I am a Head of Modern Languages, leading a large department. I use technology in my everyday teaching and I am an MIEExpert. That said, I do not claim to be some kind of guru who knows all the answers on how we can thoroughly prepare our students in 21st Century Learning Skills. And I’m not about to overload you with research. What follows is an opinion piece backed up only with evidence from my own experience.
Nordic companies have exploded onto the global EdTech scene in recent years. The two inspiration articles accompanying this EdTech Guide seek to explore why Nordic EdTech companies are so innovative, and why Nordic schools are implementing EdTech so successfully. What is crystal clear is that there are so many Nordic EdTech stars. Here are ten that we keep hearing about for lots of exciting reasons.
Finnish education and EdTech has always been an area of great interest to me. Of late, it has greatly influenced my professional journey - I’ve been doing a Masters in Education Entrepreneurship with a Finnish university for the last year, and I very recently moved to Finland to work in the education space. So, when Edtech Impact asked me for my reflections and views on why and how EdTech is utilized and implemented well in Finland, I was more than happy to add my two cents.
In 2018 there were over 80 EdTech startups and 150 established EdTech related companies in Finland, a significant achievement from small beginnings in 2013. This article unpacks the factors behind this success story and how a country of 5.5 million people is able to punch well above its weight globally.
Technology provides dynamic opportunities for teaching and learning of maths. It can enhance the learning process and make concepts come alive through engaging and interactive media. Edtech tools can also offer additional support to address the needs of all learners and create personalised learning experiences. Here are some edtech tools focused on raising numeracy standards in primary and secondary schools.
Purchase price varies by single class, whole school or intervention only | Customer rating: 4.5/5 (29 reviews) | Edtech Impact scores:
First up is Maths-Whizz, a fun, online maths tutor for 5-13 year olds. The interactive lessons can be personalised to match each student’s unique strengths and areas of improvement. Not only does Maths-Whizz offer exciting, valuable maths tuition, it also provides free resources and features that help you plan the perfect maths lesson. Its because of this in-depth functionality that 100% of teachers agree that Maths-Whizz builds student knowledge. Their passion to build the best maths resource for schools earned them the 2019 Bett Award for Best Collaboration with a School.
Read more: Maths-Whizz full profile on Edtech Impact
Purchase price: £2 per student | Customer rating: 4.5/5 (6 reviews) | Edtech Impact scores:
Mathspace is the world’s first adaptive learning workbook for 6-18 year olds. Their lessons differ from other online maths tutors as they are built around the most important aspect of maths learning; the students reasoning process behind the final answer. Mathspace is an adaptive program, which means that students get graded and given feedback on every step throughout the process of problem solving. This gives students a deeper, more robust understanding of maths. It comes as no surprise that £2 per student.
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Purchase price: £5 per user | Customer rating: 5/5 (3 reviews) | Edtech Impact scores:
Sparx Maths Homework has an inspiring mission; to improve numeracy for over 5 million learners by 2030. It’s this ambition that lead them to develop an online platform that automatically sets one hour of personalised maths homework for every student, every week. Their platform boasts over 7’100 video tutorials and 30’500 questions, with each software is currently helping over 4’500 learners, 100% of which agree that daily use improves both student attainment and parental engagement.
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Purchase price: Free | Customer rating: 4.5/5 (14 reviews) | Edtech Impact scores:
Mathigon is a free, award winning online mathematics course for secondary school students. Unlike videos or conventional textbooks, students using Mathigon are encouraged to participate in engaging activities covering the whole of the curriculum. As well as an interactive textbook, Mathigon also features a virtual personal tutor that and answers direct questions and provides students with feedback. Each chapter of the Mathigon online textbook is brought to life with an interesting narrative that captivates students attention and imagination. It’s because of these features that 100% of users agree that Mathigon helps build students knowledge.
