There are always new products coming out in the edtech landscape, but somehow a couple software platforms monopolize the industry and are used by teachers everywhere, leaving smaller companies and edtech startups facing an uphill battle.
Some of those big names include Google robux free generator Classroom in K-12, Blackboard and Canvas learning management systems in higher ed, and across education the once-obscure video software named Zoom became ubiquitous during the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, as I’ve navigated K-12 education as a special education teacher for Baltimore City for the last three years, I’ve realized something about the edtech industry: There are too many apps, too many programs, and too much different technology for educators to use in the classroom.
During virtual learning especially, educators were completely inundated with far too many programs to try. I am young, have a master’s degree, and am known for being pretty tech-savvy for a teacher, but there were too many options for which programs to use.
Too many programs serve the exact same purpose
Take two apps that serve very similar purposes as an example: Nearpod and Peardeck. Both are enhancements and add-ons to PowerPoint or Google Slides, and both work well. I have used both, and besides some slight differences, both are really similar. Early on in virtual learning, I used Nearpod and got used to it.
My school, however, purchased a subscription to Peardeck, so I had to switch and get used to a new program. It wasn’t hard—again, they are almost the same thing. Another example is two PDF readers that also feel like they do the same exact thing—Kami and OrbitNote. There are fundamental differences, for sure. But when you teach classes of 30 kids a day and barely have time to eat lunch or go to the bathroom, do you pay attention to those differences? No.