RESEARCH PAPER TEMPLATE

North American University

Education Department
M.Ed. in EDLE & CUIN 2021
EDUC 5324: INTEGRATING TECHNOLOGY INTO EDUCATION

Name:______AYSE TOK____ Date: _____26.06.2021_________

Topic Selected:
What are some of the innovative tools that research says is suitable and works
great for distance education? Choose one or highlight several tools that works in
distance education according to research.
1. LITERATURE REVIEW: (250 Words)
What does the literature/research say about this issue/topic? By using NAU
Library or Online Search engines, conduct a literature review.
 You need to include 5 different sources (book, journal article, web article
etc.) in your review. Try to use current sources as much as possible.
 You need to summarize and synthesize your sources by discussing a
common theme or issue. 
 You don't need to critique your sources
 You don't need to evaluate your sources (if the sources are trustworthy,
weather the author has a bias or not)
 You need to provide background information such as history and
definitions

The nations depend upon education for their survival. Informal education along with the
formal education plays a detrimental role in the shape of society. Media and newspapers
has been important sources of informal education. Being a social process education is
greatly influenced by the societal change. Technological inventions have revolutionized
our societies. Internet and social media are one of the inventions which have dramatically
influenced our way of living [Ludlow, 2009, as cited in Afzal and Fardous, 2016). The
basic components of internet and social media are communication and collaborative
technologies which include video, voice, content sharing technologies and social
networking, which provide a new dimension to teaching and learning and provide
opportunities for students and teachers for teaching and learning. These technologies
have changed the role of teacher from deliverers of instruction to that of facilitators of
learning and have made students the center of attention (Beldarrain, 2006,
Falvo&Johnson, 2007, Gunga&Ricketts, 2008, as cited in Afzal&Fardous, 2016).

Social media has been rapidly becoming the focus of the attention of new generation.
Face book, Skype, twitter, mobile SMS and Whats app are the important “communication
portal” for social networking, which has greatly changed the way of people for
communication. Mobile phones have become the crucial part of our life. Now everybody
has his own personal cell phone. Since 1995 mobile phones are developing very fast
[Chowdhury, 2012, as cited in Afzal&Fardous, 2016). They are used not only for
messaging and making calls but also can be used in teaching and learning process. The
 applications of face book, WhatsApp, Skype, SMS, twitter are, the most popular
messenger applications among the college students [Jadhav, Bhutkar&Mehta, 2013, as
cited in Afzal&Fardous, 2016).

There is no doubt that the future of education will be greatly driven by technology. The
new teaching tools are much more effective for the new generation of learners and
educators as they appreciate the modern educational settings. Instead of spending time
reading books in the traditional libraries, the millennials find it easier to learn on the go
by staying tuned to the videos and tutorials online. Students that pursue this path are
likely to gain knowledge and skills without staying restricted to the classroom
environment. Moreover, even if we talk about the traditional classroom education system,
that can also be improved with the addition of the latest technologies.( Gajura,
Constantin, 2021)

It is helpful to have guidance for specific tools or learning materials that have wide
applicability to different grade levels and content areas that do not have a steep learning
curve. An added benefit is resources that provide ready-made lessons or templates for
teachers to use and that can engage families in learning together at home. Here are some
digital tools for planning meaningful learning activities for students that provide
opportunities for families to engage in learning too.
Games; Gimit, Kahoot, Quizizz, Quizlet, Educandy
Interactive Lessons; Nearpod, Pear Deck, Google Tour Creator, Brain Pop
Storytelling; Flipgrid, Buncee, StoryboardThat,
Daily Activities and Connecting; Explore Live Cams, NASA, Virtual 360 tours,
Scholastic, Crash Courses, Livestream activities, Khan Academy
(Poth, 2020) And those tools mentioned in this article are only few of them.

In another article the 30 Best remote learning tools for students are studied under three
main categories on the website https://www.onlineschoolsreport.com/remote-learning-
tools/ And they are as follows ;

Best Tools for Video Conferencing and Communication; Zoom, skype, google
hangouts, google docs, group me, scribble, A.nnotate, prezi, pear deck, jamboard,
Best Remote Learning Tools for Student Success; canvas, blackboard, MyNoise,
Dropbox, Chegg Study, Canva, Open culture, Google drive, Study guide zone, Lumosity,
Best Remote Learning Tools for Additional Learning Opportunities; Numerade,
TED-Ed, Smithsonian Museums, Brainly, Coursera, Getting Smart, Saylor Academy,
Smarthistory, LabXchange,edX

And the website ‘https://readtheory.org/teachers-lounge/50-tools-for-remote-and-

distance-learning/’ gives a list of more than 50 tools for remote and distance
learning. It categorizes these remote tools as follows;
1) Video Conferencing and Communication Tools; Zoom, Remind, Pear Deck, Class
Dojo, Class Craft, SeeSaw, JamBoard, Glide, Skype, Google Hangouts, Playmeo, Post It,
Flipgrid, Insert Learning.
2) Progress Monitoring and Data Management; EasyCBM, Avenue
PM, TeacherEase,  ReadTheory, Edulastic,  MasteryConnect, Parlay Ideas, nearpod

