Sixteen Different Digital Tools That Will Make Our Teaching - Learning Process Efficient and Easy

Introduction

The majority of schools have computer labs. Students may use high-speed internet for teaching and studying on a variety of devices, including computers and tablets. Teachers and students now have simpler, quicker, and more accessible access to content, learning opportunities, experts, peers, and a larger community of educators thanks to today's connected classrooms.

Activity 1:

Given the abundance of EdTech resources and applications currently available, and new ones arriving in app stores on a regular basis, how do you find the right ones for your work?

How can you say that the current digital tools and technologies you choose will improve and extend your learning processes while still protecting your student privacy?

Post your answer on your Facebook account.

What is Digital Tools?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/156686070@N07/44574658000/in/photolist-2a…

Tools characterized by electronic and especially computerized technologies. Learn more in Value-Added Crowdsourcing: Digital Catalysts for Creative Contests

Electronic devices that may or may not be portable including computers, laptops, tablets, clickers, SMARTboard, projectors, etc. Learn more in: Preparing 21st Century Teachers: Supporting Digital Literacy and Technology Integration in P6 Classrooms

A program, app, or other software available on a digital device (e.g., iPad, laptop, smartphone, etc.), including those that are language, audio, and visually based. Learn more in Engaging Teachers in a Digital Learner-Centered Approach to Support Understanding Foundational Literacy

Electronic hardware and software. Learn more in: The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on E-Learning Strata Among University Students in Morocco: Assessing Mechanics of Knowledge Reception, Cognition, and Approbation

Software, programs, applications, platforms, and (online or offline) resources that can be used with computers, mobile devices, or other digital devices, and incorporate text, audio, and visual stimuli. Learn more in: The Integration of Educational Technologies in Foreign Language Education: Teacher Practices and Attitudes in Greece

Instruments that use the internet and other new Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). Learn more in Corporate Social Responsibility and Digital Tools: The Cause-Related Marketing Case

Educational programs, websites or online resources, and digital processing systems encourage active learning, knowledge construction, and exploration in the teaching and learning process. Learn more in Computer-Driven Technologies for Effective Teaching in K-12 Classrooms in Nigeria

Teaching and learning platforms and software with embedded audios, videos, images, and texts that are used via computers or smartphones. Learn more in Multilingual Writing in Digital World: The Necessity for Reshaping Teaching

Software and platforms for teaching and learning that can be used with computers or mobile devices to work with text, images, audio, and video. Tools for language learning and teaching may include programs for editing digital materials (e.g., audio, video), and platforms for collaborating and sharing resources. Learn more in Big Data and Digital Tools Applied to the Teaching: Learning in Graduate Programs in Mexico

10.

Digital or computerized tools that allow for meaning-making with digital literacies such as cell phones, tablets, laptop computers, e-readers, etc. Learn more in Exploring Cultural Responsiveness in Literacy Tutoring: “I Never Thought About How Different Our Cultures Would Be”

11.

Refers to laptops, tablets, and mobile phones used for supporting teaching and learning. Learn more in: The Uptake and Use of Digital Technologies and Professional Development: Exploring the University Teacher Perspective

Find more terms and definitions using our Dictionary Search.

Enrich your understanding by watching the Digital Tools for Online Learning.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeBwbViI81Q

Task

At the end of this lesson you should:

1. Recognize the different digital tools; their functions and features.

2. Utilize the different digital tools.

3. Create meaningful ideas using the different digital tools to develop Higher-ordered Thinking Skills.

Process

Sixteen Examples of Digital Tools

A. Online Bibliography and Citation Tools

1. BibMe

- is a one-stop source for all kinds of bibliography needs. It is a great online tool for bibliographies--and more. ... BibMe allows you to search from a database of millions of entries to find your source and autofill in the information. If you have the source in front of you, you can enter your entries manually.

BibMe lets you easily and automatically create book citations and build your bibliography in American Psychological Association 6th edition. It’s accurate and free! Automatic Bibliography Maker.

