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Technological Needs
Misty D. Gilbert
IL-7000: The Culture of Learning
Dr. Bob Bulik
April 28, 2021
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Technological Needs
Today's students often referred to as Generation Z, have more technological needs than
previous generations. Generation Z students have access to smartphones, tablets, computers,
video games, and other electronic devices, more so than any other previous generation.
According to Seemiller and Grace (2017), today's classrooms have been prepared for previous
generations, and they do not fully meet the needs, interests, and learning preferences of
Generation Z students. This assignment aims to assess the technological needs and investigate
technological trends that may enhance learning and improve teacher performance.
Nearpod
Nearpod is an instructional platform with a perfect mixture of formative assessments with
dynamic media that provides students a collaborative learning experience. Nearpod offers a live
presentation feature and a student-paced feature that can take place inside and outside of the
classroom (PR Newswire, 2020). Nearpod, an interactive digital response system, includes
visuals and questions on individual student screens and allows students to answer individually.
Simultaneously, the teacher can monitor individual answers, student progress and provide
appropriate feedback to the students (Gottfried, n.d.)
Nearpod can accommodate any class size; however, there is no flexibility to create breakout groups or communities for practice within the Nearpod. There are two options for Nearpod:
live presentation or student-paced self-learning. Nearpod is user-friendly. At first, it can take
students a little longer to log onto Nearpod because they must be guided step-by-step on how to
log onto Nearpod. However, once they have logged in for the first time, it becomes quicker and
more comfortable for them to log in each subsequent time they use Nearpod.
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Nearpod increases engagement and enables 100 percent student participation (McKay &
Ravenna, 2016). This e-learning tool allows students to engage in complex cognitive tasks and
use higher-order thinking skills by answering open-ended questions or showing their work (in
Math) to explain their thinking. The Draw It! Feature in Nearpod allows students to practice FSA
grid-like responses and show how they could get their answers (either through the drawing or
text feature). This type of interaction gets 100 percent of the students engaged, better than basic
pencil and paper. Nearpod allows students to creatively flex their muscles to show their
educators what they know (A. Palka-Torresson, personal communication, April 28, 2021).
Class Dojo
Class Dojo is a software application program that is acts as an all-in-one communication
platform. Parkway Elementary uses Class Dojo to reinforce student positive behaviors through
points and provides an easier and more efficient way to communicate with families for free.
Class Dojo offers additional features such as the Class Story and School Story, which are
exceptionally user-friendly, allowing ease of communication with families in Facebook layout.
Teachers can post events, reminders, and photos to their stories. Just like on Facebook, families
can view and comment on postings and even like photos posted to Class Story. Class Story can
be used to replace individualized class newsletters to families (Class Dojo, Inc., 2020).
Outside of the COVID-19 restrictions placed upon schools, Class Dojo has been the most
significant shift at Parkway Elementary for the 2020-2021 school year. Prior to the
implementation of the COVID-19 restrictions, each teacher had their own individual way of
communicating with their students' families, and nothing was uniform. Now that all teachers at
Parkway use Class Dojo for communication with families, families have provided positive
feedback. There is now one universal means for communication, especially helping families with
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multiple students at the school. Parkway Elementary is also a Positive Behavior Intervention
School (PBIS), where students receive feedback with a 4:1 positive ratio. In the past school
years, students would be rewarded with Pirate Bucks or classes would be rewarded with Pirate
Points (J. Sherman, personal communication, April 16, 2021). However, because of COVID-19,
we no longer can have tangible Pirate Bucks circulating in the school, so we now utilize Class
Dojo as a digital means for rewarding students with PBIS points. Students can still redeem their
points for tangible or nontangible rewards. We do not use the negative behavior component in
Class Dojo and have actively removed that component supporting our PBIS implementation.
Class Dojo has been a significant and cost-effective shift for the school. Pirate Bucks and
Pirate Points were often misplaced or easily worn out, and replacement orders needed to be
made. Each order was easily two hundred dollars and added up considerably by the end of the
year; and, with Class Dojo, this cost is eliminated because Class Dojo is a free software
application (H. Bolitho, personal communication, April 13, 2021).
