Online Learning Platforms (MOOCs)
Use MOOCs to gain specific skills, not just to collect certificates.
A person proudly displayed a dozen certificates from online courses on his LinkedIn profile but struggled to apply any of the knowledge in his job. His colleague took only one course on a specific data analysis skill. She didn’t just get the certificate; she immediately used that new skill to build a real project at work. Her manager was far more impressed by her tangible new ability than by his collection of certificates. The value is in the skill, not the PDF.
Stop passively watching lecture videos. Do actively engage with the material and complete the assignments instead.
A student would “watch” online lectures while scrolling through social media on his phone. He would get to the end of a video and have no memory of what was said. He was being a passive consumer. To truly learn, you must be an active participant. This means closing other tabs, taking notes, and, most importantly, doing the practice problems and assignments. The learning doesn’t happen during the watching; it happens during the doing.
The #1 secret for actually finishing an online course you started.
The secret is to have skin in the game, either socially or financially. A person signed up for a free online course and dropped out after the first week. She then signed up for a different course, but this time she paid a small fee and joined a study group with a friend. The combination of having made a financial commitment and the social accountability of having a study partner was the key. She didn’t want to waste her money or let her friend down, so she saw it through to the end.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about MOOCs being a replacement for a college education.
The lie is that a collection of certificates from Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) is equivalent to a four-year university degree. While MOOCs are a fantastic and affordable way to learn specific, job-related skills, they typically lack the depth, the structured curriculum, the networking opportunities, and the credentialing power of a traditional degree. They are a powerful supplement to a formal education, not a replacement for it.
I wish I knew this about the importance of choosing a course with a strong community aspect when I first started taking online courses.
I enrolled in a self-paced online course. There were no forums and no way to interact with other students. When I got stuck, I felt isolated and quickly lost motivation. For my next course, I chose one that had an active student forum and weekly group discussions. The ability to ask questions, help other students, and feel like I was part of a community was a game-changer. It transformed a lonely learning experience into a collaborative and supportive one.
I’m just going to say it: The completion rate for most MOOCs is less than 10%.
Millions of people sign up for free online courses with the best of intentions. They are excited to learn a new skill. But the reality is that without the structure and accountability of a traditional school, life gets in the way. It’s incredibly difficult to maintain the self-discipline needed to complete a long course on your own. The low completion rate isn’t a sign that the courses are bad, but a testament to how challenging self-directed online learning truly is.
99% of online learners make this one mistake that leads to them dropping out.
The most common mistake is not having a clear “why.” A person will sign up for a course on a whim because it sounds interesting. They don’t have a specific goal or a reason for taking it. When the course gets difficult, they have no strong motivation to push through. A successful online learner has a clear purpose: “I am taking this course so I can get a promotion,” or “I am taking this course so I can build this specific project.” Your “why” is your fuel.
This one small action of scheduling time for your online course in your calendar will change your completion rate forever.
A person wanted to complete an online course but could never seem to “find the time.” She took one small action: she treated it like a real class. She scheduled two, one-hour blocks on her calendar every single week for “coursework.” By blocking off the time and treating it as a non-negotiable appointment, she created the structure and discipline she needed to make consistent progress and actually finish the course.
The reason you’re not learning from your online course is because you’re not applying what you learn to real-world projects.
A student could pass all the multiple-choice quizzes in her online coding course, but she still felt like she didn’t know how to code. The reason was that the knowledge was purely theoretical. The learning only “clicked” when she started to apply the concepts from the course to build her own personal project. The project forced her to struggle, to problem-solve, and to truly understand the material at a much deeper level than any quiz ever could.
If you’re still not using online learning platforms to upskill, you’re losing a competitive edge in your career.
An employee in a rapidly changing industry relied only on the skills she had learned in college a decade ago. Her career stagnated. Her colleague, however, had a habit of taking a new online course every year to learn the latest tools and technologies in their field. The colleague was constantly bringing new skills and ideas to her role and was the one who was chosen for the most exciting new projects and promotions. In the modern economy, continuous learning is not optional.
Learning Management Systems (LMS)
Use a modern, user-friendly LMS, not a clunky and outdated one.
A university was using a Learning Management System (LMS) from the early 2000s. The interface was confusing, it wasn’t mobile-friendly, and students and teachers hated using it. They finally switched to a modern, cloud-based LMS with a clean, intuitive design. The new system was easy to navigate, worked great on a phone, and had features like a built-in calendar and messaging. This switch from a clunky, outdated system to a user-friendly one dramatically increased the adoption and satisfaction of both students and faculty.
Stop using your LMS as just a content repository. Do use its features for collaboration, assessment, and analytics instead.
A teacher was just using her school’s LMS as a place to upload her syllabus and lecture slides. It was a digital filing cabinet. A more tech-savvy teacher used the full power of the LMS. She used the discussion forums for collaborative learning, she created online quizzes that were graded automatically, and she used the analytics dashboard to see which students were falling behind. She was using the LMS not just to store content, but to actively manage and enhance the entire learning experience.
The #1 secret for increasing student engagement on your LMS.
The secret is to make the LMS the central, indispensable hub for your course. A teacher who only used the LMS sporadically found that her students rarely logged in. A different teacher made the LMS the single source of truth. All announcements were posted there, all assignments were submitted there, and all grades were found there. By making the LMS the essential, one-stop-shop for everything related to the course, she trained her students to check it regularly, which dramatically increased their engagement with the platform.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about all LMSs being the same.
