iPads, MakerEd and More in Education

K–12 schools are evolving their use of data analytics tools as pedagogies such as personalized learning focus on more immediate feedback and the “whole student.” 

“We need the data that will help us make better, faster decisions,” said Cathy Cavanaugh, principal program manager for learning research and analytics at Microsoft, in a Jan. 29 workshop at the Future of Education Technology Conference. “We want to do what we can and make the right decisions to affect trends moving in the right direction.”

This means schools will need to reassess the data they choose to collect to find the best measurements to help their students, said Cavanaugh.

Delivering authentic experiences in the classroom and learning how to juggle district data are two wide themes that will monopolize education discussion in the next 12 months.