Particularly in recent years, education technology has become an integral part of learning for students. Although some campuses adopted modern technology during the height of the pandemic mainly to facilitate virtual or remote education, the result is that it has enabled most schools today to have access to technology for use inside the classroom as students return to in-person learning.

The Biggest Technology Struggle for Schools Returning to In-Person Education After Virtual Learning

The goal of incorporating technology in the classroom should be to help teachers better educate students to have a brighter future.

At the beginning of the pandemic, many schools were in a state of educational triage in which once they obtained funds, they bought modern technology devices and then put them in the hands of students for use at home to supplement virtual learning. Once that was achieved and virtual learning continued, students settled into a bit of a routine with this remote technology.

However, when schools experienced the end of virtual learning and students returned to the classroom, many schools shunned the technology once used for virtual learning because few were sure how to incorporate those methods into the in-person classroom experience.

In reality, technology that was once used solely for virtual learning can also be used as a blended learning tool to enhance a student’s education. However, as much of the nation transitions into a new normal amidst the COVID pandemic, it is becoming clearer that educators have not been provided with the instruction they need to be able to effectively incorporate this technology into the in-person classroom.

Technology is needed in our schools, and if it is not being used properly it can be a struggle for educators, which leads to frustration for teachers and missed learning opportunities for students.

What Technology Looks Like in Education Today

In a roundabout way, the pandemic became a champion of using technology in a positive way. It enabled the education industry to continue teaching children when it was not possible to do so in person.

When used the right way and with the right instruction, technology can be an amazingly effective supplemental learning tool for remote, mobile, hybrid, and in-person learning.

Classrooms today tend to fall in one of the below categories:

* Repetitive technology-based classroom. These classrooms, whether it is due to lack of funds and/or knowledge of how to operate certain devices, tend to focus on repetitive learning via the same basic technology tools for students, such as online worksheets or learning games.

* Flipped classroom. These classrooms were highly advocated for before the pandemic, but not every school had the means or desire to create this type of learning environment, which incorporates mobile devices into the in-person classroom experience. Those that did pre-pandemic were largely successful at switching to virtual learning. Those that were not able to provide a flipped classroom pre-pandemic may now be able to thanks to the accessibility of technology that was used for virtual learning.

* Advanced classroom. These classrooms have increased access to creative experiences thanks to virtual reality platforms that allow them to experience learning in an entirely different way. As amazing as virtual reality is, this technology can be pricey and not within everyone’s school budget, and for that reason is not frequently used.

Essentially, educators are doing their best to balance normalcy with the constant forward motion of technology. It can be difficult to strike the right balance, especially if educators do not have the support they need in place, and it may look different from one campus to another.

Technological Trends in 2022

As an advocate for technology integration in the classroom,