TechDino's Reflections on TechEd Innovation

McLuhan developed four laws of media that seek to explain the impact of emerging technologies on society and other technologies (Thornburg, 2008). According to Marshall, every technology moves along four stages: enhancement, obsolescence, retrieval, and reversal.   The four questions addressed by each are: 1.      What does the technology do that is new? 2.      What technology does it obsolete? 3.      What does it rekindle from the past? and 4.      What does it change into in the near future? The following illustrates the four elements of the document camera: Enhancement What does the technology do that is new? Turns text and objects into digital format. Teacher can visually project objects and text for students to see with ease.   Obsolescence What technology does it obsolete? This technology makes the overhead projector obsolete. Retrieval What does it rekindle from the past? It rekindles the need to provide visual

1.      Identify a current technology that has emerged in the last few years that shapes learning or productivity in education. Edmodo, a free social networking site for education, was founded in September 2008 by Nicolas Borg and Jeff O’Hara.   Currently having over 30 million users, Edmodo allows teachers to explore the use of social networking in the classroom with students (Hutter, C., 2014).   Students are able to collaborate with other students, post assignments, take quizzes and polls, and share multimedia files with class.   Teachers are able to provide instant feedback to students on their progress, keep parents informed and up-to-date, and facilitate online collaboration to enhance learning in the classroom.   2.      What problems or challenges have been associated with this technology? One of the major challenges with this tool is the criticism of others that believe social networking should not be allowed in schools.   Zaidieh (2012) argues that users are continuing