Features Focus: BibMe’s Intuitive Annotation Tool

BibMe will format your citation, with annotation, in the proper format and in the style you choose (MLA style, APA format, Chicago, or another style). After you create your citation with its annotation, copy and paste it into your bibliography, download it to Word, or save it for later use. It's simple, easy, and free!
One of the most functional free online bibliography and citation tools on the Internet. All the features an eLearning content developer needs are there.
4 Citation Styles

Whether you are using MLA, APA, Turabian or Chicago, BibMe can help you reference your work effectively.
Variety Of Sources

Journals, websites, books and many other sources covering both digital and print format.
Plagiarism Checker

Check your content for plagiarism against plenty of sources on the Internet to avoid using somebody else’s words.

2. Citation Machine

- is essentially a works cited generator that accesses information from across the web, drawing the relevant information into a fully formatted bibliography that clearly presents all of the sources that have contributed to your work.

Features and Functions

Filled with a wide variety of examples and visuals, our Citation Machine® MLA guide will help you master the citation process. Learn how to cite websites, books, journal articles, magazines, newspapers, films, social media, and more!
Our Citation Machine® APA guide is a one-stop-shop for learning how to cite in APA format. Read up on what APA is, or use our citing tools and APA examples to create citations for websites, books, journals, and more!
Creating citations in Chicago style has never been easier thanks to our extensive Citation Machine® Chicago style guide and tools. Learn about footnotes, endnotes, and everything in between, or easily create citations for websites, books, journal articles, and more!
Whether you’re a student, writer, foreign language learner, or simply looking to brush up on your grammar skills, our comprehensive grammar guides provide an extensive overview on over 50 grammar-related topics. Confused about reflexive verbs, demonstrative adjectives, or conjunctive adverbs? Look no further! Learn about these grammar topics and many, many more in our thorough and easy-to-understand reference guides!

B. Photo and Image Editing Tools

3. Adobe Photoshop

- is the predominant photo editing and manipulation software on the market. Its uses range from the full-featured editing of large batches of photos to creating intricate digital paintings and drawings that mimic those done by hand.

- is an imaging and graphic design software used by thousands of people in many different roles across the world. Not only is it for photos but you can use Photoshop for designing websites, editing videos, and creating 3D artwork.

Top 10 Features in Adobe Photoshop You Must Explore

The list of top ten tools and features is proved as the best of Photoshop.

1. Adobe Photoshop- Layers - With the Layers palette, you can draw or design various elements of your document independently in layers and stack them up as per the order of display. With this advantage, control over every single object is catered at the click of a mouse. Mistakes happen, but the effects of the mistake are limited to the part of the canvas, you can choose to work on the particular part and leave the rest of the canvas as it is. This benefit is lacking in the traditional painting method. Artists are not allowed to relax at any part of the drawing or painting, once their concentration is diverted and a stroke of painting goes wrong! They are bound to change the whole canvas.

2. Adobe Photoshop – Selection Tools - Photoshop’s selection tools are so handy to use that designer worldwide are addicted to the set of selection tools Photoshop offers. Though there is a bunch of competitive software and open-source software designed to give tough competition for Photoshop. Users are still stuck with Adobe’s torchbearer software due to the ease its tools provide.

3. Adobe Photoshop – Pen tool - The tool is designed so flexibly, that the designer can draw any shape or edit the existing shapes as well as he is using his bare hand. The amount of control we have through placing the anchor points in the right places is taken further with the three types of Anchor points that can allow you to draw and edit paths precisely.

4. Adobe Photoshop – Shapes - The outlook of the shape layers in Photoshop may be limited, but the capabilities of the feature go a step further than what we assume about it. In the traditional marquee selection tools, the selection is limited to the raster process and in many cases, the output will result in sharp pixilated edges which are never good looking. But the shape layers can act as an individual object within the document with its attribute to maintain the finest quality.

5. Adobe Photoshop – Vector Mask - The layer masks create a masking portion of an object by using the grayscale color combination (Shades of Gray). Once the masking part is done, the area of the object under the layer mask disappears.

6. Adobe Photoshop – Slice Tool - Slice tool was introduced to snip the images into slices so the loading time of a website can be mitigated to a greater extent. The tool helped the designers to a great extent and was one of the important milestones in the development of web technology.