The lie is that a Learning Management System is a commodity and that they are all basically interchangeable. A K-12 school district, thinking all LMSs were the same, chose a system that was designed for corporate training. It lacked essential features for a school environment, like parent portals and robust grading tools. A different school district carefully chose an LMS that was specifically designed for the K-12 use case. The choice of the right tool, designed for the right audience, makes a huge difference in its usability and effectiveness.
I wish I knew this about the importance of mobile access to the LMS when I was a student.
As a student, I was always on the go. My university’s LMS had a terrible mobile app. I couldn’t check my grades, submit an assignment, or participate in a discussion from my phone. It was incredibly frustrating. I wish the university had known that for modern students, a high-quality mobile experience is not a “nice-to-have”; it’s a necessity. Students expect to be able to access their coursework and communicate with their instructors from anywhere, on any device.
I’m just going to say it: Most LMSs are designed for administrators, not for teachers and students.
A teacher was trying to set up his gradebook in his school’s LMS. The process was incredibly complex and counter-intuitive. The reason? The system had been designed to meet the complex reporting requirements of the school’s administrators, not to provide a simple, user-friendly experience for the teacher. This is a common problem. The user experience of the end-users—the teachers and the students who have to use the system every day—is often a secondary consideration to the administrative and bureaucratic needs of the institution.
99% of schools make this one mistake when choosing an LMS.
The most common mistake is focusing only on the feature list and not on the user experience. A school district will choose an LMS because it checks all the boxes on a massive feature comparison spreadsheet. They don’t spend enough time getting feedback from the actual teachers and students who will have to use the system every day. A system with a hundred features that are all difficult to use is far less valuable than a system with twenty features that are all simple and intuitive.
This one small action of organizing your course content into weekly modules will change the student experience on your LMS forever.
A teacher’s LMS page was a long, disorganized list of dozens of different files and links. Students were constantly confused about what they were supposed to be doing each week. She took one small action: she reorganized all of her content into a series of clear, weekly modules. Each module contained all the readings, assignments, and resources for that specific week. This simple structural change made the course much easier for students to navigate and dramatically reduced their confusion and anxiety.
The reason your students are not using the LMS is because it’s not integrated into their daily workflow.
A school had an LMS, but the teachers still handed out assignments on paper and made announcements verbally in class. The students had no compelling reason to log into the LMS because it wasn’t an essential part of their a workflow. For an LMS to be successful, it has to be the central nervous system of the classroom. When students know that the LMS is the only place to find out what’s due and to submit their work, they will use it.
If you’re still a teacher emailing assignments to your students, you’re losing the efficiency and organization of an LMS.
A teacher would email assignments to his students and they would email their completed work back to him. His inbox was a chaotic mess, and he struggled to keep track of who had submitted what. An LMS provides a single, organized place for all of this. Assignments can be posted, submitted, and graded all within the platform. The gradebook is updated automatically. It’s a much more efficient and organized way to manage the administrative tasks of teaching.
Adaptive Learning
Use adaptive learning platforms to create personalized learning paths, not a one-size-fits-all curriculum.
In a traditional classroom, a teacher gives every student the same worksheet. Some students are bored because it’s too easy. Others are frustrated because it’s too hard. An adaptive learning platform can change this. Based on a student’s initial answers, the platform can identify their specific knowledge gaps and provide them with exercises that are tailored to their individual needs. It creates a personalized learning path, ensuring that every student is appropriately challenged.
Stop teaching to the middle. Do use technology to challenge advanced students and support struggling ones instead.
A math teacher struggled to meet the needs of all her students. While she was helping the students who were struggling, her advanced students were getting bored. She started using an adaptive learning tool. The tool allowed her advanced students to move ahead at their own pace, exploring more challenging concepts. At the same time, it provided targeted, one-on-one practice for her struggling students. This allowed her to break free from “teaching to the middle” and to differentiate her instruction at scale.
The #1 tip for a successful implementation of adaptive learning in the classroom.
The most important tip is to use the adaptive learning tool as one part of a blended learning model, not as a replacement for the teacher. A school tried to have students just sit on a computer and use an adaptive learning program all day. The students were disengaged. A more successful classroom used a “station rotation” model. The students would spend some time on the adaptive learning platform, some time working in small groups with the teacher, and some time on a collaborative project.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about adaptive learning being a “silver bullet” for education.
The lie is that adaptive learning is a magic technology that will solve all the problems in education. While it is a powerful tool for personalizing instruction in specific, well-defined subjects like math or vocabulary, it is not a silver bullet. It cannot teach creativity, critical thinking, or collaboration. It is a tool to help with the “knowledge acquisition” part of learning, but it is not a replacement for the rich, complex, and human-centered aspects of a good education.
I wish I knew this about the importance of high-quality content for an adaptive learning system to work effectively.
I was so excited about the promise of an adaptive learning platform. But when my students started using it, they were being served low-quality, confusing content. I wish I had known that the “adaptive” algorithm is only as good as the library of content it has to draw from. A sophisticated algorithm that is pointing students to a set of poorly written articles and bad practice problems is not going to be effective. The quality of the underlying educational content is paramount.
I’m just going to say it: Adaptive learning is the future of personalized education.
