Every year, new tools and trends promise to “revolutionize” learning. For some educators, it can feel like not jumping on every bandwagon will immediately put you behind the curve. But in reality, some ed tech fads drain time and budgets without moving the needle on student learning.
Below are five fads to watch out for and five practical alternatives that actually support teaching and learning.
1. Fad: Tech for Tech’s Sake
It’s tempting to grab every shiny app, extension, and platform that hits your inbox. But layering tools without a clear purpose often leads to log-in fatigue, frustration, and surface-level engagement. Students click often, but they don’t always learn more from doing so.
Try instead: Purposeful, core tools
Choose a small, intentional toolkit that supports feedback, organization, and collaboration. Google Classroom streamlines assignments, communication, and grading so you can focus on instruction, not juggling platforms. Pair it with one or two flexible tools, like Padlet for collaborative brainstorming or reflection, rather than a dozen disconnected apps.
2. Fad: Gamifying Everything
Don’t get me wrong… games can be powerful! But turning every activity into a competition can cause anxiety for some students and shift attention from thinking to winning. Overuse of game shows and leaderboards can also eat into your instructional time.
Try instead: Game-informed checks for understanding
Use game-based tools strategically for quick reviews and low-stakes formative assessment. Kahoot! or Wayground (formerly Quizizz) can make short check-ins fun while giving you instant data to adjust instruction. Instead of constant competition, mix in collaborative challenges, team problem-solving, and reflection prompts so students are focused on growth, not just points.
3. Fad: Overproduced, High-Tech Lessons
You do not need to be a videographer, graphic designer, and app developer to be an excellent teacher. Spending hours creating perfect slides, elaborate videos, or highly polished digital materials often isn’t sustainable—and students benefit more from clarity and consistency than from bells and whistles.
Try instead: Simple, clear visuals and workflows
Use tools like Canva for Education to quickly build clean, consistent slides or handouts that clarify, not complicate, your lesson. A straightforward Google Classroom post with a clear goal, a short model, and a simple activity can be more powerful than a highly produced lesson students can’t revisit or navigate easily.
4. Fad: One-Size-Fits-All “Personalization”
Some platforms promise personalized learning but mainly serve up multiple-choice practice with different question sets. When “personalization” just means more isolated screen time, it can widen gaps rather than close them.
Try instead: Teacher-led differentiation with smart tools
Use technology to support your own professional judgment, not replace it. Desmos, for example, helps students explore math concepts in multiple ways—with visual models, interactive graphs, and open-ended tasks—so you can see how they’re thinking, not just whether they chose A, B, C, or D. Literacy tools like Read Write Think provide research-based lesson plans and activities you can adapt for your specific students and context.
5. Fad: “Set It and Forget It” AI
AI tools are everywhere, and they can be helpful—but it’s a fad to assume AI can (or should) write your lessons, design assessments, or generate feedback with no human oversight. Overreliance on AI can flatten curriculum, introduce bias, and distance you from your students’ real needs.
Try instead: AI as a teaching assistant, not the teacher
Choose educator-focused AI tools that are transparent about their purpose and put you in the driver’s seat. Platforms like MagicSchool are designed specifically to help teachers draft rubrics, prompts, or parent emails while still requiring your expertise to review and refine. Combine AI support with your knowledge of students, formative data, and professional judgment to make final decisions about what and how you teach.
Final Thoughts on Today’s Ed Tech Fads
Trends come and go, but the thing that remains constant is you: your relationships with students, your professional expertise, and your daily decisions about what really matters. When in doubt, ask yourself, “Does this tool help my students think more deeply, communicate more clearly, or create more meaningfully?” If the answer is no, you can skip the fad (and spend your energy where it really counts).