Best of the Best Lists

Matthew Lynch published in Best of the Best Lists, Early Childhood & K-12 EdTech

Tutoring/Test Prep Apps, Tools, and Resources That I Would Use If I Were Still in the Classroom

Back in 2001, when I started as a teacher, the technology boom was in its nascent stage. I remember toting a large bag filled with papers home most nights and going to sleep drowning under a vast sea of student homework that needed grading. My classroom was even worse, cluttered with books, manipulatives, globes, maps, and learning stations that left little room for anything else. However, as I write this in 2018, things have changed dramatically. Today’s teachers have edtech in their corners.

Digital teaching and learning tools have streamlined education processes and provide learning experiences that stretch far beyond the materials that were available for me back in 2001. Back in the day, teachers would have to tutor struggling students before or after school. Now, with the advent of artificial intelligence, teachers can use this technology to tutor students during class time. All they need is a tutoring app that uses artificial intelligence, and they are all set. The app will gauge the student’s present level of academic performance, and then present the student with learning experiences and assessments to help them achieve the desired level of academic performance. As a bonus, this technology can also be used to prepare students for classroom level and standardized exams. If I were still in the classroom today, I’d use these tutoring/test prep apps, tools, and resources:

iTalk2Learn– iTalk2Learn is a math tutoring app that uses cutting-edge technology to ensure that students learn more naturally. This app is the result of a three-year collaborative European project to create an open-source intelligent tutoring platform that reinforces math learning for 5- to 11-year-old students. This will enable educators to deliver the correct lesson at the right time.

LearnCube – This is a virtual classroom built for teaching and tutoring online. It helps to eliminate the distance barrier between teacher and students by bringing them together in a virtual classroom. It uses an online interactive whiteboard for teaching; users can draw, annotate, type, and switch to multiple boards while on the platform. The software makes use of high-quality audio and video encoders and compression algorithms for its virtual classes. Since all the content is web-based, there is no need for downloading and learning to use the software. LearnCube also provides the option for users to personalize the classroom.

MATHiaU– MATHiaU is math learning software is offered by Carnegie Learning. It provides college-level math assistance, including one-on-one tutoring. With this app, students take thorough assessments and are given feedback that includes a personalized learning path. MATHiaU provides affordable easy-to-use artificial intelligence based tutoring.

Chegg Tutors: Find tutors in every subject area for both high school and college students by looking at their previous reviews. This allows you to search for the person who is right for you based on your needs and possibly even personality. The best part is that they strive to make it affordable by offering a discounted weekly plan to help keep students on track.

Study Island: Since 2000, Study Island has been used by children in grades K-12 for learning in an entertaining fashion. It is relevant across different subjects including math, reading, writing, science, and social studies. It comes with interactive features and mini-games that aid learning and incentivize progress.

Study.com: This website carries over 1,000 courses made of short, fun videos taught by seasoned educators. The courses vary widely from psychology to calculus, food and nutrition education to PowerPoint lessons. They provide additional learning material for over a million monthly visitors, which include children and adults of all ages and educational status. The College Accelerator membership allows students to watch videos and gather credits that can be transferred to any of the thousands of colleges and universities that participate in the program.

EMsync – This platform helps with tutoring and mentoring of young people to help them succeed in school. This platform is designed to help ignite young people’s potential.

GradeSlam– GradeSlam provides online tutoring service with certified educators delivering interactive academic support to students whenever they think they need it to be successful. The service is unlimited, on request, and available on any device around the clock. The certified educators on this platform point out student’s mistakes during the learning process and guide them on how to avoid those mistakes next time.

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Matthew Lynch published in Assistive Technology, Best of the Best Lists

Assistive Technology Apps, Tools, and Resources That I Would Use If I Were Still in the Classroom

Back in 2001, when I started as a teacher, the technology boom was in its nascent stage. I remember toting a large bag filled with papers home most nights and going to sleep drowning under a vast sea of student homework that needed grading. My classroom was even worse, cluttered with books, manipulatives, globes, maps, and learning stations that left little room for anything else. However, as I write this in 2018, things have changed dramatically. Today’s teachers have edtech in their corners. Digital teaching and learning tools have streamlined education processes and provide learning experiences that stretch far beyond the materials that were available for me back in 2001.