7. Adobe Photoshop – Retouching Tools - Retouching tools are an accumulation of various tools such as Stamp tool, Pattern Stamp tool, Spot Healing tool, Healing tool, Patch tool, Redeye tool, and much more.

8. Adobe Photoshop – Photoshop 3D - With Photoshop 3D, users can directly import the 3 Dimensional objects into Photoshop through the cloud program and draw the textures directly on the Photoshop canvas. You can even play the series of images related to the 3D object and choose the pose and facial expression from the animation, within Photoshop.

9. Adobe Photoshop – Smart Objects - Smart objects came to the rescue of raster files, and it offers more than just preserving the data. They intelligently remember the data of the image file and bring its data back to the original form after resizing the object to any size. Along with that, using a smart object helps the designers to save time and effort by remembering the changes to the object and applying the same changes to the same object if used anywhere else.

10. Adobe Photoshop – Adobe Creative Cloud - our files are still safe, and you are allowed to access your files without carrying them.

4. Picsart

Photo Studio is a free and full-featured photo editing and drawing mobile app for Android, iOS, and Windows Mobile, as well as a social network where artists share, learn, and compete in art contests. PicsArt is also newly available for all Windows 8.1 PCs and tablets, making it a truly universal app.

Features:

Create Dispersion. PicsArt Photo Editor comes with tons of awesome editing tools. ...
Add Effects and Filters. Effects are really awesome edits that can be applied to images just like filters. ...
Add Stickers. ...
Draw Lines. ...
Change Background With Cutout. ...
Add Photos To Create Overlays. ...
Create Masks. ...
Color With Curves Tool.

Functions:

PicsArt Photo & Video Editor - a photo and video editing app with tools to add filters and various effects, with social network integration. The app is free to use and offers in-app purchases of stickers and other graphic elements.

C. Survey and Polls Tools

5. Poll Everywhere

Poll Everywhere is a dynamic online polling platform that allows students to vote on custom teacher-generated polls through text messaging (SMS), smartphone, or computer by visiting this website. With a free educator account with Poll Everywhere, polls can receive up to 40 votes, enough to accommodate most classrooms.

A good web tool to engage your audience in real-time interaction. It lets you design interactive polls and surveys and deliver them live to your audience. ‘Responses appear in an animated graph or chart embedded in your presentation. Results update live for all to see.’ Poll Everywhere works in major presentation tools such as Powerpoint, Keynote, and Google Slides.

Features:

1. Add images to questions for helpful context.

2. Get creative with clickable images.

3. Highlight thoughtful responses.

4. Set a template poll to reduce prep time.

5. Hide responses in a live poll chart.

6. Import multiple polls in a snap with CSV import.

7. Present from iPad.

8. Change language settings for non-English-speaking students.

Functions:

Poll Everywhere is an online service that allows teachers to ask their students a question. The students answer the question using their mobile phones, Twitter, or web browsers. Both the question and the student's responses are displayed live in Keynote, PowerPoint, and/or on the web.

6. Micropoll

A simple tool to easily create polls to embed on your blog or website. Micropoll provides you with the tools to customize your polls, add various types of questions, and analyze audience responses. MicroPolls are small single-question polls that you can add to your website or blog. The results of the poll are automatically displayed to the users taking the poll.

Features:

QuestionPro MicroPoll Features

Create Unlimited Polls
Collect Unlimited Responses
Add and embed (Copy/Paste) MicroPolls to:
- Websites
- Blogs
- Emails
No HTML/Server Software Required

Advanced Management Features (Free)

Automatically "Schedule" Polls (Weekly/Monthly)
Automatically "Rotate" Polls
Show results if users have already taken the poll

D. Web Conferencing Tools

7. Zoom

Zoom is one of those platforms that’s become a household name. It offers free and paid options as well as paid plans for companies of all sizes, from small businesses to large enterprises. It scales well and is highly user-friendly, a quality that accounts for its widespread popularity.

Zoom works on any device, from your work computer to your personal smartphone. The quality of audio and video is reliably high. There are plenty of user-friendly features, including a chat window, reaction emoticons, and optional meeting recording.