Read more: Mathigon full profile on Edtech Impact
Purchase price: £75 annual flat fee
Times tables with Emile is an impressive online resource for teaching Key Stage 2 children multiplication in a fun and engaging way. For times tables 1-12, the site offers appropriate games, activities and competitions tailored to each students ability. Students are encouraged to compete in groups or as a class to get to the top of the leaderboard and unlock new achievements. Via secure logins, teachers can pick out students that need help and students that are ready to move onto more challenging learning content. Times tables with Emile send out progress reports automatically to teachers, helping to drastically reduce teacher workload.
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Purchase price: £199 flat fee
DoodleMaths is a multi-award winning online maths platform that is proven to accelerate children’s progress in Numeracy. What sets DoodleMaths apart from their competition is their powerful algorithm that identifies children’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). This is the narrow band between what a learner can do without help and what he or she needs help to do. DoodleMaths harnesses this information to create a unique work program for every student that ensures continual progression and better overall student attainment.
Read more: DoodleMaths full profile on Edtech Impact
Purchase price: £15 monthly flat fee
Mathletics is one of the most popular online maths resources. Used by over 5’000 schools in the UK and Ireland, it offers online courses designed for Foundation Stage learning up to Key Stage 5. What makes Mathletics so sought after is their vast array of curriculum-aligned learning resources; activities, eBooks and videos proven to significantly increase levels of student engagement, confidence and progress in Maths. Mathletics’ success has been proven in a study conducted by Oxford University that concluded students who made regular use of their resources did significantly better on a range of measures. You can read more captivating case studies on the impact Mathletics is having on students learning here.
Read more: Mathletics full profile on Edtech Impact
Popular mathematics and coding platform, Mangahigh, is used by 100’000 teachers in over 5’000 schools globally. Mangahigh uses gamification to encourage student engagement and make learning fun. Covering a wide range of topics including algebra, geometry, probability, statistics, measurement and coding, finding an activity that fits into your lesson content has never been easier. A basic version of the platform is currently available for free.
Finally, MyMaths is a subscription based website used by approximately four million students each year. Serving age ranges from Primary School up to A- Level, MyMaths is an all-in-one solution offering content applicable to all abilities. AQA and Edexcel GCSE maths courses are powered by MyMaths with direct links to MyMaths resources. This makes MyMaths the best option when considering maths revision tools.
Trial numeracy software such as Mathspace, Sparx Maths Homework, DoodleMaths, Maths-Whizz, Mathigon, Mathletics, Times tables with Emile and many more, free of charge from Edtech Impact - a school review driven discovery engine, supporting schools to make the best edtech choices to achieve maximum impact.
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Many say that education is not yet transformed by technology. Well, not to the extent that other industries can claim. But this has a lot more to do with the complexity of schools choosing, adopting and implementing edtech, rather than there being a lack of innovative tech out there, solving problems for teachers and creating opportunities for learners.
As with many ex-teachers, my inspiration was my own experience in school, and the desire to scale something we created which was transformational for us, and I knew would be for others.
I always say to anyone - look out for the products set up and run by ex-teachers, they’re always the best!
Teacher workload. One of the biggest challenges the sector is facing. It’s an ongoing battle with teachers expressing that three of the biggest areas that lead to unnecessary workload are marking, planning and data management.
Facilitating rewarding learning experiences for children in a kindergarten classroom to further their understanding is a huge task; a wide range of abilities, different exposures to skills, variety of languages spoken, all contribute to the need to provide high quality, individualised learning activities.
This is where the iPad shines as a platform to transform learning to a new level. The range of apps available is overwhelming, however, taking things back to basics and using a small range of key, good quality, apps is essential.
School leaders are facing greater challenges today than ever before. Schools need to attract, retain, and motivate the best teachers, compete for students in an increasingly competitive market, and provide extraordinary learning within today’s budget realities. Furthermore, all of this needs to be achieved whilst empowering students to shape their own learning journey, preparing them for success in the modern digital world and keeping their parents updated on their progress and challenges. Schools need to juggle all of these issues while, above all, ensuring that each student reaches their full potential.