For instance, teachers can use assistive technology to help special needs students succeed in the classroom. Assistive technology allows Down Syndrome students to complete assignments quicker than if they had tried the tasks on their own. Assistive technology can help students with apraxia communicate with pictures, formulate sounds, practice sound production, and improve their communication skills. It can even to help students compensate for their developmental delays. Assistive technology is nothing short of magic. If I were still in the classroom today, I’d use these assistive technology apps, tools, and resources:

Proloquo2Go: Proloquo2Go is an augmentative and alternative communication app that uses symbols to help those who cannot speak for themselves. It uses pictures to help users choose the right words for their unique situation. Adults can easily customize the app for more convenient use.

Articulation Games Assistive Technologies– This app includes four entertaining games with a dynamic way of teaching sound production. The games were assembled by professional speech pathologists, and they contain over 40 phenomes arranged in order of sound placement. The app comes with flashcards and professional sound recordings. Children get rewarded for making progress on the game.

Voice4U: This is an easy-to-use app intended for ELL student, people with communication impairments such as Autism, stroke survivors, and traumatic brain injury victims. The app allows its users to express their ideas, thoughts, and feelings through alternative methods.

Memory Trainer: Because memory is so essential to everything else in the classroom, many teachers choose apps like Memory Trainer to help boost spatial and working memory. This program provides graphical progress so you can see the gains made in spatial and working memory. As an added perk, it also helps to work on focus and concentration.

Citelighter– Citelighter is an assistive research tool that lets you gather facts and materials and arrange them in an orderly fashion. It only takes three easy steps to use Citelighter in your research. Create an account and download the plug-in, begin a project with the toolbar or website, and you are good to go. Citelighter is also handy while you scour the Internet for suitable or appropriate information.

Natural Reader: This is considered to be one of the most powerful text-to-speech apps on today’s market. It can work with several different types of documents including PDFs, Docs, and TXT files. Perhaps the best part is that it reads with your choice from more than fifty natural voices, just as the name implies.

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Matthew Lynch published in Best of the Best Lists, Personalized Learning

Personalized/Adaptive Learning Apps, Tools, and Resources That I Would Use If I Were Still in the Classroom

Back in 2001, when I started as a teacher, the technology boom was in its nascent stage. I remember toting a large bag filled with papers home most nights and going to sleep drowning under a vast sea of student homework that needed grading. My classroom was even worse, cluttered with books, manipulatives, globes, maps, and learning stations that left little room for anything else. However, as I write this in 2018, things have changed dramatically. Today’s teachers have edtech in their corners.

Digital teaching and learning tools have streamlined education processes and provide learning experiences that stretch far beyond the materials that were available for me back in 2001. Back when I was a special education teacher, the only students who had personalized learning plans where special needs students. Individualized Education Plans (IEP’s) were created for them to satisfy the requirements of IDEA (Individuals With Disabilities Acts). They were notoriously time consuming, but we never complained because it was for a good cause.

Nowadays, with the advent of personalized/adaptive learning apps, teachers can create personalized/adaptive learning experiences for all students. If I were still in the classroom today, I’d use these personalized/adaptive learning apps, tools, and resources:

Socrative: Socrative is an easy way for teachers to identify how students are doing clearly. They can assess students or offer them prepared activities to see where they are at currently and help the system make a more personalized plan.

Newsela: Newsela combines major news and research with adaptive reading materials. Split your class up into their appropriate categories and give them an article to read. You can find relevant material for every subject area so you can incorporate literacy across your entire day.

ThinkCERCA: This is a personalized literacy platform that helps teachers convey critical reasoning skills by using argumentative writing. The platform focuses on helping students aged nine to eighteen prepare for life after high school by strengthening their analytical skills in every subject. The platform makes use of standards-aligned close reading and academic writing lessons to teach English language arts, science, social studies, and mathematics.

