Reflection #8 – EdTech Presentations
“Unplugged or Unprepared?” – Digital Literacy & Internet Awareness in Children
This presentation explored how digital literacy and internet awareness shape children’s social and emotional development. It emphasized the growing importance of teaching online safety, digital citizenship, and responsible technology use. Key ideas included the reality that technology is not always accessible or reliable, the need for teachers to monitor classroom tech use, and the importance of turn-taking, setting boundaries, and maintaining healthy time limits. The overall message: children need guided, intentional support to navigate the digital world, rather than being left “unplugged” or “unprepared.”
High Tech, Low Tech, No Tech: Implications for Learning
This presentation compared the benefits and limitations of high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech approaches in the classroom.
- High tech integrates modern tools (tablets, apps, online quizzes, AI tools) and can increase engagement and accessibility.
- Low tech uses simple, visual, hands-on materials, whiteboards, charts, word phrases and reduces cognitive overload.
- No tech emphasizes physical manipulatives and full-body learning rooted in methods like Steiner or Waldorf education.
The presentation encouraged teachers to balance these approaches depending on learning goals, developmental needs, and available resources.
Virtual Field Trips for Elementary Students
This presentation highlighted how virtual field trips broaden accessibility, engagement, and learning for young learners. Using tools like VR, AR, livestreams, GIS mapping, and interactive websites, students can explore museums, cultural sites, historical locations, and environments they otherwise couldn’t reach. Virtual field trips support the UDL framework by offering multiple means of representation, engagement, and expression. Benefits include reducing financial and geographic barriers while promoting cultural representation and sensory-rich learning experiences.
