the simplest examples of this change has been the growth of the use of
cell phones. Many students, even down to the elementary grades, are now
bringing cell phones with them to school. And beyond using them as phones,
these are personal digital assistants as well as gaming devices. Few educators
are tapping into their potential in education…yet. To learn more about
using mobile technologies in the classroom, see
Learning With Handhelds.
Instant messaging (or IM) is another disruptive technology that has migrated
from the school house to the board room. Students have been chatting online
with each other for years, but it is only in the past few year that
corporations have begun to see the potential increase in productivity, decrease
in time spent in meetings, and ability to stay connected with friends and
colleagues. Why not take that same model that spread from students to adults
and bring it back to students in the classroom?
Teachers have been recording their lectures and presentations for years. But, it
is only with the development of low-cost digital recorders and the Internet
that the possibility of sharing your lectures, or assigning oral history
projects which can be shared online, has come into being. Known as Podcasting,
the practice of sharing digital audio files of assignments, lectures, and
speeches holds great potential for education.
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