The traditional, industrial model of education, where 30 students all learn the same thing at the same pace, is an outdated relic. Every student learns differently. The future of education is one that is personalized to the individual needs of each learner. Adaptive learning technology is the only way to provide this kind of personalized, one-on-one tutoring experience at the scale of an entire classroom or school district. It’s a key tool for making personalized education a reality for everyone.
99% of educators make this one mistake when they first start using an adaptive learning tool.
The most common mistake is to just “set it and forget it.” A teacher will have her students use an adaptive learning platform but will never look at the data the platform is generating. She is missing the most powerful part of the tool. A good adaptive learning platform provides the teacher with a detailed dashboard that shows exactly which students are struggling and with which specific concepts. This data allows the teacher to intervene and provide targeted help where it’s needed most.
This one small action of using the data from your adaptive learning platform to inform your instruction will change your teaching forever.
A teacher noticed on his adaptive learning dashboard that a third of his class was struggling with a specific math concept. In the past, he would have had no way of knowing this until the test. Now, with this real-time data, he took one small action: the next day in class, he pulled that group of struggling students together for a small-group mini-lesson focused on that one specific concept. This data-driven instruction was incredibly efficient and effective.
The reason your adaptive learning initiative is failing is because of a lack of teacher training and support.
A school district spent a lot of money on a new adaptive learning platform. A year later, most teachers weren’t using it. The reason was a lack of training. The teachers were just given the software with no guidance on how to effectively integrate it into their classroom practice. A successful adaptive learning initiative requires a significant investment in professional development, showing teachers how the tool can support, not replace, their existing instructional practices.
If you’re still teaching every student the same thing at the same pace, you’re losing the opportunity to meet their individual needs.
In a traditional classroom, a student who has already mastered a concept is forced to sit through a boring lesson. A student who is falling behind is forced to move on before she has a chance to catch up. Both students are being underserved. The use of adaptive learning tools allows for a more flexible and personalized environment where every student can work at their own pace, ensuring that advanced students are challenged and struggling students get the support they need to achieve mastery.
Gamification in Education
Use gamification to increase motivation and engagement, not just to add points and badges to your lessons.
A teacher added a points system to his classroom. Students got points for turning in homework. The students didn’t care. It felt meaningless. A different teacher used gamification to transform her history lesson into an interactive quest. The students were explorers on a mission, and they had to solve challenges and make choices to advance the story. The “points and badges” were integrated into a compelling narrative. This use of game elements to create an engaging experience was far more effective than just tacking on a superficial rewards system.
Stop thinking of gamification as just “playing games”. Do use game design principles to make learning more compelling instead.
A principal was skeptical of gamification because he didn’t want his students just “playing games” in class. He didn’t understand that gamification is not about playing commercial video games. It’s about taking the elements that make games so engaging—like clear goals, immediate feedback, a sense of progression, and a compelling narrative—and applying those principles to the learning process itself. It’s about making the learning feel like a game.
The #1 secret for designing effective educational games.
The secret is to ensure that the core game mechanic is intrinsically linked to the learning objective. A bad educational game is just a series of multiple-choice questions with some fun graphics. The “game” is separate from the “learning.” A great educational game, like one where you have to use physics principles to build a bridge, makes the act of playing the game the same as the act of learning the concept. The learning is not a reward for playing the game; the learning is the game.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about gamification being a distraction from learning.
The lie is that adding game elements will distract students from the “real” learning. A well-designed gamified lesson does the opposite. A student who is bored and disengaged in a traditional lecture is the one who is distracted. A student who is deeply engaged in a well-designed educational game, trying to solve a challenging problem to level up, is in a state of intense focus and “flow.” Good gamification is not a distraction; it’s a powerful tool for capturing and sustaining attention.
I wish I knew this about the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation when I first tried to gamify my classroom.
When I first tried to gamify my class, I focused on extrinsic rewards. I would give students candy or stickers for getting the right answer. This worked in the short term, but the students were only motivated by the reward, not by the learning itself. I wish I had known to focus on fostering intrinsic motivation. By designing a lesson that was genuinely curious, challenging, and gave students a sense of autonomy and mastery, I could have nurtured a love of learning for its own sake.
I’m just going to say it: Poorly designed gamification can actually decrease student motivation.
A teacher created a public leaderboard that showed which students had the most points in her class. The same few, high-achieving students were always at the top. The students in the middle and at the bottom became demotivated and stopped trying, feeling like they could never catch up. This poorly-designed competitive system did more harm than good. A better approach would have focused on personal progress and mastery, rather than public competition.
99% of teachers make this one mistake when they try to use gamification.
The most common mistake is focusing only on the “game mechanics”—the points, the badges, the leaderboards—while ignoring the most important element of a good game: a compelling narrative. A lesson that is just a series of disconnected, gamified activities can feel meaningless. By wrapping the lesson in a simple story—”You are a detective solving a historical mystery”—you can provide a context and a purpose that makes the entire experience much more engaging and memorable for students.
This one small action of adding a narrative or story to your lesson will change student engagement forever.
A math teacher was teaching a lesson on fractions. It was dry and abstract. She decided to try a new approach. She framed the entire lesson as a story: “You are the chefs in a magical pizza parlor, and you have to use your knowledge of fractions to create a series of very specific and strange pizza orders.” This one small action of adding a simple, fun narrative transformed a boring math lesson into an engaging and memorable adventure.