Features:

Meetings and Chat. HD video, audio, collaboration & chat.
Rooms and Workspaces. Power up your conference rooms with video.
Video Webinars. Full-featured, easy-to-use, engaging webinars.
App Marketplace. Integrations and bots to use with Zoom.

Functions:

Zoom is a cloud-based video communications app that allows you to set up virtual video and audio conferencing, webinars, live chats, screen-sharing, and other collaborative capabilities

8. Google Meet

Google Meet is a video conferencing app. It is the business-oriented version of Google's Hangouts platform and is suitable for businesses of all sizes. The solution enables users to make video calls with up to 30 users per high-definition video meeting.

Features:

An unlimited number of meetings.
Live to caption during meetings.
Compatible across devices.
Video and audio preview screen.
Adjustable layouts and screen settings.
Controls for meeting hosts.
Screen sharing with participants.
Messaging with participants.
Integration with Google and Microsoft Office apps.

F. Stock Photos Sites

9. Shutterstock

Shutterstock is one of the largest stock sites and also one of the best stock photography websites and one that has been around for longer than most. A microstock agency responsible for introducing the innovative stock photo subscription model –now extended across the market–, and famous for having the largest stock photography library on the web, with over 190 million files and counting. They have strict technical standards and obviously a seemingly infinite variety in content. The site also has a very handy search feature making it easy to browse through the millions of images and find the right one you want to use in social media, blog posts, and ads.

Features:

"Shutterstock is a provider of digital imagery licensing, operating with over 50 Million Stock Photos, Vectors, Videos, and Music Tracks." Shutterstock maintains a library of over 50 million royalty-free stock photos, vector graphics, illustrations and 2 million video clips and pieces of music for license.

Functions:

Shutterstock licenses media for online download on behalf of photographers, designers, illustrators, videographers, and musicians, maintaining a library of almost 200 million royalty-free stock photos, vector graphics, and illustrations. Shutterstock also has 10 million video clips and music clips in its portfolio.

10. Adobe Stock

Adobe Stock is a stock photo service owned by Adobe –the design software giant– and it is built on the base of the photo library of Fotolia (a well-known stock photo agency acquired by Adobe).

This best stock photography website is fully integrated into the Creative Cloud platform, allowing access to over 80 million stock photos right within your design apps, streamlining the design process, and saving time and effort. It’s ideal for designers using Adobe’s cloud applications (learn it all about this in our Adobe Creative Cloud breakdown), but it also works independently, from its own website.

Features:

1. Searching is super-fast and efficient

2. Adobe Stock integrates with the tools you already love

3. Templates are flexible and can be customized

4. Adobe Stock frees up your time

5. The templates are curated and regularly updated

Functions:

Adobe Stock is a service that provides designers and businesses with access to millions of high-quality curated and royalty-free photos, videos, illustrations, vector graphics, 3D assets, and templates for all their creative projects. You can purchase Adobe Stock as a multi-asset subscription.

G. Video Tools

11. Kinemaster

Kinemaster is a free and subscription-based video editing app available for both iOS and Android. In fact, the interface is similar on both devices. The Kinemaster app has surprised many people and has been included in a number of list blog posts depicting “the best mobile video editors for 2019”.

Features:

Speed Control
Effects
Themes
Adjustments
Multiple Layers
Overlays
Music
Audio Filters
Frame-by-Frame Trimming
Volume Envelope
Stickers
Instant Preview
Transition Effects
Real-Time Recording
Animation Styles
Social Media sharing

Functions:

Is to bring professional-quality video editing features to mobile. KineMaster provides a wide range of video editing functions, including transition effects, text and handwriting overlays, video and image layers, up to four additional audio tracks, detailed volume envelope control, and more.

