As a CTE educator, you know that choosing the best technology applications curriculum for your program is critical. After all, learners need a working knowledge of technology applications to succeed in many fields of work.
But with so many technology curriculum options around, how can you be sure you’re picking an ideal curriculum for your students? What qualities should you look for, and how is each provider different from the others?
iCEV provides a middle school technology applications curriculum, but we recognize that our solution isn’t the best for everyone.
In this review, you’ll find how iCEV compares with several leading technology applications curriculum providers, including the benefits and drawbacks of each:
- Coder Kids
- CompuScholar
- eDynamic Learning
- Learning.com
- Typing.com
- XR Terra
After reading, you’ll have a more complete understanding of what each curriculum provider offers to determine which is the most suitable for your students.
iCEV for Technology Applications Curriculum
As a comprehensive CTE solution, iCEV includes an extensive middle school technology applications curriculum. The iCEV curriculum is designed to introduce students to core concepts in a wide range of technology subjects, from computer applications to digital media.
With iCEV, teachers receive access to a full library of CTE courses to teach technology. Each course comes complete with pre-built lesson plans, interactive activities, and formative and summative assessments.
Teachers receive access to a robust learning management system to track student activity and report on their progress, and teachers can use multiple courses to build students’ knowledge and create a cohesive learning experience over multiple years.
What Are the Benefits of iCEV?
iCEV provides an extensive curriculum for teachers to meet standards for technology applications. With a single subscription, instructors receive access to a library of CTE technology courses complete with ready-to-use lessons, activities, and assessments.
Through varied and engaging courses, students are engaged with a variety of instructional methods in a blended learning environment. With iCEV, teachers have the ability to tailor their instruction to the needs of every student, including special populations.
The iCEV digital curriculum and platform are also continually updated to satisfy changes in standards and keep students prepared for future developments in technology.
What Are the Drawbacks of iCEV?
While our middle school technology curriculum is a great fit for many classrooms, it isn’t the right solution for everyone. Instructors who want to teach technology applications in a more traditional, text-focused format might prefer a print-based curriculum for their classes.
Likewise, educators who want to focus in great detail on a single technology subject like more advanced computer coding or augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) might consider a curriculum that focuses more heavily on these concepts.
Finally, teachers who prefer to craft lesson plans from scratch might not utilize the full library of premade plans available in the iCEV curriculum system.
Who Should Consider iCEV?
Ultimately, iCEV is designed to give students a thorough introduction to technology applications. Through age-appropriate multimedia content and engaging activities, students learn the fundamentals of digital literacy and citizenship, computer applications, media, and more.
It’s a great choice for educators who want to teach students a variety of technological skills with a comprehensive blended learning experience. It’s not for teachers who favor more traditional instruction methods with less interactivity.
1. Coder Kids
Coder Kids is a technology applications curriculum from Ellipsis Education. They offer a series of digital curriculum courses for students in grades K-8.
For middle school, Coder Kids provides two versions of their curriculum, one with 30 minutes of instruction per class period and another with 60 minutes of teaching time. Each lesson includes activities, projects, or student handouts designed to help students discover introductory concepts in computer science.
Coder Kids covers different concepts depending on the grade level. For example, their sixth-grade curriculum introduces students to JavaScript, while 7th- and 8th-grade courses build on the fundamentals taught at the sixth-grade level.
Coder Kids courses are presented online through Ellipsis Education’s Curriculum Delivery Platform.
What Are the Benefits of This Curriculum?
This curriculum works well for programs that want to introduce middle school students to computer programming using JavaScript. The curriculum includes in-depth instruction on one of the most popular computer languages and builds on foundational concepts over a multi-year period.
The curriculum includes basic lesson plans for teachers and accommodations for students such as English Language Learners (ELLs). Each activity is age-appropriate and teaches concepts thoroughly. Coder Kids also reinforces learning by including Exit Tickets that encourage students to reflect on the knowledge they’ve developed.
What Are the Drawbacks of This Curriculum?
Despite providing an intensive curriculum for teaching coding, particularly JavaScript, Ellipsis Education doesn’t offer a comprehensive technology applications curriculum. If you want to cover more than coding in your technology classes or even want to cover multiple computer languages, you’ll need to find additional curriculum resources.
These instructional resources are also designed for a teacher already familiar with coding and JavaScript, so there might be better choices for less experienced instructors. In addition, their Curriculum Delivery Platform is less interactive and has fewer classroom management features than other providers.
Who Should Consider This Curriculum?
Programs committed to teaching JavaScript coding over several years will do well with Coder Kids. Their tiered, multiyear curriculum gives students an excellent understanding of coding fundamentals at the middle school level.
However, it isn’t for programs that need a comprehensive middle school technology curriculum. Schools looking for a more complete curriculum will need to augment this resource with materials from other providers.