Cerego – Cerego is a personalized learning platform that helps people learn faster, remember longer, and objectively measure their knowledge using AI-assisted predictive algorithms. It helps organizations improve productivity as employees learn better and are better motivated and more capable. The app uses predictive learning features to deliver individual specific learning materials to its users. Available on Android and iOS devices

Flipick – This app creates a personalized learning experience for every student and helps to develop curricula. It also creates an interactive and collaborative learning environment for learning to take place.

Kytabu – A textbook subscription app developed in Kenya. The app provides access to digitized versions of all Kenyan textbooks from Standard 1 to Form 4 at rates that are affordable for African families. Kytabu uses machine learning to help provide personalized learning for learners. The learners can access educational content that includes books, videos, audios, tests, as well as exams. A great advantage of the app is that it can be used offline. This is a crucial issue in Africa where internet access is limited and often unreliable.

Quizalize: Make your subject matter fun again with the adaptive learning platform offered through Quizalize. Every assessment feels more like a game, giving students the motivation to do their best. It allows you to easily identify where students are struggling so teachers can be better equipped to make a more personalized learning plan or offer more assistance.

Knowre: When it comes to STEM, many students struggle with the math component. Knowre offers an adaptive learning experience that can help bolster a student’s mathematical abilities. They offer supported practice time, fill in the gaps with a personalized review, and offer actionable data to educators.

Scootpad: With Scootpad, students get a comprehensive adaptive learning experience. It starts with practice, allowing Scootpad to meet students where they currently are. It moves on to offer more instructional content, real-time remediation, and assessments.

Freckle Education– Students can easily fall in love with schooling again as this app enables them to work in various subjects at their pace. Teachers can monitor students’ progress across various subjects such as science, social studies, math, and English language arts.

SmartEd: With this tool, you can make relevant changes to textbooks and other learning materials to suit the needs of your students. This platform also allows you to be in direct contact with your students. It uses a game-like approach, which aims to make learning look less imposing.

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Matthew Lynch published in Best of the Best Lists

Social Networking Apps, Tools, and Resources That We Love

Are you looking for social networking apps, tools, and resources that you can use with your students? If so, we have you covered. Check out our list below. Let us know if there are any that we missed.

Edmodo– While social networking has received its fair share of criticism about the bad influence it tolerates, this app is unlike all that. Edmodo is a powerful tool that can be used to pool the creative thinking of students. It helps them think critically while fostering student-teacher partnerships to create projects.

EduStruct– This platform creates a virtual learning structure for elementary and higher learning institutions. The platform provides a social networking service for schools to create and manage their content to be globally relevant.

Quiz ME Online– QuizMe Online is a social networking website that allows students and teachers to come together to achieve success. The site is built on the belief that when students, teachers, and others with an educational interest come together to accomplish a common goal, each student has a better chance at achieving their resolutions.

Meetup– If you have a hobby or something you would love to share with others, you can use the Meetup app to get the word out. This is the largest group networking app available; all you do is collaborate with other members and meet up face-to-face for discussions or group outings. Whether you love archery, knitting, writing, or collecting rare Star Wars figurines, there may be hundreds of groups in your area just waiting for you to join.

Bookopolis Book Search– This is a social network for young readers with a built-in book discovery feature. Teachers can use this platform to build a society of readers and writers from their classes. Students can partake in book reviews and critical thinking to develop opinion writing. Teachers can track and critique a student’s work. The BookQuest option is useful for finding new book reading suggestions.

eChalk– A simple K-12 app platform used to guide and pass out information. It provides an enabling environment for users to have access to an all-in-one learning tool, encouraging teamwork in a professional level. Teachers can use this app to distribute information to parents and the community at large using email and a secured social network.

edWeb– A social network of school administrators, educators, and stakeholders. This is a forum where educators share, learn, and devise new ways to foster better education for students. Educators can join this platform for free, and they can create their network of people with whom they share ideas and innovations. The edWeb network has over 75,000 members and more than online 800 societies.

Mendeley– Mendeley is a social network that allows you to organize your documents, references, research, and papers with a quick click. You can even collaborate with other users through this software, making it your productivity hub.

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