Clayton County Public Schools and Boxlight Take Tech Transformation to New Heights

Focused on improving student outcomes and teacher efficiency, the fifth largest school district in Georgia is installing Boxlight’s innovative technology in approximately 3,200 classrooms.

Thinking about purchasing new interactive tools for your school? There are many factors you should consider before taking the leap to ensure that you choose the right solution to best suit your needs. Here’s where you should start: 

1. “What Do I Buy?” vs. “Why Should I Buy?”

Planning for many technologies often seems to start with asking, “How many should we buy and which brand?” But it’s usually better to begin by asking, “Why are we thinking about buying these?” and “Are we buying tools to help the teacher do an even better job, or are we focused on tools to equip the students with new skills?” A well-considered purpose can provide strong guidance for subsequent decisions about choosing, implementing, and adopting any technology, including interactive flat panel displays, touch projectors, and student handheld devices such as iPads, Chromebooks, and Android tablets.

It's the age of STEM—and many toy companies have taken note. Well-established toy makers now offer a variety of devices and kits to help you build an innovative makerspace in your classroom. Whether you have already set up a hands-on activity space for your students or are looking to create one in the future, these seven toy companies will help you build an engaging and fun collaborative workspace to help your students exercise their creativity and learn fundamental STEM skills. 

The 2010s is an era of comebacks. In everything from fashion to music, retro ideas are being renewed to fit the demands of a modern audience. Young people especially are taking to retro-inspired products, focusing more on the lifestyle enrichment value that these vintage items can offer. 

This month, we announced the MimioFrame, a retrofit product that uses a teacher’s existing classroom whiteboard, projector, and computer to quickly and easily turn any whiteboard into a 10-touch interactive whiteboard. This offering has reimagined the idea behind bringing interactive technology into the classroom, making it possible for teachers to bring their old classroom back to life by upgrading their technology in less than 15 minutes.

Each year, the world of EdTech grows and new companies emerge ahead of the pack. Here are the movers and shakers we’re excited about at the moment: 

Tech-savvy educators know they must stay on top of the myriad changes and trends in education to learn how teaching and learning can best benefit from technology’s near-constant change. At this year’s FETC and TCEA conferences, there were plenty of new EdTech trends to discover and learn about. If you weren’t able to attend either of these leading education industry conferences, here’s what our feet on the tradeshow floor took in as noteworthy or trending:

This year’s TCEA convention and expo will be an event you won’t want to miss. Held from February 5–9 in Austin, Texas, TCEA is the place for innovative educators to network, collaborate, and learn more about the current trends in EdTech.

This show gathers K-20 administrators, teachers, and techies alike around the latest tools and tips that support teaching and learning. It also offers plenty of opportunities to reconnect with your colleagues, make new acquaintances, and learn new ideas that could enhance your career. Better yet, maybe you will be that change agent to help others!

A new year is a great time to look at our accomplishments from the year gone by. Traditionally, it is also the time when we seek out opportunities for growth as we look ahead. I thought I would share some areas in which I would like to grow in 2018. By sharing these with you, I hope that maybe you can be inspired to take on some new learning, grow as an individual and a teacher, and get out of your comfort zone to try something challenging.

As we turn the calendar once again, we find ourselves with a new year full of possibilities. But even with all these possibilities, we know that old habits die hard—this is why listing our New Year’s resolutions is a popular practice and can be very profound. The list either helps us to do something new that we have always wanted to try, or start doing something we have known for a while and need to pick up again.

So for 2018, I have developed my top list of things I would like to do, improve at, or focus on for the year. These resolutions are aimed at improving my knowledge of educational technology (and more!) and are in no particular order—and a few are a little tongue in cheek!

It’s true what people say: Each year seems to go by faster than the one before! For Boxlight, 2017 has been full of exciting new product launches and a greater focus on STEM initiatives—including becoming the convening agency for the Georgia Girls STEM Collaborative, formed under the auspices of the National Girls Collaborative Project. We received a host of accolades from a number of prestigious organizations, and we also saw the closing of our initial public offering. However, these activities won’t have us resting on our laurels and there is still much work to be done.