2. CompuScholar
CompuScholar is a digital curriculum provider that offers a broad technical applications curriculum for middle school students. Their Tech Essentials course takes a holistic approach to technology, coding, and computer science.
Compared with other digital solutions, CompuScholar takes a more traditional instructional approach, delivering content through an eBook-style format with activities and interactive assessments. Teachers receive a course planner and syllabus to assist with instruction and a learning management system to manage student progress.
What Are the Benefits of This Curriculum?
With easy-to-navigate features and information on various technology application topics, there’s much to like about CompuScholar’s straightforward Tech Essentials course. Each of the thirteen lessons includes relevant information students need to succeed, with assessments during and at the end of each lesson.
Teachers will appreciate the intuitive LMS system, which leads students through each lesson and displays grade information and the time each student spends in the course. The curriculum integrates with other LMS platforms for ease of use.
What Are the Drawbacks of This Curriculum?
On the other hand, CompuScholar doesn’t provide the most interactive curriculum, with few videos and multimedia resources available to students. Materials are basic and straightforward but miss some of the features and activities of more robust curriculum options.
The curriculum also emphasizes Microsoft over Google Applications, so students primarily using Google’s productivity suite might need additional assistance.
Finally, there aren’t many additional pedagogical materials included with the course, leaving instructors on their own to implement each lesson.
Who Should Consider This Curriculum?
Educators who want a basic, simple-to-navigate course on technology applications could be happy with CompuScholar. There’s enough here to cover the basics in a single middle school-level class, and the digital platform is inviting.
However, Tech Essentials doesn’t go beyond the basics in terms of engaging activities, multimedia features, or instructional aids to make teachers’ lives easier.
3. eDynamic Learning
An established provider of digital curriculum, eDynamic Learning offers a unique technology applications course for each grade level. Every class follows a similar style and uses text-based lessons with some video and podcast-style content in an eLearning environment.
Through the lessons, students learn critical vocabulary, complete timed assessments, and learn in a structured, asynchronous space. Teachers receive lesson plans and a Getting Started guide to help implement the course in their classrooms. You can track student progress and report grades through a digital platform that integrates with popular learning management systems.
What Are the Benefits of This Curriculum?
eDynamic Learning offers a full-fledged technology applications curriculum with course options appropriate to each middle school grade level. The digital platform integrates both text and video content, allowing teachers to implement blended learning. The curriculum also covers each subject in detail, and numerous opportunities exist to measure and track student progress.
Teachers and administrators will be particularly pleased with eDynamic Learning’s reporting features, which do an excellent job of getting an overall picture of student performance.
What Are the Drawbacks of This Curriculum?
Despite including multimedia content, the video and podcast audio features don’t seem quite enough for an ideal blended learning environment. Many lessons are text-heavy, and eDynamic Learning doesn’t include as many projects and activities as some of its competitors.
Some educators might also not enjoy that the course isn’t as flexible as other curriculum options, making the materials more challenging to implement in the classroom.
Who Should Consider This Curriculum?
eDynamic Learning works best in an asynchronous learning environment. Teachers keen to assign their students technology lessons and manage them primarily in a digital space will likely succeed with these courses. There is enough here to teach several different technology applications courses, and the lessons are coherent with some projects and multimedia content.
Nevertheless, teachers who want to combine synchronous and asynchronous learning using a wider variety of instructional resources could be disappointed with these courses. Other curriculum providers offer similar course management and reporting features but with a more expansive set of classroom activities and instructional materials.
4. Learning.com
Learning.com offers technology-specific instructional resources for middle school teachers and their students. Through their well-known EasyTech and EasyCode curriculum, Learning.com introduces students to technology applications and computer coding. Each product is offered as a separate curriculum solution for middle school classrooms.
Appropriate for younger students, both courses use animated videos and slide presentations to deliver content to students. Teachers receive lesson plans and lecture note suggestions to teach students synchronously. They can also manage content through a learning management system that allows instructors to view students’ assignments in real-time as learners complete their work.
What Are the Benefits of This Curriculum?
With EasyCode and EasyTech, Learning.com does an excellent job of reaching a middle school audience. The presentations are easy to follow and learn from and come with useful pedagogical resources for engaging learners in class.
The video and slide presentation resources elevate the curriculum above more text-heavy solutions, and the ability to watch students complete their work makes managing student progress easier.
Overall, the resources offered are more polished than some digital options and can easily engage students from the beginning. Plus, there are effective reporting tools to gauge student success.
What Are the Drawbacks of This Curriculum?
Although student-facing content in EasyCode and EasyTech makes for a solid learning experience, teachers might have a harder time using this curriculum when compared with other content providers.
The learning management system isn’t intuitive or straightforward, which can be frustrating in classroom use. Likewise, the lesson plans, while practical, aren’t designed in a way that’s simple for new teachers. Students may also have difficulties reviewing content if they’ve missed a day in class since some of the content is found only in teachers’ lecture notes.