The reason your gamified lesson is not working is because it’s not aligned with your learning objectives.
A teacher found a fun online game about history and had her students play it. The students had a great time, but they didn’t actually learn the specific concepts that were on the test. The game was fun, but it was not aligned with the curriculum’s learning objectives. Effective educational gamification always starts with the learning goal. The game mechanics should be specifically designed to help the students to practice and master the target skill or concept.
If you’re still not exploring how to make learning more fun and engaging, you’re losing your students’ interest.
A teacher stuck to a traditional model of lectures and worksheets. His students were bored, disengaged, and were constantly looking at the clock. His colleague in the classroom next door was using game-based learning principles. Her classroom was buzzing with energy and excitement. The students were so engaged in the “game” that they didn’t even realize they were learning. In a world full of digital distractions, making learning more engaging is not a luxury; it’s a necessity.
VR/AR in the Classroom
Use VR/AR to provide experiences that are impossible or impractical in the real world, not just as a high-tech gimmick.
A teacher used a VR headset to show her students a 360-degree video of a forest. It was a neat but gimmicky experience. A different teacher used VR to take her students on a field trip to the surface of Mars, allowing them to walk around and explore the terrain. This was an experience that was literally impossible in the real world. The most powerful use of VR/AR in education is not to replicate reality, but to transcend it.
Stop using VR/AR as a passive viewing tool. Do create interactive and immersive learning experiences instead.
A history class watched a 360-degree video of a Roman Colosseum. It was like watching a movie. A more effective lesson would be an interactive one. In a different VR experience, the students could actually walk through a fully-realized model of the Colosseum, pick up and examine virtual artifacts, and interact with historical characters. The learning happens not from the passive viewing, but from the active doing and exploring within the immersive environment.
The #1 tip for managing a classroom full of students in VR headsets.
The most important tip is to have a clear plan and a structured activity. A teacher who just gives 30 students VR headsets and tells them to “explore” will have chaos. A successful VR lesson has a clear objective. The teacher will say, “We are all going on a virtual trip to the Great Barrier Reef. Your mission is to find and identify three different types of coral.” This gives the students a clear focus and turns the experience from a free-for-all into a structured learning activity.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about VR/AR replacing the need for traditional teaching methods.
The lie is that immersive technology will make teachers obsolete. A student can go on a virtual field trip to ancient Egypt, but they still need a teacher to provide the historical context, to answer their questions, and to facilitate a discussion about what they have learned. VR and AR are incredibly powerful new tools to add to a teacher’s toolkit, but they are a supplement to, not a replacement for, the essential human role of the teacher.
I wish I knew this about the high cost and technical challenges of implementing VR in a school.
I was so excited about the potential of VR for my school. I didn’t realize the immense practical challenges. The headsets themselves were expensive, but we also needed powerful computers to run them. We needed a dedicated space with enough room for students to move around safely. And we needed a huge amount of technical support to keep all the hardware and software working. I wish I had known that a successful VR implementation requires a significant, ongoing investment in hardware, space, and technical expertise.
I’m just going to say it: The potential of VR/AR for education is huge, but we’re still in the very early days.
The vision of a fully immersive, educational metaverse is incredibly compelling. But the reality today is that the hardware is still clunky and expensive, the software is limited, and the implementation is challenging for most schools. We are in the very early, pioneering days of this technology. While there are some amazing experiences available, we are still a long way from VR and AR being a standard, everyday part of the classroom experience.
99% of schools make this one mistake when they buy VR headsets.
The most common mistake is spending their entire budget on the hardware and having no money left for the software and content. A school will proudly announce that they have bought a class set of VR headsets. The headsets then sit in a closet, unused, because the school didn’t also invest in the high-quality, educational software and the professional development needed for the teachers to actually use them effectively. The hardware is useless without compelling content.
This one small action of taking your students on a virtual field trip will change their understanding of the world forever.
A teacher in a small, rural town wanted to show her students the world. She couldn’t afford a real field trip to an art museum in Paris. She took one small action: she used a simple VR app to take her class on a virtual tour of the Louvre. The students were able to “walk” through the galleries and get up close to famous masterpieces. This one immersive experience gave them a connection to art and culture in a way that a textbook photo never could.
The reason your VR lesson was a flop is because it lacked a clear pedagogical purpose.
A teacher had his students use a fun VR game where they shot at targets. The students had a great time, but the lesson had no connection to what they were supposed to be learning in science class. The VR experience was a “fun Friday” activity, not a learning one. A successful VR lesson must be designed with a clear pedagogical goal. The immersive and interactive elements should be in service of a specific learning objective, not just for the sake of entertainment.
If you’re still not exploring the possibilities of immersive learning, you’re losing a powerful tool to bring your lessons to life.
A biology teacher was trying to explain the complex structure of a human cell using a flat, 2D diagram in a textbook. It was abstract and difficult for students to visualize. A different teacher used a VR application that allowed her students to shrink down and “fly” through a giant, 3D model of a cell. They could see the different organelles and how they interacted. This immersive experience created a deep, intuitive understanding of the subject that a flat diagram could never achieve.
Digital Textbooks
Use interactive digital textbooks with embedded multimedia, not just static PDF versions of print books.
