Teachers and educators have a wide range of tools at their disposal to enhance teaching, engage students, and streamline administrative tasks. Educators should consider their teaching style, subject matter, and the needs of their students when selecting these tools. Additionally, training and ongoing support are essential to ensure effective integration of these tools into the teaching and learning process.
Here are different types of educational tools specifically designed for educators, with a few examples in each category:
1. Learning Management Systems (LMS)
An LMS helps with administration, automation and delivery of educational programs. Canvas and Moodle are two examples of LMS.
- Canvas is a user-friendly LMS with features for course management, collaboration and grading.
- Moodle is an open-source LMS with customizable options and a strong community.
2. Classroom Collaboration and Communication Tools
Following are some of the top tools for classroom collaboration and communication:
- Google Workspace for Education includes tools like Google Classroom, Docs and Meet for collaboration and communication.
- Microsoft Teams for Education facilitates online collaboration, communication and assignment management.
- ClassDojo is a classroom management tool with features for behaviour tracking and communication with parents.
- Remind allows teachers to send messages and announcements to students and parents.
3. Lesson Creation and Multimedia Tools
These tools help you create effective course contents and integrate graphics and multimedia into them.
- SMART Notebook is an interactive whiteboard software for creating engaging lessons.
- Promethean ActivInspire is an interactive software for creating dynamic lessons.
- Adobe Spark for Education enables the creation of graphics, web pages, and video presentations.
- Camtasia is a screen recording and video editing software for creating instructional videos.
4. Student Assessment and Feedback Tools
Assessing students and getting feedback from them is an essential part of education.
- Kahoot! Provides with gamified quizzes and assessments for formative feedback.
- Socrative is a classroom response system for real-time quizzes and feedback.
- Nearpod is an interactive platform for creating and delivering engaging lessons with real-time feedback.
- Padlet is a digital canvas for collaborative and interactive activities.
- PowerSchool offers a student information system with features for grades, attendance, and analytics.
- Edpuzzle allows teachers to track students’ progress through interactive video lessons.
5. Video Conferencing Tools
Video conferencing tools remove the geographical barrier of physical classrooms by allowing you to impart education to students scattered across different parts of the world.
- Zoom for Education is a video conferencing tool for virtual classrooms and meetings.
- Microsoft Teams allows for virtual meetings, webinars and collaboration.
6. Adaptive Learning Platforms
IXL and Dreambox are two of the popular adaptive learning platforms.
- IXL is an adaptive learning platform for personalized practice in various subjects.
- DreamBox focuses on adaptive math learning for K-8 students.
7. Professional Development Tools
Collaborating with other educators can be a great help in professional learning.
- Edmodo provides a platform for professional development and collaboration among educators.
- Twitter is a social media platform used by educators for professional learning and networking.
- LinkedIn is a business and profession-focused social media platform available in website and mobile app versions.
