Identification and evaluation of technology trends in K-12 education from 2011 to 2021

Educational technologies have captured the attention of researchers, policy makers, and parents. Each year, considerable effort and money are invested into new technologies, hoping to find the next effective learning tool. However, technology changes rapidly and little attention is paid to the chang...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Education and information technologies 2022-03, Vol.27 (2), p.1929-1958
Main Authors: Dubé, Adam Kenneth, Wen, Run
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Analysis
Bibliometrics
Computer Appl. in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Computer Science
Computers and Education
Education
Educational History
Educational Researchers
Educational Technology
Elementary Secondary Education
Equipment and supplies
Identification
Information Systems Applications (incl.Internet)
Technology Uses in Education
Trend Analysis
Trends
User Interfaces and Human Computer Interaction
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Summary:Educational technologies have captured the attention of researchers, policy makers, and parents. Each year, considerable effort and money are invested into new technologies, hoping to find the next effective learning tool. However, technology changes rapidly and little attention is paid to the changes after they occur. This paper provides an overall picture of the changing trends in educational technology by analyzing the Horizon Reports’ predictions of the most influential educational technologies from 2011 to 2021, identifying larger trends across these yearly predictions, and by using bibliometric analysis to evaluate the accuracy of the identified trends. The results suggest that mobile and analytics technologies trended consistently across the period, there was a trend towards maker technologies and games in the early part of the decade, and emerging technologies (e.g., VR, AI) are predicted to trend in the future. Overall, the specific technologies focused on by the HRs’ predictions and by educational researchers’ publications seem to coincide with the availability of consumer grade technologies, suggesting that the marketplace and technology industry is driving trends (cf., pedagogy or theory).
ISSN:1360-2357
1573-7608
DOI:10.1007/s10639-021-10689-8