EdCircuit Staff 
Mark Wu 
Mark Wu, Co-Founder & CEO of Nexed, realizes there is a “hand-me-down” mentality surrounding education technology innovations. Far too often, learning interfaces are developed and tested with older students in mind – then later refashioned to fit the environments of younger school children. The results of this process are often less than desirable, which contributes to the misconception that early childhood technology is ineffective in practice.
New LMS Platforms Developed with the Younger Learner in Mind
Wu strongly believes that a greater focus needs to be placed on developing technologies specifically for K-8 education. It begins with getting teachers more comfortable with technology platforms through increased professional learning. Once teachers fully embrace the new technology, then it has a fighting chance in the classroom. BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) schools are shining examples of blending technology learned at home and integrating these skills into classroom use. It’s a productive reversal of learning that works when teachers remain up-to-date with relevant technology.
Improving Student Engagement
Learning Management Systems (LMS) have benefited greatly from the inclusion of gaming into the model. By incorporating gaming into learning platforms, the level of student engagement increases dramatically, especially for younger students. Wu asks trepidatious adults to watch how children engage with technology at home. It’s a new world – and children use technology as natives, their understanding far more openminded than adults.
It’s time to embrace this forward thinking approach and reexamine how our children engage with academic content and learn most effectively.
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