A student was assigned a digital textbook that was just a scanned PDF of the print version. It was a static and boring experience. A different student used a modern, interactive digital textbook. It had embedded video lectures, interactive quizzes to check his understanding, and 3D models he could manipulate. This rich, multimedia experience was far more engaging and effective for learning than a simple, flat PDF.
Stop thinking of digital textbooks as just cheaper alternatives. Do leverage their features for highlighting, note-taking, and collaboration.
A student bought a digital textbook because it was cheaper than the print version. She treated it just like a physical book. She didn’t realize the power of the digital features. She started using the built-in highlighting and note-taking tools. She could then easily search all of her notes when studying for an exam. She also used the collaborative features to share notes with her study group. She was using the digital textbook not just as a book, but as a powerful, interactive study tool.
The #1 hack for getting the most out of your digital textbook.
The secret is to use the search function relentlessly. A student was trying to find a specific concept in his 500-page digital textbook by manually flipping through the pages. It was a slow and inefficient process. His friend showed him the power of the search function (Ctrl+F). He could now instantly find every single mention of a specific keyword in the entire book. This one simple feature is the superpower of digital textbooks, turning them into a searchable, personal knowledge base.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about digital textbooks being better for the environment.
The lie is that digital textbooks are automatically a “green” solution. While they do save paper, they also have an environmental cost. The servers that host the digital content consume a large amount of electricity, and the electronic devices that we use to read them have a significant carbon footprint from their manufacturing and disposal. While digital may be better, it is not a zero-impact solution. The most sustainable choice is often to use a second-hand print textbook.
I wish I knew this about the restrictive DRM and access codes of some digital textbooks when I was a student.
I bought a digital textbook for a course, which came with a one-time use access code. The code expired at the end of the semester, and I lost access to the book I had paid for. I also couldn’t sell it back at the end of the semester, like I could with a physical book. I wish I had known about this restrictive Digital Rights Management (DRM). It’s a system designed to prevent you from truly owning the digital book you’ve purchased.
I’m just going to say it: The digital textbook experience is still not as good as it should be.
Despite the promise of interactive, digital learning, the reality for many students is still a clunky PDF that is difficult to navigate and causes eye strain. The platforms are often slow, the DRM is restrictive, and many students still find it easier to read and retain information from a physical page. The potential for digital textbooks is huge, but for many, the user experience has not yet surpassed the simple, tactile pleasure of a well-designed print book.
99% of students make this one mistake when using a digital textbook.
The most common mistake is getting distracted. A student will have their digital textbook open on their laptop, but they will also have a dozen other tabs open for social media and messaging. The digital environment is full of distractions that make focused, deep reading incredibly difficult. A successful student will use a browser extension to block distracting websites or will even temporarily disconnect from the internet to create a focused reading environment.
This one small action of using the search function in your digital textbook will change the way you study forever.
A student was preparing for a final exam. In the past, she would have spent hours manually flipping through her print textbook and her handwritten notes to find information on a specific topic. With her digital textbook, she took one small action: she used the search function. She was able to instantly find every single mention of a key concept from the entire semester. This turned the tedious process of reviewing into a fast and efficient process of targeted study.
The reason you’re not retaining what you read in your digital textbook is because you’re not actively engaging with the material.
A student would just passively read the text on the screen. The information didn’t stick. The reason was a lack of active engagement. To really learn from a textbook, digital or otherwise, you have to wrestle with the material. This means using the highlighting and note-taking features, trying to summarize each chapter in your own words, and answering the practice questions at the end of each section. Learning is not a passive act of consumption.
If you’re still carrying around a backpack full of heavy textbooks, you’re losing the convenience and accessibility of digital versions.
A college student would have to carry a 30-pound backpack across campus every day, filled with heavy, expensive textbooks. Her friend had digital versions of all her textbooks on her lightweight tablet. She had access to her entire library of books, anywhere, anytime, on a single device. The convenience of being able to study on the bus, search for a key term in seconds, and not have to suffer from back pain is a major quality-of-life improvement offered by digital textbooks.
Student Data Privacy (FERPA)
Use EdTech tools that are FERPA-compliant, not just any free app you find on the internet.
A teacher found a fun, free online game and had her students sign up with their names and email addresses. She didn’t realize the app was not designed for educational use and was selling her students’ data. This was a potential violation of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). A different teacher made sure to only use EdTech tools that had a clear privacy policy and were specifically designed to be FERPA-compliant, ensuring that her students’ personal information was legally protected.
Stop clicking “I agree” on the terms of service for educational apps without understanding how they use student data. Do advocate for your students’ privacy.
A school district was about to adopt a new educational app. An engaged teacher took the time to read the privacy policy. She discovered that the company reserved the right to use student data for marketing purposes. She raised this concern to the administration. By being a proactive advocate for her students’ privacy, she prompted the district to choose a different, more responsible vendor. It’s crucial for educators to be vigilant watchdogs for student data.
The #1 secret for vetting an EdTech tool for privacy and security.
The secret is to look for a “student privacy pledge” or a certification from a reputable third-party organization. Many responsible EdTech companies have signed a public pledge that outlines their commitment to protecting student data. Looking for this pledge or other similar certifications is a quick and easy way for a teacher or a school to identify the vendors that have made student privacy a core part of their business model, saving them from having to become an expert on reading complex legal policies.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about student data being “anonymized”.
