Wearable Technology in the K-12 Classroom
Sometimes, when I receive an email, my computer makes a noise and send me an icon, my phone buzzes, my iPad “dings”, and then my wrist vibrates. Technology is everywhere, especially in the classroom. The watch on my wrist is considered “wearable technology”, even though I predominately use it as a running watch. It works as a daily fitness tracker, logs my runs and bike rides, and even notifies me of incoming messages. I have a smart-watch, and a majority of the people I know have one too. It’s only going to be a short period of time before this type of “wearable technology” is integrated into the K-12 classroom. The 2016 Horizon Report suggested that wearable technology, smart devices that can be worn, would take about four to five years to adopt into the K-12 classroom. This would mean that adoption would occur around 2020-2021. However, based on my experience with wearable technology in the classroom, the timeline for adoption is moving much faster than this report anticipated.
Wearable technology includes anything that can be worn by the user. This could include, but is not limited to smart watches, eyewear, bracelets, heart rate monitor straps, and shoe inserts or other textiles that interact with other devices. The list of wearable technologies continues to grow, and the adoption in US schools is booming as well. The Horizon Reports cites a 45% growth rate per for adoption in US schools.
Even though more can be done in terms of studying the benefits and/or consequences of wearable technology in the classroom, some groups have completed preliminary studies. One school in New Jersey conducted a small scale study using wearable technology in the the classroom and found that including a FitBit fitness tracker in an adaptive physical education class gave their students “added encouragement to move throughout the day” (Pepe & Talalai, 2016). This is welcomed news at a time when childhood obesity rates are higher than they have ever been. Many students and their parents already wear some sort of daily fitness tracker. Incorporating fitness trackers into physical education is the next logical step in the progression of including wearable technology into schools within the next few years.
Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) and science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) schools often include curriculums that seek to incorporate technology into student’s lives in meaningful way. One school district received a $26,000 grant to teach students computer coding. Two classes at Oak Bluffs School in Massachusetts have big goals for their computer coding classes. The two teachers hope to “collaborate to build wearable technology,” with one class designing and building the piece, and the other class programming it (Rupolo 2017). While teaching coding and other design techniques at STEAM and STEM schools has become the norm, having students actually design wearable technology is a newer concept. The wearable technology industry is a multi-million dollar industry, therefore enabling K-12 students with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to create their own wearable technology could help to inspire students to have big goals for their own futures.
When people hear the words “wearable technology,” it is easy to think about fitness trackers and watches as the extent of the term. However, for educational purposes, wearable technology includes so much more than just items students can wear on their wrist. One example of this is the GoPro video camera. This small piece of equipment can be strapped to a student’s body and “allows the student to take the driver’s seat in exploring the world around them as it relates to the curriculum of a class” (Lynch, 2017). Journalism classes would most certainly benefit from this type of wearable technology becoming commonplace in the K-12 classroom. Additionally, if schools were interested in investigating the option of video yearbooks, a GoPro would be an ideal piece of wearable technology to use.
Technologies of all varieties, shapes, and sizes have been prevalent in the classroom for years. But the emergence of wearable technologies for student use and for educational purposes is a relatively recent phenomenon. With the market booming, schools appear to be ahead of the projected curve for wearable technology integration. This is good news for teachers seeking ways to increase student engagement and ways to differentiate instruction. Wearable technology could be incorporated into many lessons fairly easily, and it’s use will become even more common in the next couple of years.
Resources
Lynch, M. (2017, June 25). Five Ways to Leverage Wearable Technology in the Classroom. Retrieved October 17, 2017, from http://www.thetechedvocate.org/five-ways-leverage-wearable-technology-classroom/
Pepe, C., & Talalai, S. (2016, October 17). Implementing Wearable Technology at Schools Boosts Engagement, Motivation. Retrieved October 17, 2017, from https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2016/10/implementing-wearable-technology-schools-boosts-engagement-motivation
Rupolo, S. (2017, October 04). Building STEAM toward teaching computer coding. Retrieved October 17, 2017, from https://www.mvtimes.com/2017/10/04/building-steam-toward-teaching-computer-coding/
Darcy C. Sheppard 