EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES 1

Emerging Technologies
Christina Gray
CSN EDU214
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES 2

Abstract
This paper will demonstrate three different variations of emerging technologies in the 21st

century classroom. These three variations are augmented reality, cloud computing, and game-

based learning. The information will provide examples as well as dictation of how each

technology is used and the classroom it is mainly used for in order to benefit the students fully.

The three grade levels being discussed are elementary school, middle school, and high school.

Each different paragraph breaks down each of the different technologies and how they benefit

both the teacher and the student. The largest portion of the paper is generated toward how

different the classroom is now that technology is available, and how we can use these emerging

technologies to our benefit. This paper does not discuss much information on the opposing

argument of technology in the classroom.

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Emerging Technologies

"People say 'Aren't you worried what students may do in the digital world?' My response,

'I'm more worried if we don't teach them how.'" This quote by Scott Garafola represents the new

world of technology that is coming across the education world. Technology is one of the largest

resources for 21st century educators. Every day a new program comes out that’s main purpose

is to assist educators provide information and help students stay entertained and focused

throughout each lesson. Three emerging technologies that are assisting with everyday learning

are augmented reality, cloud computing, and game-based learning. In the paragraphs following,

there will be information provided from different resources explaining the benefits of these three

technologies and how they are used in each different grade level.

Augmented Reality

Augmented reality can be defined as a live direct or indirect view of a physical, real-world

environment whose elements are "augmented" by computer-generated or extracted real-world

sensory input such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data (Wikipedia, 2017).

How it works. Augmented reality is sometimes confused with virtual reality, but the

difference is that virtual reality will alter the real world and replace it with a simulated one, where

augmented reality will enhance a person’s view on a real-world situation (Wikipedia, 2017). For

example, a version of augmented reality would be the phone app known as Pokémon Go.

Pokémon Go takes you on a journey as a character travelling through another dimension, but

uses your real-life settings to create the world. As you walk, different Pokémon characters will

appear, and you have to point your phone in that direction to “catch” the Pokémon. This

enhances your view on the real world, without altering it completely. In the classroom, versions

of augmented reality can make fantasy seem like a reality.

How it’s used in different grade levels. Examples can be found for augmented reality

to be used in all different grade levels. For the elementary school students, there are “smart

books” by Popar Toys that bring life to the book itself. Using your smartphone, tablet, iPad, etc.
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES 4

you can run the device over the book and it will come to life on the screen. Now you not only

have a book with educational information, but you are changing the way children read books,

look at posters, or complete puzzles by adding an extra element (Brown, 2015). When looking

at a demo of these educational books, you see the information written on the pages for the

students to read, and when you scroll the device of your choice over the pages you get video

examples that look as though they really are happening on the page. For middle and high

school students, there are 3-dimensional worksheets that act as a research for additional help

or information that. Similar to the smart books, these worksheets require some sort of device to

run over the paper to bring the augmented reality portion available providing models and video

resources to reinforce content (Brown, 2015). AugThat is one of the larger companies that sell

these worksheets. According to their website augthat.com during a controlled test students’

scores improved 30% to 70% after being exposed to the augmented reality worksheets. They

provide an option that keeps the students captivated in each subject by feeling like they are part

of an experience. For middle school, there is also a game called Handheld Augmented Reality

Project that is specifically designed for middle school students and helps with math, language,

and critical thinking skills (Pearson, 2015). Handheld Augmented Reality Project allows students

to walk around and interact with the game directions while the device of their choice places

elements of the game into their real-world location (Pearson, 2015). This version of augmented

reality is very similar to Pokémon Go, and not only allows the students to feel like a part of the

learning experience, but also brings an element of familiarity to students now that have been so

involved in Pokémon Go and games like it. There are options available for just high school

students as well. For example, there are 4-dimensional periodic table elements that assist in

understanding how elements mix together and create a reaction.

Benefits for the classroom. A pattern is created with all three assistive products

because, again, a phone or tablet of sorts is also needed to bring the elements to life. All of

these examples show that augmented reality is a resource to the classroom and only has
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES 5

positive reasoning. All of the information is now more portable and accessible to students

because it can be pulled up anywhere at any time. There is no reason to have physical paper or

books for the students to go through. With any device, they can pull up the information and

attach it to their current surroundings (Augment, 2015).

Impact Teaching. Studies have proven that augmented reality enhances learning

performance, and is very useful with all grade levels. With augmented reality being a popular

educational tool, teachers can now be more creative with their lessons. The attention of the

audience can be more easily captured, and the lessons will be more interactive. (Augment,

2015).

Cloud Computing

Another technology that assists in the classroom is cloud computing. Cloud computing

means storing and accessing data and programs over the Internet instead of your computer's

hard drive (Griffith, 2016). If you use email or have ever taken an online class, you have already

used a version of cloud computing.

How it works. This technology makes all information available anywhere you go. In the

past, to view information you would have to be on a specific device or store it on a flash drive or

floppy disk. With cloud computing, the information can be stored on an internet based server,

and it can be viewed by anyone with an internet connection (Pearson, 2015).