The lie is that when an EdTech company “anonymizes” student data before they use it for research or sell it, the students’ privacy is protected. Researchers have repeatedly shown that it is often possible to “re-identify” a specific student from an “anonymized” dataset by cross-referencing it with other publicly available information. The promise of perfect anonymization is often a technical and statistical myth, which is why strong legal and contractual protections are so important.
I wish I knew this about the dangers of “data-mining” in education when I was a new teacher.
As a new teacher, I was excited to use all the “free” educational apps I could find. I didn’t understand the business model of many of these companies. I wish I had known that many free EdTech tools are “data-mining” our students. They are collecting vast amounts of data about our students’ performance, behavior, and demographics, and then using that data to build profiles that can be sold to advertisers or other companies. The “free” product was being paid for with my students’ privacy.
I’m just going to say it: Student data is a valuable asset, and many companies are trying to profit from it.
From online learning platforms to classroom management tools, EdTech companies are collecting an unprecedented amount of data on our students. This data is incredibly valuable for advertisers who want to market to families and for companies who want to build the next generation of educational products. While some of this data is used to improve learning, it’s crucial to be aware that there is a powerful financial incentive for companies to collect and monetize the personal information of our children.
99% of school districts make this one mistake with their student data privacy policies.
The most common mistake is having a student data privacy policy that is just a legal document that sits on a shelf. A good policy is not enough. A school district also needs to have a robust process for vetting new technologies, for training its teachers on privacy best practices, and for transparently communicating with parents about how their children’s data is being used. A policy without a plan for implementation and training is just a piece of paper.
This one small action of using a “privacy-check” tool before you use a new app in your classroom will change your students’ safety forever.
A teacher was about to use a new app with her class. Before she did, she took one small action: she used a free online tool from an organization like Common Sense Media that provides independent, easy-to-understand privacy ratings for thousands of educational apps. The tool gave the app a poor rating, highlighting its invasive data collection practices. This one small check prevented her from unknowingly exposing her students’ data to a third-party company.
The reason your school had a data breach is because of a lack of a strong security culture.
A school had a data breach because a teacher used a weak, reused password for her account on the student information system. The problem wasn’t just that one teacher; it was a systemic lack of a security culture. A school with a strong security culture provides regular training for its staff on topics like phishing and password hygiene, it enforces the use of multi-factor authentication, and it has a clear plan for responding to security incidents.
If you’re still not making student data privacy a priority, you’re losing the trust of your parents and community.
A parent discovered that her child’s school was using an educational app that was collecting and sharing her child’s personal information without her consent. She was furious. The news spread quickly through the community, and the school was faced with a major crisis of trust. In an era of increasing concern about digital privacy, schools that are not transparent and proactive about protecting student data risk losing the single most important asset they have: the trust of the families they serve.
Coding Bootcamps
Use a coding bootcamp to launch a new career in tech, not as a shortcut to becoming a senior engineer.
A person who had been working in a different field wanted to become a software developer. He enrolled in a coding bootcamp. In three intense months, he learned the practical, job-ready skills he needed to land his first entry-level tech job. A bootcamp is a fantastic and efficient way to make a career transition. It is not, however, a shortcut that will turn you into a seasoned senior engineer overnight. That level of expertise still takes years of on-the-job experience to build.
Stop thinking that all coding bootcamps are the same. Do research their curriculum, job placement rates, and teaching style instead.
A person signed up for the first coding bootcamp she saw an ad for. She found that the curriculum was outdated and the career support was non-existent. She had a bad experience. Her friend, in contrast, did her research. She compared the curriculums of several different bootcamps, she spoke to alumni to ask about their experience, and she looked for transparently-reported job placement statistics. Her research paid off, and she chose a high-quality program that successfully launched her new career.
The #1 tip for succeeding in a coding bootcamp.
The most important tip is to fully immerse yourself and to treat it like the most intense, full-time job you’ve ever had. A student tried to attend a bootcamp while also working a part-time job. He quickly fell behind. The pace of a bootcamp is relentless. The students who succeed are the ones who clear their schedules, show up every day ready to work hard, and are willing to put in the extra hours on nights and weekends to master the material. It’s a short-term, all-in commitment.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about the “guaranteed” job offers from coding bootcamps.
The lie, often seen in misleading advertisements, is that a bootcamp can “guarantee” you a high-paying tech job upon graduation. No bootcamp can guarantee you a job. A reputable bootcamp will provide you with a high-quality education and a strong career support services team that will help you with your resume, your portfolio, and your interview skills. But ultimately, you are the one who has to put in the work to build the projects and pass the interviews. They can open the door, but you have to walk through it.
I wish I knew this about the intense pace and workload of a coding bootcamp before I enrolled.
I signed up for a coding bootcamp thinking it would be like a normal college class. I was not prepared for the reality. It was a firehose of information, ten hours a day, five days a week, for twelve straight weeks. It was the most intellectually challenging and mentally exhausting thing I have ever done. I wish I had known that a bootcamp is not just a course; it’s a complete lifestyle change for the duration of the program.
I’m just going to say it: A coding bootcamp is not for everyone.
A person who enjoyed learning at a slow, methodical pace and was not prepared for a high-stress, high-pressure environment enrolled in a coding bootcamp and had a miserable experience. Bootcamps are designed for a specific type of learner: someone who is highly motivated, a self-starter, and who thrives in a fast-paced, immersive environment. It is an effective model, but it is not the right educational model for every single person.