Who Should Consider This Curriculum?
Teachers looking for a curriculum specifically focused on technology applications, computer coding, or both may like the Learning.com format. The materials are tailored to younger students and provide a blended learning experience.
However, as a digital curriculum solution, the Learning.com platform can be challenging to use. Educators may have trouble navigating the system and will likely require some training before implementing the materials in their classrooms.
5. Typing.com
A curriculum from the education resource website Teaching.com, Typing.com offers an expansive middle school technology curriculum for primarily asynchronous learning. Teachers can assign students courses in typing, digital communication, computer applications, and coding through a digital platform.
The Typing.com curriculum is designed for students working primarily in a traditional computer setting. Students learn content through a series of self-guided modules that include interactive tasks and questions.
Teachers can assess student progress through a teacher portal, which includes several reporting features and the ability to track student activity in real time.
What Are the Benefits of This Curriculum?
Typing.com benefits from a beautifully designed and easy-to-use curriculum. Students are presented with multiple forms of content and formative and summative assessments. As a turnkey solution for several middle school technology subjects, teachers can quickly assign students modules through the teacher portal and track their results.
The interactive courseware is among the best available for middle school technology, as content flows easily from one section to the next, and a wide variety of activities and assessments are interspersed throughout each course.
From a teacher’s perspective, the content is easily managed within the portal and integrates easily with other learning management systems.
What Are the Drawbacks of This Curriculum?
Typing.com covers the four subjects of typing, digital communication, computer applications, and coding. However, the curriculum does not cover other technologies like video, audio, or graphic production in any of the courses. This could prove challenging for many teachers, as digital media is a part of many state and national instructional standards.
Moreover, while the curriculum is intuitive from a student perspective, there aren’t many pedagogical resources to help teachers offer a synchronous learning experience. The lack of these tools means that teachers might be forced to develop new materials on their own or let students work independently.
Who Should Consider This Curriculum?
Teachers who value a solid asynchronous learning experience within a smoothly designed digital space will likely appreciate the Typing.com courses. You can manage each of the four classes from a teacher portal, and students will learn well in a gamified student interface.
However, teachers looking for more complete lesson plans—or who need to cover media technologies in their standards—may want to consider other curriculum providers to meet their needs.
6. XR Terra
XR Terra is a virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) resource from the Glimpse Group. Unlike other curriculum providers who offer a full-fledged technology applications curriculum, XR Terra focuses on introducing middle school learners to these new and emerging technologies.
XR Terra teaches students to use the program Unity to complete projects related to virtual and augmented reality. Students discover some of the fastest-growing technologies by learning different dimensions of AR and VR. The course is designed for students at an 8th-grade level.
What Are the Benefits of This Curriculum?
Relatively few curriculum providers touch on VR and AR in their lessons. XR Terra makes these technologies the focus and covers the different dimensions of each in depth.
Teachers can use over 750 pages of provided instructional materials to teach students innovative projects that introduce technology-related ideas. The course is contained and presented in Google Classroom for ease of use.
What Are the Drawbacks of This Curriculum?
The most obvious shortcoming of this resource is that it doesn’t cover most of the standards for middle school technology applications. While the AR and VR lessons are detailed and exhaustive, there is no coverage for standards in other subjects, such as digital citizenship or computer coding. Thus, teachers will need to use another curriculum to cover the majority of their standards.
Educators might also question if this curriculum is truly age-appropriate for their learners. While it’s intended for 8th-grade students, many of the concepts covered in XR Terra seem more pertinent to high schoolers.
Who Should Consider This Curriculum?
Ultimately, educators should view XR Terra as a supplemental resource to augment their middle school technology curriculum for more advanced learners.
Because it doesn’t satisfy most of the standards for technology applications, you shouldn’t rely on it as a primary method of instruction. Educators should find another provider to meet all of their standards.
That said, XR Terra’s materials do a good job of introducing students to AR and VR. This could be a decent option for teachers with extra time to explore these technologies with their students.
Help Students Succeed with a Comprehensive Technology Applications Curriculum
Selecting the ideal technology applications curriculum for your program can be challenging. To ensure your students succeed, you need a curriculum that covers core technological skills while preparing learners for future classes and career opportunities.
Which curriculum you choose will ultimately depend on your unique classroom needs. Which technology applications do you specifically need to cover in your curriculum? Do your standards require that you teach specific material? Which curriculum will prepare your students the most for work in the field?
Depending on how you answer these questions, you might prefer one of these curriculum solutions more than the others.
But if you’re searching for a comprehensive technology applications curriculum to help students succeed, consider iCEV. The iCEV curriculum features complete technology applications courses to meet your standards and provide a seamless learning experience for your students.
If iCEV sounds like it could be right for you, sign up for a free trial. You'll receive full curriculum access to determine if it’s appropriate for your technology applications courses.