How it’s used in different grade levels. This technology can be used in a variety of

ways in each different grade level. In elementary school, cloud computing can be an effective

resource for parents to help their kids with homework or information they did not 100% absorb

during the school day. The teachers could store their lessons on an online server, and give

access to the parents of the students (Fort, 2014) The early days of school involve so much vital

information, that it is important the students get a good grasp on the lessons and the information

is transcribed the same way at home as it is in the classroom. For middle school and high
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES 6

school students, cloud computing can be used in a similar way but they are more advanced at

that stage, that the internet server could be used as a review of their own.

Impact learning. Students do not ask questions in the classroom due to fear of peers,

shyness, fear of appearing dumb, and overall difficulty in forming the questions (Tenney School,

2015), With the additional resource of cloud computing, the students that suffer with the difficulty

of asking questions can have an extra review of their own at home. This can reduce the number

of gaps in knowledge, future bad habits for learning, and low self-esteem associated with

questions not being answered in the classroom (Tenney School, 2015). Smart boards are a big

help in making this information available for students. A smart board will record the problems

you solved, or the information written on the board, and will save it to a server that you can

download for your students (Fort, 2014).

Impact teaching. Both of these technologies not only provide a big asset to the

classroom, but also help the environment by saving paper and reducing the costs of printing

worksheets or supplying addition text or books on the subjects. All the information is in one

place. Cloud computing also allows students to get more creative with their learning through

technology. There are virtual worlds that can be set up and through hypergridding, students can

be transported from one world to another and discover new information presented by other

students or teachers. These virtual worlds are saved online and can be accessed from any

computer.

Benefits for the classroom. Like many emerging technologies, cloud computing not

only makes it easier to access the information, but provides a way for students and teachers to

be more creative and expand their imaginations and they way they teach and learn (Pearson,

2015).

Game Based Learning

How it works. Game based learning uses competitive exercises, either pitting the

students against each other or getting them to challenge themselves in order to motivate them
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to learn better. Games often have a fantasy element that engages players in a learning activity

through a storyline (Teed, 2016).

Impact learning. Game based learning allows students to learn at their own pace, keep

the student engaged in the lesson, provide immediate feedback to the student’s mistakes, and

many other positive outcomes (Trybus, 2016). This technology sparks imagination in the

students, and provides a different type of learning.

Benefits for classroom. Game Based Learning sparks conversation within the

classroom and allows students to be creative by making predictions about the outcome of the

game or the students can give each other suggestions or tip on how they can advance through

a level. Starting the conversations between students makes a great resource for English or

Language Arts classrooms (Eames, 2014).

How it’s used in different grade levels. An example of game based learning is a game

called Gone Home. In this game, students explore a deserted house and try to find clues about

what has happened there is the last year. During the game, students are given clues they need

to read, evaluate, and solve. Gone Home would be a game better suited for the middle and

school aged students due to the level of advancement (Eames, 2014). The students can work

together or individually on attempting to solve the mystery depending on how the teacher wants

to present it to the class, but either way it still gives the students the ability to learn at their own

pace. Another game that can be used in the classroom is the new educational version on

Minecraft. According to the Minecraft website, the education edition is an open-world game that

promotes creativity, collaboration, and problem-solving in an immersive environment where the

only limit is your imagination. Minecraft creates possibilities for teaching students how to work

together, and to incorporate assignments and lessons into the game (Sansing, 2013). A review

done by Ben from Kingsway Christian School states that the only downsides to this game is that

students who have played the original version struggle with the limitations the education
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versions have, and that the students had trouble with their “digital citizenship skills”. Although

these can be seen as downsides, they also can be seen as learning tools.

Impact teaching. Students struggle with limitations, maybe that can also be seen as a

lesson to help the students be more reserved. The lack of digital citizenship skills can also pose

as a lesson to teach the students more about community and communication skills both online

and in the classroom.

Conclusion

Augmented reality, cloud computing, and game-based learning are only three of the

many emerging technologies available for educators and students in the classroom. In the

future, technology can only continue to advance as time goes on. As new educators are

introduced into the 21st century classroom they will immediately see that students will already

know more than they do about the latest technology. Gaining knowledge about emerging

technologies will assist with relate to the highly social, interactive, and technology focused

students. Although there are many benefits to the emerging technologies available, there are

also problems that have to be addressed. There is the problem of funding, limited time for

teachers to discover and learn about the newest technologies, and concerns about adapting so

much technology into the classroom having a negative effect on the students in the classroom.

Technology is reinventing the way information is addressed in the new age world (Pearson,

2015).
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References

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transform-your-classroom-with-augmented-reality

Augmented reality. (2017, October 21). Retrieved October 21, 2017, from

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augmented_reality

Brown, P. (2016, July 10). How to Transform Your Classroom With Augmented Reality -

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https://www.edsurge.com/news/2015-11-02-how-to-

Eames, J. (2016, July 10). What Game-Based Learning Can Do for Student Achievement -

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based-learning-can-do-for-student-achievement

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Tenney School. (2015). When Students Do Not Ask Questions in Class. Retrieved October 20,

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Teed, R. (2016, November 14). Game-Based Learning. Retrieved October 22, 2017, from

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