6 Compelling Reasons to Use Technology

Have you ever asked yourself, "Why use technology?  How is technology going to benefit the learning in my classroom?" If so, you are not alone.  Finding useful or relevant reasons to use technology can sometimes seem like a stretch and only possible for those with an incredible imaginations or lots of time on their hands to create technology rich lesson plans.

UEN (Utah Education Network), however, has created a list of 6 Compelling Reason to Use Technology with links to a variety of resources within each topic, making it easier for teachers to begin using technology today!

One of my favorite reasons to use technology?  Real Time Data!  Real time data is data generated at the time the request was made.  Real time data can take the form of recent earthquakes locations (to the minute), video cam pictures from around the word, weather patterns and stock rates, to name a few. Nearly every topic has some form of data that is collected.  Using real time data is one way to add meaning (real world examples) to your curriculum.

Investigate where earthquakes occur and why?

 Earthquakes @USGS.gov

Examine animals behaviors in their natural habit.
(A herd of Zebras came into sight just after taking this photo-Amazing!)
Wild Earth Cams

Predict weather based on satellite images.

NASA - GOES Project Science

Analyze world statistics.

World-o-Meter

Additional resources to start your journey with "Real Time Data."  ENJOY!

• Earth system resources from Oregon State
• Ocean Observing in K12 Education
• Data Resources for Classroom Use
• Data Resources Online
• 30 Cool Educational Webcams