99% of bootcamp students make this one mistake that hinders their learning.
The most common mistake is being afraid to ask questions. A student will be stuck on a problem and will be too embarrassed to ask for help, thinking it will make them look stupid. They will waste hours struggling on their own. The successful bootcamp student is the one who is not afraid to be vulnerable. They ask questions constantly, they take advantage of the instructors’ office hours, and they collaborate with their peers. They understand that asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness.
This one small habit of coding outside of class hours will change your success in a bootcamp forever.
Two students attended the same bootcamp. The first one only did the required coursework during class hours. The second one had a habit of spending an extra hour or two every evening and on weekends working on her own personal projects, solidifying the concepts she had learned that day. When it came time for the job search, the second student had a much stronger portfolio and a deeper understanding of the material, which made her a much more attractive candidate to employers.
The reason you’re struggling in your coding bootcamp is because you’re not asking for help when you need it.
A student was completely lost on a new concept. He stayed silent in class and didn’t go to the instructor for help. He fell further and further behind. The reason he was struggling was not that he was incapable, but that he was not advocating for his own learning. The instructors and teaching assistants at a bootcamp are there to help you. Their job is to get you unstuck. The most successful students are the ones who are constantly and proactively seeking help the moment they need it.
If you’re still unhappy in your current career, you’re losing the opportunity to transition into tech with a coding bootcamp.
A person was working in a dead-end job that he didn’t enjoy. He was interested in technology but thought it was too late to go back to college for a four-year computer science degree. He didn’t know about coding bootcamps. For someone who is looking to make a fast and efficient career change into the tech industry, a high-quality coding bootcamp can be a life-changing opportunity, providing a direct and accelerated path to a new and more fulfilling career.
AI Tutors
Use AI tutors to provide personalized, 24/7 support to students, not to replace human teachers.
A school implemented an AI tutor for their math classes. The AI didn’t replace the teacher. Instead, it acted as a personal teaching assistant for every single student. A student who was struggling with a specific concept could get immediate, one-on-one, step-by-step guidance from the AI tutor at any time of day, even at home. This freed up the human teacher to focus on higher-level instruction and small group work, knowing that every student had access to personalized support.
Stop fearing that AI will make teachers obsolete. Do use it as a powerful assistant to help you differentiate instruction instead.
A teacher was worried that an AI tutor would take her job. She started using one and had a revelation. The AI tutor’s dashboard showed her a detailed breakdown of her class’s performance, highlighting exactly which students were struggling with which specific skills. This data was a superpower. It allowed her to easily differentiate her instruction, pulling together a small group of students for a targeted mini-lesson. The AI didn’t replace her; it made her a more effective and data-driven teacher.
The #1 secret for how AI tutors are helping students master difficult subjects like math and science.
The secret is the immediate, non-judgmental feedback loop. A student working on a math problem in a traditional classroom might have to wait a full day to find out if their answer was correct. With an AI tutor, if they make a mistake, the AI can provide an instant hint or a step-by-step explanation. This immediate feedback allows the student to correct their misunderstanding in the moment, which is a much more effective way to learn and master a complex, procedural subject.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about AI tutors being able to understand the emotional needs of students.
The lie is that an AI tutor can provide the same level of emotional support as a human teacher. While an AI can be programmed to provide encouraging messages, it has no real empathy or understanding. It cannot see the look of frustration on a student’s face, it cannot understand the student’s personal struggles outside of the classroom, and it cannot provide the genuine human connection and motivation that is so often the key to a student’s success. An AI can teach a skill, but it cannot mentor a child.
I wish I knew this about the potential for AI tutors to exacerbate the digital divide.
I was so excited about the potential of AI tutors to provide personalized learning for everyone. I wish I had considered how this could worsen the digital divide. A wealthy school district can afford to provide every student with a tablet and a subscription to the best AI tutoring platform. A student in a low-income district, who may not even have reliable internet access at home, will be left even further behind. As we implement these powerful new tools, we must ensure that we do so equitably.
I’m just going to say it: The combination of a human teacher and an AI tutor is the future of education.
The debate about whether AI will replace teachers is the wrong one. The future is not human vs. machine; it’s human + machine. The most effective educational model of the future will be a blended one. The AI tutor will handle the personalized practice and the immediate feedback on foundational skills. The human teacher, freed from the burden of repetitive grading and instruction, will focus on fostering creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and providing the essential human connection and mentorship that only a person can.
99% of schools make this one mistake when they pilot an AI tutoring program.
The most common mistake is just throwing the technology into the classroom without providing the teachers with any training or support. A school will buy an expensive AI tutoring platform and then just expect the teachers to figure out how to use it. A successful pilot program requires a significant investment in professional development. It involves showing teachers how the tool works, how it can be integrated into their existing curriculum, and how they can use the data it provides to improve their instruction.
This one small action of using an AI tutor to provide instant feedback on student work will change your grading workload forever.
A high school English teacher would spend her entire weekend grading essays. She started using an AI-powered tool that could provide instant feedback to her students on their grammar, spelling, and sentence structure. The students could then revise their work based on the AI’s feedback before they submitted the final version to her. This one small action didn’t replace her as the grader, but it dramatically reduced her workload and allowed her to focus her feedback on the more important aspects of the writing, like the ideas and the argument.
