Technology is aid to teaching in a great manner; and the same is quite visible from the way we see children's love for tech integration.
If you are one of those educators who love to try different things then 5 strategies are listed below that might come handy for you to engage students better than before.
1) Use of Multimedia
Vivid images, videos, instantaneous information, all of this capture attention from students easily. Use of various multimedia resources adds zing to your classroom sessions. Students enjoy distinctive resources and variety of these resources keeps students engaged and interested in the classrooms throughout. Multimedia can stimulate more than one sense at a time, and in doing so, educators reach all different types of learners and hold student’s attention longer. Giving students the ability to create and utilize different types of multimedia creates a more collaborative classroom and allows students communicate and actually apply what they are learning, enhancing the overall educational experience.
2) Utilization of Social Media
Every kid, every teacher in fact everybody uses and enjoys social media. So when this social media is used for teaching purposes, it turns out to be of great use. Students love being social, collaborating, sharing and exchanging ideas. Various important aspects that are integral part of teaching like collaboration and interaction can happen seamlessly via social media. Not just that it is being used by all but it also enables you to keep things all checked up and helps you in assigning tasks, assignment and other class related activities effortlessly. Social media also plays an important role when you talk about keeping guardians updated about the students’ performance and other school activities. Various platforms like Facebook and Twitter are being used by educators worldwide and are enjoyed by the masses.
3) Using Variety of Resources
Mix things up and add some engagement. The source of the information is not just limited to books in 21st century instead you can use podcasts, videos, OERs, blogs and other resources to deliver knowledge. Kids enjoy exploring various resources and widening their horizons. A mix of various resources is enjoyed by students and is refreshing. It even caters to the different learning needs of the students, as one same resource may not be apt for all.
4) Making Most of Games and Perks of Gamification
Maybe this is the best part about tech integration. The thing that students get to learn while gaming is the best thing. No doubts about the thing that how much love kids have for the games and here educational games are there to help kids learn their important lessons while playing amazing games. Students can get motivated by challenging each other and if done on a mobile device, students are more likely to continue learning outside of the classroom. Using educational games is one of the best ways to use technology in the classroom to make students eager for learning. And gamification can be used as a framework for education that can be used anywhere and in any level of complexity. It can be directly applied to contents, to the pedagogical framework (usually constructivism), or even to other complementary frameworks.
You can also watch these 9 videos to know more about gamification in education.
5) Use Technology to Empower Students and Reach Out
Technology nurtures artistic expression. Engaged students are those who actively express opinions, and don’t just passively ‘receive wisdom’. Technology can give them a platform to explain their ideas, not just regurgitate facts. Apart from this you can help students reach out and learn more. Social media helps you connect to people around the world and you can get in touch with experts.
Modern technology-based art forms have encourage artistic expression among our diverse student population. These tools provide forms of artistic communication for those students who have been constrained by the traditional options of verbal and written communication. You should also help students to have a ‘voice’. One way to do this, for example, is to get them to each set up a blog or participate in other ways to demonstrate their learning. But remember that not everyone’s the same: introvert students might find Twitter intimidating, for instance. Instead, offer multiple choices: podcasting, YouTube etc. To make this work, students need to be aware of ethics of online world and the principles of digital citizenship. You should help with this on priority before starting up!
You must check these fun resources on digital citizenship for kids.
Which strategies do you follow to keep your students engaged and active in the classroom?