Online tools give students a voice and choice in their learning

SOLON — Solon second-grade teacher Jan Johnson is using an interactive teaching tool to see if students are understanding what she’s teaching. If they aren’t, she can adapt her teaching.

Johnson began using the Pear Deck interactive tool about five years ago as a teacher at Lakeview Elementary in Solon.

The online tool became increasingly popular with Iowa teachers during the pandemic when schools navigated between virtual, hybrid and in-person learning.

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Last school year, about 350,000 students across the state responded to lessons in their classrooms through Pear Deck, said Renee Nelson, spokeswoman for Grant Wood Area Education Agency, which provides educational services to seven counties, including Linn and Johnson.

Iowa AEAs bought Pear Deck licensing in 2020 for teachers across the state to use.

Johnson said she’s found using Pear Deck in her classroom engages students differently than having them complete a paper work sheet or only listen as she teaches a lesson.

Instead of one student responding to a question Johnson poses, she can have every student respond to the lesson online and see their answers in real time — giving even the quietest students a chance to engage. This can lead to a deeper discussion of what she’s teaching and what students are — or are not — understanding, she said.

Students also can respond to lessons in different ways by answering multiple choice questions or dragging and dropping answers. For some lessons, Johnson encourages the students to draw online, and they can use color “pens” instead of drawing with markers and crayons.

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‘So flexible’

Amber Bridge, digital learning consultant with Grant Wood AEA, said Pear Deck is “so flexible.” Educators can incorporate it into lessons they’ve already created.

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Directing students to answer a question through Pear Deck during a lesson can “give them a moment to process, ask questions and increase student voice,” Bridge said.

Teachers also can put a lesson on Pear Deck and let students work at their own pace, freeing up teachers to direct their attention to students who need additional help.

Pear Deck also has an option for students to have the lesson read to them. For students who struggle in literacy, this can help them stay on track with their learning.

The Pear Deck tool meets the diverse needs of learners, said Stacy Behmer, Grant Wood AEA coordinator of digital learning and media services.

Behmer said the AEA also has used Pear Deck when teaching the teachers during professional development learning opportunities.

Many adults, she said, use speech to text on their cellphones. These tools can be leveraged in the classroom to help students succeed, she said.

Pear Deck, founded in Iowa City, was acquired by the educational technology company GoGuardian a couple of years ago, the AEA’s Nelson said.

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Adding in technology

Johnson, who’s taught in the Solon Community School District for more than 30 years, said technology in the classroom has changed drastically in the past decade.

“We can’t keep teaching like technology doesn’t exist,” Johnson said. “We need to teach proper use and how to be a consumer of information.”

Johnson said she couldn’t keep up with the changes in technology, so she relies on experts from Grant Wood AEA to help.

Students, she said, are “risk-takers” and often have an “intuitive” knowledge of the technology she’s introducing.

“It’s ever-changing,” she said. “If I tried to keep on top of it all, I wouldn’t use it. I don’t have to be the expert.”

The increasing reliance of technology in education is “good and bad,” Johnson said, noting she sees students who rely on screen time in a way that’s not healthy.

Although she said Pear Deck is a “powerful tool,” she makes sure to have lessons that don’t rely on screens as well as plenty of movement in her classroom.

“Technology isn’t going away,” Johnson said. “We need to teach kids how to be problem-solvers, how to troubleshoot, but also how to be responsible, gain information and be a critical user.”

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