The reason your AI tutor is not effective is because it’s not integrated with your curriculum.
A school adopted a standalone AI math program. The students used it, but it had no connection to what the teacher was actually teaching in class that week. It was a disconnected, supplemental activity. An effective AI tutor is one that is deeply integrated with the core curriculum. The content and the pacing of the AI tool should be aligned with the teacher’s lesson plans, so that it is directly supporting and reinforcing what is being taught in the classroom.
If you’re still a teacher spending hours on repetitive grading, you’re losing valuable time you could be spending with your students.
Imagine a teacher who spends ten hours a week grading multiple-choice math worksheets. That is ten hours that she is not available to work with students one-on-one, to plan engaging lessons, or to call parents. An AI tutoring platform can automate the grading of this kind of foundational, skills-based work. By leveraging technology to handle the repetitive, administrative tasks of teaching, we can free up teachers to focus on the uniquely human and high-impact parts of their job.
The Digital Divide
Use technology to bridge the digital divide, not to widen it.
A city launched a new program to provide all of its essential services online. This was convenient for the residents who had high-speed internet and modern computers. But for the elderly and low-income residents who did not, it created a new barrier. A more thoughtful city launched the same online services but also invested in public computer labs, free Wi-Fi in community centers, and digital literacy training. They used technology not just to be more efficient, but to ensure that everyone in their community could participate.
Stop assuming that all students have access to the same technology and internet connectivity at home. Do work to provide equitable access instead.
During the pandemic, a school shifted to remote learning and assumed that every student had a laptop and a reliable internet connection at home. They were wrong. Many students from low-income families had to try to do their schoolwork on a parent’s smartphone, or they had no reliable internet at all. These students were left behind. The “digital divide” is not just about having a device; it’s about having a suitable device and a reliable connection to use it.
The #1 tip for creating a digitally inclusive classroom.
The most important tip is to be flexible and to provide multiple ways for students to learn and to demonstrate their learning. A teacher who only assigns online homework that requires a high-speed internet connection is excluding some of her students. A digitally inclusive teacher will also provide an offline alternative, like a paper packet or the ability to download the materials at school. She will allow students to submit their work in a variety of formats, recognizing that not all students have access to the same tools.
The biggest lie you’ve been told about the digital divide being a solved problem.
The lie is that because most people now own a smartphone, the digital divide is no longer an issue. While smartphone access is widespread, this does not mean that everyone has equitable access to technology. Trying to write a ten-page research paper or learn to code on a small smartphone screen is nearly impossible. The “homework gap” is still very real for students who have a phone but do not have a proper laptop and a reliable, high-speed internet connection at home.
I wish I knew this about the “homework gap” when I first started assigning online homework.
As a new teacher, I was excited to use online tools. I started assigning all of my homework through a web-based platform. I didn’t realize that a third of my students didn’t have reliable internet access at home. They would have to stay late at school or go to the public library just to do their homework. I was inadvertently penalizing my most disadvantaged students. I wish I had known about the “homework gap” and the importance of ensuring that any required work can be done by students who don’t have internet access.
I’m just going to say it: The digital divide is one of the biggest challenges facing education today.
As education becomes increasingly reliant on digital tools, the gap between the “haves” and the “have-nots” becomes a major barrier to educational equity. A student in a wealthy school district with a one-to-one laptop program and access to the best educational software has a massive advantage over a student in a poorly-funded district who is sharing an old computer with an entire classroom. The digital divide is no longer just a technology issue; it is a fundamental civil rights and educational equity issue.
99% of educators make this one mistake that leaves some students behind in a digital learning environment.
The most common mistake is designing a lesson that requires a high-bandwidth internet connection to participate. A teacher will conduct a live, high-definition video lesson, not realizing that for a student with a slow or unstable home internet connection, the video will constantly freeze and buffer, making it impossible to follow along. A more inclusive approach would be to record the lesson so students can watch it later, and to provide a low-bandwidth, audio-only option for real-time participation.
This one small action of providing offline alternatives for digital assignments will change the accessibility of your course forever.
A professor assigned a research project that required students to use an online database that was only accessible through the university’s network. A student who worked a full-time job and couldn’t always get to campus was at a disadvantage. The professor took one small action: she also downloaded the key articles as PDFs and made them available in the LMS. This allowed the student to download the materials when he was on campus and work on the assignment offline, from home. This simple act of providing an offline alternative made her course much more accessible.
The reason some of your students are failing is because they don’t have the tools they need to succeed in a digital world.
A teacher saw that a student was consistently failing to turn in his typed essays. She assumed the student was lazy. She finally had a conversation with him and learned that his family didn’t own a computer at home. He was trying to write the essays on his phone. The reason he was failing was not a lack of effort, but a lack of access to the basic tools required for the assignment. Understanding the reality of a student’s home technology situation is a prerequisite for being an effective teacher.
If you’re still not actively addressing the digital divide in your school or community, you’re losing the potential of a generation of students.
Imagine a brilliant, creative student who has the potential to become a great scientist or artist. But she lives in a community with no broadband internet access and goes to a school with outdated technology. She will never have the same opportunities to learn, to create, and to connect with the world as a student in a more affluent community. The digital divide is not just an inconvenience; it is a massive loss of human potential. Bridging this divide is one of the most important investments we can make in our collective future.