EdTech

edCircuit Opinion:
Walk into any public school today and what do you see? Most likely groups of desks for students to sit, shelves filled with books intended to strengthen their imagination and support their pursuit of learning, or hopefully a room filled with computers. We’ve entered the 21st century, and technology is more prevalent now more than ever before. It’s common to see a child sitting quietly, playing the latest popular game on their iPad. Or teens (and adults!), completely consumed by their smartphones.

Zack Gilbert is currently teaching 6th grade social studies and language arts at Parkside Junior High School in Normal, IL. Zack is a graduate of Eastern Illinois University with a B.A. in History with a secondary teacher certificate and has an M.S. in Instructional Technology and Design from Illinois State University. His master’s research looked at the impact of educational games and how the knowledge gained through these games is stored into long term memory.

 Adam Geller, Edthena co-founder and CEO, joined Dr. Berger to discuss the ongoing development and support for teachers needed for 21st century schools to succeed. 

Those of us in education business are often focused on managing the clock, the budget and the demands of an industry and clientele (students and teachers) desperately looking for smart technologies that provide student-centered learning opportunities and high levels of engagement.

by Dr. Billie J. McConnell This is the second installment of The Perfect School series originally published in SEEN Magazine.   We must start with the “perfect school.” Until we …

Barbara (Bobbi) Kurshan, Ed.D., the Executive Director of Academic Innovation and Senior Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education joined me for coffee (play interview below) to discuss entrepreneurship in education. Dr. Kurshan discusses the conundrum of when to seek investors and how the education ecosystem can access the most relevant resources. For additional perspective from Dr. Kurshan check out her blog on Forbes. 

Straight from the latest edition of The R&R Show check out Richard Byrne’s advice on making edtech work for you! Remember to check out weekly editions of The R&R Show for the latest news on edtech from users all over the world. As always, if you have a question please send questions via #AskRichardByrne on

George Dotterer, NetRef CEO and founder, discusses how placing control in a teacher’s hands provides safer and more diverse learning experiences for students. Dotterer touches on hot topics including data usage and privacy practices, how students sometimes prove to be the best beta testers and how parents play a role in the larger discussion of edtech and learning outcomes. He further discusses the digital divide and connected approaches to learning from NetRef’s recent white paper The Digital Divide in the Age of the Connected Classroom.

The sweeping bipartisan education bill signed into law on Thursday contained a nugget of good news for the tech industry: Computer science has been recognized as important an academic subject as math and English, potentially introducing it into more classrooms across the U.S.