“The number one benefit of educational technology is that it empowers people to do what they want to do. It lets people be creative. It lets people be productive. It lets people learn things they didn’t think they could learn before, and so in a sense it is all about potential.” – Steve Ballmer
Students own their learning and acquire important digital skills when given the opportunity to create, produce, and problem-solve with technology. When students are first allowed to use technology for their projects they are excited. However, some learners need inspiration, encouragement, or ideas. That is why I love to show my students various examples of digital projects from learners just like them! In my new book, Hacking Digital Learning Strategies: 10 Ways to Launch EdTech Missions, I list different student examples for learners to evaluate with reflection activities in the Mission Prep sections. Below, find a list of inspiring young people making the world a better place with technology.
Examples of Learners Creating and Problem Solving With Technology
- Signal to Noise is a festival Jon Samuelson‘s district hosts each year to recognize outstanding K12 student video productions, such as documentaries, animations, comedies, dramas, newscasts, music videos, and PSAs (Public Service Announcements).
- Find great examples of student newscasts on the Scholastic’s Kid Reporters Notebook website and the Voice K website.
- Kid President creates inspiring videos and uplifts people around the world through social media.
- TED has created the playlist, Talks by Brilliant Kids and Teens, of video recorded TED Talks by kids and teens under the age of 20.
- Newsela has a collection of articles, Kid Innovators, with the stories of young inventors with quizzes and writing activities.
- Beth Kanter, an expert on how nonprofits can use social media, shares four examples of children and teens crowdfunding causes in her article, Kids and Kickstarter: The Rise of PhilanthroKids and Kid Crowdfunding.
- Find interviews with young innovators on the web platform, KidBacker.
- For student created video book reviews, check out Slime Kids and Book Trailers for Readers.
- MathTrainTV is a network of math tutorials created by students.
- DIY features DIY videos created by children.
- For student created digital textbooks check out these examples- Creatures, Plants and More! A Kid’s Guide to Northwest Florida, Wikibooks and iBooks by adolescents, The Two Kids and Desert Town, geography and science Livebinder textbooks, and DGH Wikispaces.
Challenge– Inspire students to do great things with technology by showing them inspiring examples created by learners like them.
cross posted at teacherrebootcamp.com
Shelly Terrell is an education consultant, technology trainer, and author. Read more at teacherrebootcamp.com.
