T&L Advisor Guest post — Carl Hooker, Director of Instructional Technology, Eanes Independent School District: This past week wrapped up the spectacle that is the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. This is NOT an educational conference but I’ve found it curious how over the years the worlds of the consumer have melded with education when it comes to technology. Ed Tech Magazine, for example, reported 5 main tech trends they feel could “supercharge” education. The usual suspects are listed such as wearables, 3D printing, and the “Internet of Things” (IoT). While I think there are some far-out-there ideas (check out my Bold Predictions Sure to Go Wrong (three words - Self-Driving Buses!), one concept that I feel was front and center in most of the reports from CES was the increase in Virtual and Augmented Reality. While Samsung’s Gear VR and Daqri’s Smart Helmet are interesting concepts, their price-point tells me it will be a while before these become a reality in schools. Maybe Google is on the right track with their Cardboard VR device after all and at a price range ($20-$30) that could happen tomorrow in schools. I guess when it comes down to it, our reality in schools is that education is getting closer and closer to the “real world” in terms of consumer technology, even if it’s virtual and made out of cardboard.
