Classroom Community & Culture
Technology can support creating safe, supportive learning communities where all students belong and thrive, including in a digital environment.
Tech-enabled practice focused on the classroom culture and environment holds the power to
help students connect their learning to their interests, identities, and perspectives
promote equity and actively disrupt inequity in the decisions they make every day
communicate to students that they are in a socially and emotionally safe atmosphere
differentiate the place, path, and pace of student learning
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Creating better connections between teachers and students that foster understanding and empathy
Offering tools and resources designed to develop teacher understanding of student cultures and identity markers
Streamlining the process by which students are able to share information with their teacher and peers about themselves
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Opening avenues for students to connect with their interests, identities, and perspectives
Expanding the quality and quantity of student interactions with their peers
Offering opportunities for students to connect their lived experiences to their learning
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Offering outlets for students to process their own thoughts and emotions or understand each other's viewpoints
Creating affinity spaces for students to connect with others who share a similar background
Prioritizing Students
Promoting Student Belonging & Identity
Incorporating students’ identities, cultures, and experiences as a part of the education experience
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Increasing the choice options student have over the content and format of their learning
Offering flexibility in assessment times, reducing the all-at-once grading load educators feel
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Allowing students to access information and learn about topics that interest them, increasing their chances of performing well in that area
Enhancing students’ abilities to set and monitor goals tied to their learning progress
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Using AL technologies to develop learning customizations based on students’ strengths and interests
Giving students spaces to explore and create
Reimagining the role of educators to be facilitators of student learning
Prioritizing Students
Developing Student Agency
Empowering students with choice and voice in their education experience and appreciating their unique talents and strengths as part of the learning process
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Centralizing communication communication with caregivers into an easy-to-access platform decreasing the time spent making phone calls
Providing features to allow information to be translated to/from students’ home languages
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Communicating with caregivers (families and guardians) about student learning and progress
Providing just-in-time information about important school activities and to connect caregivers, community members, and other stakeholders to the school using ongoing, two-way communication
Creating school and caregiver partnerships to support students’ learning and well-being
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Providing caregivers with the opportunity to use the technology students use in classrooms
Allowing caregivers having deeper conversations with their students about their learning experiences
Connecting Beyond the Classroom
Connecting with Caregivers
Providing families and guardians with important classroom information and data regarding student progress
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Avoiding duplicative communication across stakeholders
Clarifying a short list of tech tools to use for specific purposes
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Establishing a technology team focused on understanding and improving school-wide use of technology
Streamlining communication about school-wide happenings
Sharing data and artifacts with administration and school leadership that reveals strengths and needs of teachers and their students
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Allowing school staff to connect with and learn from each other
Using observations to understand trends in the school’s current technology use
Connecting Beyond the Classroom
Connecting School Staff
Providing school staff members with ongoing updates and information that support the overall health of the school community
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Equipping students with the skills to appropriately execute search engine searches during research
Sharpening students’ skills in identifying reliable and questionable resources
Establishing a digital community where students feel safe to participate and contribute
Developing students’ digital language and technical skills
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Ensuring students follow copyright law and fair use guidelines in their researched work
Contributing to students’ sense of self-efficacy
Improving students’ fact-checking and safe searching abilities
Strengthening students’ interpersonal interactions in digital spaces
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Equipping students with skills to responsibly engage in community action or contribute their voices to a platform
Providing skills and competencies that are transferable from one program or platform to another
Optimizing Classroom Operations
Developing Digital Literacy and Citizenship
Integrating digital literacy and citizenship skills into classroom projects or activities
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Streamlining regular classroom protocols
Automating data collection and administrative tasks
Promoting student agency to operate independently in the classroom
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Making activities like classroom transition, stations, and exit tickets more engaging and interactive
Allowing teachers to seamlessly incorporate SEL and equity initiatives into the classroom culture
Increasing teacher skills in classroom management
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Revisioning the classroom structure where students take on more leadership roles and teachers operate more as facilitators or managers
Creating space for more meaningful student-centered protocols that improve empathy and equity experiences
Optimizing Classroom Operations
Expediting Classroom Organization & Routines
Supporting the daily functions of a classroom
