The 15 Key Technology Hurdles, Trends and Enablers for 2020

The 15 Key Technology Hurdles, Trends and Enablers for 2020

An organization of school technology leaders has given a peek at the "hurdles, accelerators and tech enablers" that innovation efforts in K-12 will face in the coming year. The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) developed the list based on an annual innovation survey among its members and discussion among an advisory board that includes nearly 100 education leaders and practitioners. Full coverage of the topics will be published later in 2020.

Accelerators, CoSN explained, are the "megatrends" that help promote teaching and learning innovation in schools. The top five accelerators for 2020 follow this order:

  1. Learners as creators, giving students real-world learning experiences;
  2. Data-driven practices, the use of data to help make decisions in all aspects of school operation;
  3. Personalization, to provide individualized learning paths and promote student voice and choice;
  4. Social and emotional learning; and
  5. Building the human capacity of leaders, giving and taking opportunities for people to learn new skills.

Four of those appeared as the top accelerators in 2019 too, and in the same order. Only social and emotional learning is new to the list.

Hurdles pose major obstacles to innovation in education. This year's list encompasses:

  1. Scaling and sustaining innovation, growing new practices from a few classrooms to the entire school or district;
  2. Data privacy and ownership;
  3. Evolution of teaching and learning;
  4. Pedagogy versus the technology gap, helping teachers understand the research behind new technology usage and helping them develop their skills; and
  5. Digital equity, making sure every student has access to broadband and digital tools as they need them.

Three of those hurdles -- scaling and sustaining innovation, the link between pedagogy and technology, and digital equity -- appeared in 2019's list too.

"Tech enablers" are the tools that school and districts can use to overcome the hurdles and tap into the accelerators. In 2020 the top five tech enablers, ranked in order of importance, are:

  1. Digital collaboration platforms;
  2. Tools for privacy and safety online;
  3. Analytics and adaptive technologies in learning, which can help customize learning experiences, build on areas of student strength and target support.
  4. Cloud infrastructure, which allows school systems to move their hardware and software away from physical locations and make them available anywhere; and
  5. Mobile devices, which can enable access to content and activities anytime, anywhere.

The first two enablers are new to the list, while the remaining three appeared in 2019.

The organization said that its "Hurdles + Accelerators" report will be published this spring; "Tech Enablers" will appear in the summer.

The organization has invited its members to provide their enabler examples, projects and resources, especially those related to digital collaboration platforms and tools for privacy and safety online, for possible inclusion in future publications.

"The 'Driving K-12 Innovation' initiative reaffirms CoSN's commitment to providing up-to-date information on how new technologies impact various education stakeholders," said CoSN CEO, Keith Krueger, in a statement. "We hope this year's findings lead to new dialogs about how to transform learning and improve student outcomes as we look to the future."

The 2020 survey results and the innovation project are on the CoSN website.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • AI-powered individual working calmly on one side and a burnt-out person slumped over a laptop on the other

    AI's Productivity Gains Come at a Cost

    A recent academic study found that as companies adopt AI tools, they're not just streamlining workflows — they're piling on new demands. Researchers determined that "AI technostress" is driving burnout and disrupting personal lives, even as organizations hail productivity gains.

  • three silhouetted education technology leaders with thought bubbles containing AI-related icons

    Ed Tech Leaders Rank Generative AI as Top Tech Priority

    In a recent CoSN survey, an overwhelming majority of ed tech leaders (94%) said they see AI as having a positive impact on education. Respondents ranked generative AI as their top tech priority, with 80% reporting their districts have gen AI initiatives underway, or plan to in the current school year.

  • blue AI cloud connected to circuit lines, a server stack, and a shield with a padlock icon

    Report: AI Security Controls Lag Behind Adoption of AI Cloud Services

    According to a recent report from cybersecurity firm Wiz, nearly nine out of 10 organizations are already using AI services in the cloud — but fewer than one in seven have implemented AI-specific security controls.

  • lightbulb

    Call for Speakers Now Open for Tech Tactics in Education: Overcoming Roadblocks to Innovation

    The annual virtual conference from the producers of Campus Technology and THE Journal will return on Sept. 25, 2025, with a focus on emerging trends in cybersecurity, data privacy, AI implementation, IT leadership, building resilience, and more.