12. Viva Video

VivaVideo is the Pro Video Editor and Free Video Maker app, with all video editing features: cut video, trim video, crop video, merge video, edit video with music, edit video for youtube, add stickers to video, add text to video, and so on. Download VivaVideo to edit video with music & effects！

Features:

Easy Edits and effects- Apply powerful editing functions and effects like reverse motion support with a single click. Preview editing operations in a what you see is what you get manner.
Clips to video - Choose from a variety of collage templates and turn images from the gallery or the internet to slideshow videos with text and music. Turn several clips into a single story video with picture-in-picture support
Simple UI- Generate and edit videos on a straightforward interface with a classic timeline editor with in-app and custom music and theme support. Import and export files of multiple formats and share files to social media directly
Overlay and camera lens Support- Add creative and colorful texts, images, and themes and music to videos. Employ multi-capture options and fascinating lenses to capture images in-app and use them.

Functions:

VivaVideo is a video editing application on Android and iOS devices, enabling users to change the style for videos that are recorded directly on the VivaVideo app. The need to edit images and videos on smartphone devices is constantly increasing.

H. Assessment Tools

13. Nearpod

Nearpod is a web-based tool used to promote active learning and student engagement in the classroom. It is a web-based, interactive version of Microsoft PowerPoint or Google Slides. ... Nearpod presentations can be teacher-led in the classroom or assigned as student-led homework.

Features:

CONVERT EXISTING MULTIMEDIA CONTENT INTO NEARPOD
CREATE NEW SLIDES
VIDEOS
AUDIO FILES
SLIDESHOW
PDF VIEWER
LIVE TWITTER STREAM
ADD WEB CONTENT

Functions:

Nearpod helps educators make any lesson interactive whether in the classroom or virtual. The concept is simple. A teacher can create interactive presentations that can contain Quiz's, Polls, Videos, Collaborate Boards, and more.

14. Quizizz

Quizizz is a creativity software company used in class, group works, pre-test review, exams, unit tests, and impromptu tests. It allows students and teachers to be online at the same time.

Features:

1. Use the teleport feature to create quizzes in seconds!

2. Google Classroom

3. Add a Quizizz icon to your home screen

4. Convert quizzes into printable worksheets

Functions:

It allows students and teachers to be online at the same time. ... Students can use Quizizz on any electronic device and browse, similar to, laptops, iPads and smartphones. Quizizz can be used as a 'check' tool that reveals how the students know about the material. Teachers can use Quizizz to assign students homework.

I. PDF Tools

15. PDFelement

PDFelement is an outstanding Windows 10 PDF editor that tops the list. It is a worthy alternative to Adobe Acrobat, which has been widely regarded as the industry standard when it comes to PDF editing. The good thing is that this wonderful PDF editor has a free trial that comes with basic PDF editing solutions. Meanwhile, the paid version offers good value for the cost, as it is affordable when compared to other PDF editors.

Features and Functions:

It boasts of a lot of incredible features which include annotating, editing, and converting PDFs to other formats, add a signature, and filling PDF forms. In fact, this best Windows 10 PDF editor gives you a complete solution to edit PDF files like never before. More importantly, it allows you to enjoy a large cloud storage space (up to 100GB) from Wondershare Document Cloud.

16. Inkscape

Inkscape is an extremely popular free image viewer and editor, but it also includes PDF editing functions that most dedicated PDF editors support only in their paid editions.

Functions and Features:

Inkscape is a very capable image editing program. If you're not already familiar with programs like GIMP, Adobe Photoshop, and other image editors, however, it's probably a bit advanced for you.

In the context of PDF editing, though, you should consider Inkscape only if you want to delete or edit the images or text in the PDF. We suggest you use a different tool in this list to edit PDF forms or add shapes and then plug that PDF into Inkscape if you need to actually edit the preexisting text.

You can install Inkscape on Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Evaluation

Written Work:

1. Using Kinemaster Video Editing Tools, create a short video about the importance of digital tools in the teaching-learning process. Your work must consist of 3-5 minutes only. Upload your video on YouTube or Google Drive.

Scoring Rubrics:

Video Quality - 20 %
Content - 40 %
Creativity - 30 %
Originality - 10 %
Total - 100%

Conclusion

Digital tools are online resources that are fundamental in the digital world especially in the field of education where digital learning is also part. It enhances the teaching and learning style through engaging with the variety of educational resources online which helps students and the teachers to be more familiar with using different online platforms.