Educational Technology Usage Within a Classroom: Educator Perspective
Curiosity Machine is a STEM-based interface that promotes creative lessons for mostly elementary students, integrating real-world issues, jobs, and events into the activities. Overall, the usability of the design within the website was easy to navigate. What I appreciated most about the tool were the creative subjects students could explore (e.g., art science, ocean engineering, robotics, biomimicry, etc.). The format of the tool was straightforward to navigate; there are two main pages the student would approach: the design challenge and the AI family challenge. After navigation, it is clear that the design challenge is the most probable tool to use in a class. The lessons are divided by topics (some mentioned above), and students are provided with a video explaining the real-world significance of the topic. After the video, there are instructions for a hands-on lesson that the teacher can implement in their class.
The video was demonstrated in an engaging format that captivated the audience in the right amount of time (nothing felt too long or short). The site is helpful; however, some topics are quite niche. For example, biomimicry is intresting, yet is this a part of a district’s technology/science curriculum? That question is entirely up to the district and its pre-determined guidelines. So, while all the topics may not exactly be within the school procedures, this site can be used as a source of inspiration because it has vast arrays of different potential tactile group-based lessons that can be done in a class.
Usefulness in a School Library
The website is helpful in a school library setting as a form of instruction; it is a tool that can be shared among other teachers to create collaborative lessons. It is also a helpful site to distribute information. The videos are informative and talk about current issues and advancements in technology. Additionally, the videos include diverse demographics working in STEM. Curiosity Machine is also useful because it has collaborative family activities. If implemented at a grade level, it can be a good activity (through librarian-led instruction) to invite the community to the school and the library facility. The website aligns well with the library space as it is a collaborative platform that provides accessible learning that goes beyond the classroom.
Implications for Education Technology
While I liked the initial engagement of the platform (through video instructions and visuals) and how Curiosity Machine indicated the difficulty rating of the assignment (out of 3 levels), the site was not entirely user-friendly. Initially, on the Safari browser, the site wouldn’t load, or it would crash. I thought it was because of the browser I was on, so I switched to Chrome; it was working a bit smoother, but when I tried to load a new page, it crashed. I don’t know if this is an individual user experience. I was in a public library while testing out the site, so maybe it was the public wifi (however, every other site I used while there worked fine). While this could have been an individual issue, in a classroom setting, I can see how it could disrupt the lesson’s intent and serve as a distraction if sections of the website are not loading.
Accessibility
The website has many exciting functions that can be used as inspiration or direct instruction in a class. While there are some technological issues (that could have been a problem at my user end), I wish the website was more accessible for individual work. For example, if a student is interested in one of the topics that is not covered in a school setting and wants to engage in the activity at home, a student will need a decent amount of supplies. Thinking about students who can’t afford the supplies or do not have the space to complete some of these lessons, I wish there was a section on the website where they had a web-based version of the same activity. That way, students who are interested in the topic but don’t have the facilities to run the whole lesson can complete the version through the website.
Final thought
While there are some implications regarding usability and accessibility, Curiosity Machine is a beneficial tool that can introduce new, exciting, and engaging activities into a school setting. I am excited to have this in my arsenal of technological tools.