EdTech World Tour – Explore EdTech for Primary School

Pack your things, we are going on an adventure around the world to discover the best teaching and learning innovations with Svenia! Svenia is an explorer in the EdTech jungle. Picture her wearing her Indiana Jones hat and her Lara Croft shorts, adventuring through schools around the globe to find the best practices in education innovation.

We have slipped into her backpack to go discover the amazing world of EdTech!

1) Hello Svenia, can you sum up your job for us?

My job is to connect and to explore! I visit schools and universities around the world to see what is going on, then I bring back the best ideas I find. I also have created an educational hub here in Paris that I hope will have an impact on education innovators.

Interdisciplinarity is key. I search for teachers and entrepreneurs that turn a simple idea into something that works for the school. I build bridges so these people can connect with one another to improve education. To do this, I organize conferences, workshops, hackathons, etc.

To share the practices that work elsewhere in the world, I write articles in English, French and German so I can reach more people. I do many interviews. I speak in conferences… and today I am here on Beneylu Pssst!

2) What is EdTech (Educational Technology)?

EdTech is where digital meets education. This means everything and nothing at all at the same time… EdTech cover several fields: computer-assisted teaching, online learning, etc. We can find it in primary, secondary school; higher education; everywhere!

“Pssst… Digital technology is very useful. EdTech are, by themsemves, tools that serve the teaching strategy designed for the students by their teachers. But it is not enough to equip classrooms with digital tools. They should be at the service of innovative teaching methods.”

3) Does that exist for primary school?

Yes; apps, computers, or tablets are already used in primary school. For example, I love Lalilo, a French app that allows children to learn how to read thanks to an Artificial Intelligence that offers personalized learning paths. This digital solution helps them learn how to read.

The platform Beneylu School allows teachers to work with their students in a secure, online classroom, designed for primary school, and full of fun and educational apps!

4) What are some of the best practices you have seen during your world tour?

In New Zealand, in an impoverished neighborhood in Auckland, a cluster of primary schools has developed an enthralling pedagogy around: learn – create – share:

• Learn: Students learn how to read, write and count.
• Create: They should be creative to put their learning in practice. They channel what they have learned into a project, and that project is evaluated. For example, some students made a rap song about Nelson Mandela. They learned… without even noticing it! They researched Nelson Mandela, they wrote down their findings, came up with the lyrics, recorded themselves… They were graded on this production.
• Share: They share it! Starting in 2nd Grade, students have a computer and a blog on WordPress. Each week they publish an article about the new things they learned. Writing on the blog motivates them. Their articles are read by the whole world, and they can check on the number of views on them.

A foundation paid for the student’s computers. The parents reimburse 2 euros each month. In 4 years, the computers will belong to them. In this case, computers allow them to write articles on the blog, to produce audiovisual content, etc. This is a great example of how digital technology can foster real creative teaching. This is what we need!

Even in 2nd Grade kids have things they want to share!

Another example I love (there are so many!): In an Australian private school, that covers from 1st grade to high school, teachers meet in an “innovation cell” to picture and design the school of the future together. In this school of tomorrow, there are not inner walls.

They foster teamwork. Teachers are guides and mentors. Students work together, and each one has a computer. They do Project Based Learning, and their learning processes are based on collaboration and action.
What I like the most from this, is that teachers were asked to imagine the new school and teaching methods together.

5) Where do you get this passion from?

I am passionate about transmitting knowledge and inspiring people with stories and success stories from around the world. I dream about becoming a teacher, and I will surely become one someday! This has led me to discover how teachers teach all over the world.

Tech is everywhere! If we apply it to education, it can bring a lot of advantages. The question today is: what is the smartest way to integrate it in school?
We need to find the best way of using EdTech in Education. With this in mind, my friend Audrey Jarre and me set sail to discover the best teaching and learning practices with digital tools around the world: this is how EdTech World Tour was born.

6) What do you imagine the school of tomorrow to be like?

The role of primary school is to transmit the essential skills: reading, writing, counting. The question is: how to do this? In the 21st century, I think we should focus on the “Do it” factor. It’s together, inside and outside the classroom, with more “Flipped Classroom”, where we really learn. Students are engaged in their learning processes learn better. Teachers guide them, but they do not essentially give lectures anymore.

 7) Where does the primary school teacher start today?

I have no advice to give, really. Each teacher has their own recipe. Teachers are the ones who know their students best. I would recommend them to experiment, test new things every day, ways to learn, to play… and checking the things their colleagues do. Many teachers share what they do on Twitter or on their blogs. Go check them out!

On the other hand, education is a contextual thing. We cannot copy-paste everything that we see; because there is a context, a piece of culture, or other very local components behind Education. This is what I learned by traveling the world. However, we can always be inspired by others!

Don’t be scared of messing up! Just keep experimenting and being curious, and learning from what others do.

To discover some ideas, you can read my report “EdTech 2016” on the blog EdTech World Tour.

And you? How do you use EdTech in your class? Tell us!