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1450
The Gutenberg Printing Press
The problem of availability of manually copied manuscripts had improved after 1450 when the Gutenberg printing press was invented. -
Horn-books
The hornbook consisted of a wooden paddle with lessons tacked on and covered by a piece of transparent horn. A hole was put in the handle so a leather thong could be tied to it and the child could carry it on his/her belt or around his/her neck.The lessons, such as the alphabet, were hand written on a piece of parchment, then tacked to the wooden paddle. -
Writing Slate
A slate was a book sized chalkboard used by students in early schools for every subject. The student would write on the slate to practice spelling, handwriting, language arts, and math. When the slate was first introduced, students wrote with a slate pencil, basically a small piece of rock. The slate pencil was later replaced with a small piece of chalk. -
Magic Lantern
Magic lantern was the earliest form of image projector. It was a device which projected printed images of glass frames onto the walls in darkened classrooms. Initially, figures were rendered with black paint but soon transparent colours were also used. -
The Modern Blackboard
At the end of the 18th century, students were still using individual slates made of actual slate or pieces of wood. Teachers were unable to present a lesson or problem to the entire class.To solve this issue, James Pillans, a Geography teacher from Scotland, hung a large piece of slate on the classroom wall. The invention of the blackboard had an enormous impact on classroom efficiency. -
Shorthand Postcards
The first attempt at distance education was when Sir Isaac Pitman sent shorthand postcards to his students and received student feedback as a response. A shorthand is an abbreviated symbolic writing method that increases speed of writing. -
Pencil and Paper
Pencil and paper replaced the use of slate and chalk in the classroom. -
Radio
The radio emerged, allowing students to learn from radio programs. This was revolutionary as it allowed learning to occur outside the classroom setting and on a mass scale. -
The Ballpoint Pen
In the 1940s, the first ballpoint pen was introduced in schools -
Mimeograph
A mimeograph is a duplicating machine which produces copies from a stencil, now superseded by the photocopier. Mimeographs helped teachers to retype their materials and spread homework assignments to the entire class. -
Headphones and Television
First headphones and TVs arrived to schools in the 1950s - it is also at that time that the lessons could be learned through repetition. -
Photocopier
The photocopier was introduced into classrooms and allowed for information to be distributed on a wide scale never seen before. -
Overhead Projector
Overhead projectors first appeared in schools in the late 1950s allowing teachers to print their materials on plastic sheets and also write directly to the plastic sheets with a non-permanent washable marking pen. -
Video and Audio Tapes
In the 1960s, with the emergence of the information age, VHS, VCR and audio tapes could be used to enrich lessons -
Handheld Calculator
The first handheld calculator was introduced in schools in 1972. It allowed pupils to type in the operands and perform mathematical operations in a single click. -
The Scranton System of Testing
The original Scantron tests were a form of Optical Mark Recognition (OMR) system, in which a scanning machine beamed light through the test paper and examined the back of the paper, noting which areas were dark using phototubes. The machine noted the position of that dark mark detected by the phototubes, compared that position to a master answer key, and tabulated the results. -
IBM PC
The IBM Personal Computer, commonly known as the IBM PC, was introduced on August 12, 1981.First IBM PCs arrived in 1981 to the classrooms. Their use was limited to word processing. -
3D Printer
The first 3D printer was invented in 1983 by Chuck Hull. Since then they have been greatly improved and introduced into the classroom to the benefit of pupils. 3D printers are helping to inspire a new generation of STEM learners by combining problem-solving skills with creativity and innovation. -
World Wide Web
Tim Berners-Lee, a British scientist at CERN, invented the World Wide Web (WWW) in 1989. With the in appearance of the World Wide Web, pupils could send e-mails, and research the Internet. -
Interactive Whiteboard
The interactive whiteboard was invented by David Martin and Nancy Knowlton. This invention turned the classroom into a fun learning environment that accommodates different learning styles. It also provided flexibility for the teacher and their lesson plans -
iPads
The first-generation iPad was introduced in April, 2010 and since their introduction, they have been used in extraordinary ways to unleash student learning and engagement. Students can have endless access to information and tools such as audio and video make learning come to life.
