As ESSER Spending Ramps Up, Experts Offer Tips to Make Sure Students Truly Benefit, Now and Later

The pace of K-12 school districts' spending of ESSER Funds has picked up significantly this school year, and education leaders and researchers have shared tips and guides to help district leaders efficiently evaluate — or re-evaluate — their options when making procurement decisions, to ensure students benefit and stakeholders don't come to see spending decisions as failures.

Why Ed Tech is Not Endorsing a Ban on ChatGPT in Schools

Depending on who’s speaking, ChatGPT is projected to either further erode K-12 learning outcomes or it will boost writing instruction and overall learning outcomes when used with appropriate guardrails. Several education technology leaders explained to THE Journal why they fall in the second category and how K-12 education should and can embrace ChatGPT in classrooms.

How to Help Students Cope with Test Anxiety

Test anxiety is a real problem, affecting 25% to 40% of U.S. students. Anxiety, along with academic stress, can appear as physical symptoms (such as headaches, nausea and sleeplessness) and psycho-emotional symptoms (like difficulty concentrating or increased irritability).

The Sky Is Not Falling: Turnitin Urges Educators to 'Meet the Moment' of ChatGPT

Two former classroom teachers who have been working on Turnitin’s AI writing detection tool and related features to help educators better understand ChatGPT — and show them teachers how to use AI to save themselves time and how to tweak assignments so that ChatGPT cannot earn a good grade on writing homework — both believe that ChatGPT has presented a growth opportunity — or perhaps more of a growth demand — for writing instruction, which they explained in the March episode of THE Journal Insider podcast.

Report: Ed Tech Aids Learning and Eases Student and Staffing Issues

The adoption of technology could facilitate student learning and social interaction. It could also ease the burdens on educators from staff shortages, according to a new report.

STEM Educators Report Shortage of STEM Faculty in Their Schools

New findings released today indicate a shortage of STEM faculty in high schools and middle schools.

Student Mental Health in Decline During 2022–2023 School Year

A report released this month shows declining student mental health in K–12 schools during the current school year. These declines are affecting academic performance, particularly in math and reading scores.

Report: Girls' Aptitude Far Exceeds Interest in STEM

A review of data from more than 225,000 female middle and high school students has revealed a major gap between the aptitude of girls for STEM and their interest in pursuing STEM careers. It also found their interest exceeds aptitude in some non-STEM disciplines.

Is ChatGPT the End of Writing? Turnitin Believes It Could Actually Boost Students' Writing Instruction

Two former classroom teachers who have been working on Turnitin’s AI writing detection tool and related features to help educators better understand ChatGPT — and show them teachers how to use AI to save themselves time and how to tweak assignments so that ChatGPT cannot earn a good grade on writing homework — both believe that ChatGPT has presented a growth opportunity — or perhaps more of a growth demand — for writing instruction, which they explained in a podcast interview with THE Journal recently.

Why Our Technology Nonprofit is Embracing ChatGPT and AI in Education

A technology educator shares how her nonprofit is using ChatGPT to help students participating in Technovation programs go further in their brainstorming and ideation as they aim to develop AI-based solutions to real-world problems. Here’s a concrete example from our program: Students in one group were interested in developing technology-based solutions to food wastage and conservation, encouraging more students to read, exercise, and be more inclusive.

AR/VR Headsets See Major Decline as Mixed Reality Emerges

Augmented and virtual reality headsets experienced a double-digit decline over the last year. Worldwide, AR/VR headset manufacturers shipped 8.8 million units in all of 2022, down 20.9% over the previous year, according to a new report.

Tablets and PCs to See Dramatic Decline in 2023

One of the few bright spots for tablet and PC manufacturers is schools, as the overall market for these computing devices is expected to fall 11.2% this year, reaching 2019 levels.

Khan Academy Pilots GPT-4 Powered Tool Khanmigo for Teachers

Khan Academy has launched a limited pilot of a new learning guide called Khanmigo for educators, powered by GPT-4, the next-generation of OpenAI's large language model technology, which formally launched today as well.

OpenAI-Based Instructional Design Generator Nolej AI Now Available

A French generative AI ed tech startup called Nolej (pronounced “knowledge”) has quietly launched a new OpenAI-based instructional content generator for educators, called Nolej AI, ahead of its official introduction at BETT in London on March 30 and a planned commercial debut at the ASU+GSV Summit on April 19, the company's chairman told THE Journal.

Turnitin Turns On AI Writing Detection Features for Educators

Starting today, plagiarism detection software Turnitin includes new live AI-writing detection features that “identify the use of AI writing tools including ChatGPT, with 98% confidence,” the company said.

GotIt Unveils MathGPT Platform Custom Option for Math Education Providers

Expanded multi-modal MathGPT Platform possibilities mean any math content or curriculum can be turned into a personalized GPT-powered chatbot with interactive text, audio, and video learning, and GotIt can configure the MathGPT Platform to work with a wide variety of applications in math education, the company said.

Grant Program Seeks Project-Based Learning Ideas

The Toshiba America Foundation is offering grants for projects the use project-based learning to teach STEM.

Call for Speakers Deadline Extended: Tech Tactics in Education

Coming to Orlando, FL, Nov. 7-9, 2023, the new conference from the producers of Campus Technology and THE Journal will focus on cybersecurity and data practices across K–20 education.

ED's Magnet Schools Assistance Program Accepting Applications from LEAs Through May 15

Applications are now being accepted for the U.S. Department of Education’s Magnet Schools Assistance Program, which provides funding to eligible local education agencies to establish and operate magnet schools, with special curricula, to attract a diverse group of students and desegregate public schools.

Educators Tapped for National Awards and Honors

Several dozen educators were honored in recent weeks with awards from the National Science Teaching Association, the Council of Great City Schools, Curriculum Associates Inspire Award, Scholastic Teacher Fellow Cohort, and the National Alliance of Black School Educators.

Call for Participation: IT Salary and Job Satisfaction Survey

THE Journal is relaunching its K–12 IT Salary and Job Satisfaction Survey. To date, thousands of K–12 IT professionals have participated, providing valuable insights into the profession for their peers and colleagues.

Gale in Context: For Educators Adds Assessments and New Lesson Plans

Gale, an educational content provider, has added built-in assessments and hundreds of new, standards-based lesson plans to its Gale in Context: For Educators database program.

Paper Acquires Readlee To Boost Literacy Features With Artificial Intelligence

Educational support platform and tutoring provider Paper has acquired Readlee, whose software uses artificial intelligence and speech-recognition technology to help students improve their reading skills, according to a recent announcement by Paper.

Seesaw Debuts Elementary Computer Science Curriculum

Digital learning platform Seesaw has launched standards-aligned elementary computer science curriculum for grades K–5, offering interactive tools for students including audio, photos, video, text, and drawings in lessons that cover a wide range of disciplines and subjects, the company said.

UNIVERSE Virtual Platform Adds Thematic Classrooms, Portfolio Tools

ViewSonic is launching an update to its UNIVERSE immersive 3D virtual learning platform for K–12 education.

ASUS Launches Durable Education Laptops

ASUS has announced two new education laptop series: the BR1402 2-in-1 convertible laptops (the first of their kind at 14 inches), and the CR1102 (11-inch) Chromebooks, both in clamshell and flip versions.

K–12 Grants & Upcoming Events

Upcoming K–12 Events

Upcoming K–12 Grants