3) Content-Specific Tools; Mangahigh, ReadTheory, Green Brothers, The Smithsonian

Museums, PBS Learning, Jumpstart, Energize Schools, Great Minds, Experiments With
 Google, TED under 20 or ED-TED, OER Commons, Khan Academy, BrainPop, Learn
American English Online, Numerade, Brainly
4) Homework Management and Online LMS; Google Classroom,
Edmodo, Moodle, StartMe, Webjets, Equity Maps, McGraw Hill, Discovery
Education, Clever, Wakelet 
5) Teacher Aides: helps assist teachers in the transition to remote learning;
Hapara, Genially, CK12, Charts Bin, Tableau 
6) Digital Field Trips: Travel the world without ever leaving home; We Are Teachers-
Slime in Space, Atlanta Zoo, San Diego Zoo, Georgia Aquarium, Monterey Bay
Aquarium, US National Aquarium, Seattle Aquarium, Farm 360, Nature Lab, US
Census, World Cities 
7) Miscellaneous Tools; Alice Keeler, CommonSense 

2. REFLECTION: (250 Words)

 What is your personal opinion on this issue? Do you agree with the
research? If you agree or disagree, please explain why?
 Provide examples/experiences regarding this issue from school
perspective or If you are not working in a school, from your profession. Be
specific with your examples. You can mention software/hardware names,
specific methods that you plan to use, etc.
 How would you implement this research in your career? (At least 1
paragraph)
COVID-19 has influenced almost every society and changed widely the way we teach
and learn. Educators are mostly shifted from in-person education to online education
during COVID-19. Distance learning became crucial, and at this point, there is a great
need for technological tools. There is no doubt that the future of education will be
affected and dependent on technological tools. This is because the new teaching tools are
very effective, attractive and make education more accessible.

There are thousands of technological tools currently being used by educators. Educators
can't find enough opportunity even to try many of these. It is getting harder and harder to
keep up with the speed of technology.

As an educator, I can say that I have benefited a lot from these technological tools both
inside and outside the classroom. We learn and apply new things every day, and I observe
that each of these tools has positive and beneficial effects on students and teachers.

I also observe that these technological tools make not only distance education but also in-
person teaching and learning process both fun and more efficient. Besides, I think that
since they allow things to be done faster, they save a lot of time. 

For example, we used to write all the information and questions on the board, and we
were wasting a lot of time. But now, with the presentations, we share the necessary
information directly with the students, reflect on the board, and save time by talking
about the topic. And the presentations are actually one of the simplest parts of the
technological tools. Another example of technology making education life easier is that it
has made exams, quizzes and student evaluations easier. I have witnessed many times
that teachers use Kahoot, Quizizz, Quizlet applications schools. I also like and use these
apps myself. Students both have fun and learn while solving the questions with those
applications.

As a summary, technology is developing day by day and the technological tools are
helping both teachers and learners. They improve engagement and collaboration, save
time and money, make learning and teaching fun and effective.

3. REFERENCES:
 Cite at least 5 References in APA.
 You may use http://www.citationmachine.net/apa/cite-a-journal for citing
your sources in APA style.

References:

Afzal, M. T, & Fardous N. (2016). “Students’ Preferences of Technology Usage for Their
Learning Engagement.” American Journal of Educational Research, vol. 4, no. 10
(2016): 749-751. doi: 10.12691/education-4-10-7.

Ludlow, B. L., & Duff, M. C. (2009). Evolution of distance education at West Virginia
University:Past Accomplishments, Present Activities, and Future Plans. Rural Special
education Quaterly, Vol. (28), No. (3).

Beldarrain, Y. (2006). Distance education trends: Integrating new technologies to foster

student interaction and collaboration. Distance Education, 27(2), 139-153.

Falvo, D. A., & Johnson, B. F. (2007). The use of learning management systems in the
United States. TechTrends, 51(2), 40-45.

Gunga, S. O., & Ricketts, I. W. (2008). The prospects for e-learning revolution in
education: A philosophical analysis. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 40(2), 294-314.

Chowdhury, R. (2012). Evolution of mobile phones: 1995 – 2012 Retrieved May 19,
2014, from http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/evolution-of-mobile-phones.

Jadhav, D., Bhutkar, G., & Mehta, V. (2013). Usability evaluation of messenger
applications for education, . ALT-J, Research in Learning Technology, 19 (3), 160-169.

Gajura, Constantin. “Emerging Trends In Education And Technology.” ELearning

Industry, 12 May 2021, elearningindustry.com/emerging-trends-in-education-and-
technology.

Poth, R. D., 2020, March 30. Choosing the Right Tools for Remote Learning. Getting
Smart. https://www.gettingsmart.com/2020/03/choosing-the-right-tools-for-remote-
learning/.

The Best Tools for Remote Learning & How to Adapt to Distance Education. Online
Schools Report. (2021, February 12). https://www.onlineschoolsreport.com/remote-
 learning-tools/.

Meares-Howard, A. (2021, February 12). 50+ Tools For Remote and Distance Learning.
ReadTheory. https://readtheory.org/teachers-lounge/50-tools-for-remote-and-
distance-learning/.