Flipgrid
Flipgrid is an online video response platform used in educational settings and
communities in which users are encouraged to record and share short videos to reflect, showcase
and discuss learning and meaning-making in and out of the classroom (Miller et al., 2020).
Teachers can use Flipgrid to promote necessary reasoning skills and have students apply
knowledge to those skills. Flipgrid can also develop metacognitive skills in reading areas (Miller
et al., 2020).
Flipgrid can accommodate any class size but lacks the flexibility to create smaller subgroups of practice communities within the leading group. However, Flipgrid does allow CoPilots
(other teachers) to be added to the Group or Topic and allows for collaboration among classes.
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CoPilots help Group owners manage their Groups by adding students or creating and managing
Topics and providing feedback to students (Flipgrid, n.d.). At Parkway Elementary, educators
and staff are currently working to instill the love of reading in the students. Reading is always
tied with a standard, and Flipgrid is helping instill the love of reading by allows students to
create and record a commercial on their favorite book. By using Flipgrid, students help gain
interest in books that other students may not be aware of, and many educators have seen the
eagerness in which students wish to participate in these Flipgrid commercials. Students love to
read peer-recommended books (A. Palka-Torresson, personal communication, April 28, 2021).
Dash and Dot Coding Robots
Dash and Dot, an emerging coding technology, can be utilized across all content areas
using robotics. Dash and Dot not only promote problem-solving skills, but also enhance
communication skills in students. Since at least 85 to 90 percent of the students at Parkway
Elementary come from a low socioeconomic household, these students have less developed
problem-solving and communication skills than non-economically disadvantaged challenged
peers (Yang, Bear & May, 2018).
Kahoot!
Kahoot! is a practically free website that has ranked thirty-sixth out of one hundred for
learning apps. Kahoot! has a game-like feel that engages students by creating a competitive
environment while promoting learning through higher thinking and problem solving (Chiang,
2020). Using Kahoot! as a formative assessment tool turns the regular classroom into an
engaging and fun experience for students. Students that use Kahoot! turns a routine assessment
into a game and allows students to achieve a higher order of thinking to discuss and analyze their
learning content (Kolb, 2019).
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Kahoot! works on the following web platforms: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and
Internet Explorer. Kahoot! may be installed on iPhones, iPads, and Androids using iOS 10 or
newer or Android 5.0 or newer. Chromebooks that support Android apps can use the Kahoot!
Android app (Kahoot!, 2021). Kahoot! needs the internet to run correctly and does not have an
offline mode.
Training Plan
Wonder Workshop has an online webinar course for Introduction to Coding with
Robotics with Dash and Dot. The cost of the course is $200 for the course alone, but $350 if
educators wish to bundle the course and Dash and Dot. Of course, depending on how many
educators and staff wish to use Dash and Dot in the classroom, Parkway Elementary could
budget for this professional development. This professional development is a 15-hour training
course, and Wonder Workshop gives educators six months to complete the online course
(Wonder Workshop, 2020).
Kahoot! offers free professional development training videos and trains the trainer so that
teachers may train other teachers and get Kahoot! certified. Each level of certification is one hour
in duration. Kahoot! certified has three levels: Bronze, Silver, and Gold. With the Gold
certification, teachers receive a 33 percent discount on the premium membership. There are also
Advanced Certification courses that last 30 minutes in duration each. Each course is eligible for
professional development credits and offers diplomas as proof of course completion. The
certification courses require an 80 percent pass rate to receive the certification and diploma (The
K!rew, 2018).
Flipgrid also offers free professional development in the form of videos and webinars for
educators and staff who wish to learn about Flipgrid and how to use it in the classroom (Flipgrid,
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2021). Some professional development lessons include Getting Started with Flipgrid and
Coaches: Empowering Every Voice with Flipgrid. Flipgrid also has a Remote Learning Guide for
those who wish to learn independently at their own pace. The professional development courses
run for 30 minutes (Flipgrid, 2021). Class Dojo offers free professional development in the form
of videos. Class Dojo offers educators videos on getting started with Class Dojo. Class Dojo will
walk educators by setting up their classroom, communicating with families, and even working on
the social and emotional well-being of students (Class Dojo, n.d.).
Nearpod offers real professional development on fundamental topics through Learning
Labs. The Learning Labs allow schools and school districts to facilitate one-hour professional
development training programs. Nearpod also offers webinars on getting started with Nearpod.
Some professional development topics are free, while others are based on school or district
subscriptions (Thompson, 2018).
Timeline for Implementation
Training for each new technology will be provided during the pre-school week through
various professional developments Educators and staff may choose which technologies they
would prefer to learn about and enroll in the corresponding professional development. While five
technologies are discussed in this assignment, not all five technologies will not be implemented
within the same school year. Therefore, educators and staff have flexibility with professional
development and learning the new technologies because implementing too many new curriculum
or enhancements all at once is overwhelming to not only educators and staff but also to students
(Ditch That Textbook, 2020). Ditch That Textbook (2020) suggested that it start small and
implement technology slowly so that it is not cumbersome, overbearing, and overwhelming.
Conclusion
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Flexibility is fundamental when establishing new technology and implementing a new
professional development plan and timeline into a school or school district. Sometimes
implementation moves at the speed of light, and as stated above, the implementation may also be
overwhelming to educators, staff, and students. Technology is essential in the 21st-century
classroom, especially with the new generation of students (Seemiller & Grace, 2017). It is
imperative to infuse the classroom with engaging and creative technology, but not at the expense
of overwhelming educators and students (Ditch That Textbook, 2020).
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References
Chiang, H.-H. (2020). Kahoot! In an EFL reading class. Journal of Language Teaching and
Research, 1, 33. https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1101.05
Class Dojo, Inc. (n.d.). ClassDojo learning series. https://www.classdojo.com/training/
Class Dojo, Inc. (2020). Bring every family into your classroom.
https://www.classdojo.com/#LearnMore
Ditch That Textbook. (2020, February 19). Dear teacher overwhelmed by technology…. Ed
Tech. https://ditchthattextbook.com/dear-teacher-overwhelmed-by-technology/
Flipgrid. (n.d.). Managing and removing CoPilots. https://help.flipgrid.com/hc/enus/articles/360045364174-Manage-and-Remove-CoPilots
Flipgrid. (2021). Flipgrid events. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/store/workshops-trainingandevents/flipgrid#page=1&pageSize=24&topic=10000085&keyword=Professional%20Dev
elopment
Gottfried, L. (n.d.). The effect of digital tools on reading comprehension, focus and engagement.
Nearpod. http://news.nearpod.com/pdf/effect-digital-tools.pdf
Kahoot! (2021). What browsers work with Kahoot!? https://support.kahoot.com/hc/enus/articles/115003198748-What-browsers-work-with-KahootKolb, L. (2019). Smart classroom-tech integration. Educational Leadership. 76(5), 20-26.
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/feb19/vol76/num05/Smart_Clas
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The K!rew (2018, September 4). Professional development and teacher resources for Kahoot!
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McKay, L., & Ravenna, G. (2016)., Nearpod and the impact on progress monitoring. CCNews,
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Miller, S. C., McIntyre, C. J., & Lindt, S. F. (2020). Engaging technology in elementary school:
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https://doi.org/1080/00094056.2020.1766677
PR Newswire. (2020, April 7). Nearpod & Utah Education Network announce state-wide access
to digital learning for Utah schools. PR Newswire Associates, LLC.
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https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A619639036/AONE?u=pres1571&sid=AONE&xid=dc53
bdb
Seemiller, C., & Grace, M. (2017). In practice: Generation Z: Educating and engaging the next
generation of students. About Campus, 22(3), 21-26. https://doi.org/10.1002/abc.21293
Thompson, K. (2018, April 2). Experience the best teacher professional development. Nearpod.
https://nearpod.com/blog/teacher-professional-development/
Wonder Workshop. (2020). PD Course: Introduction to coding and robotics with Dash and Dot.
https://store.makewonder.com/collections/curriculum/products/introduction-to-codingand-robotics-with-dash-dot?variant=12062063362121
Yang, C., Bear, G. G. & May, H. (2018). Multilevel associations between school-wide socialemotional learning approach and student engagement across elementary, middle, and
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