1861

1. 1863 1862 1861 1864 1865 1866 1867 1868 1860 1869

2. Magic Lantern The predecessor to the slide machine, the magic lantern projected images printed on glass plates. By the end of World War I, Chicago’s public-school system had a collection of some 8,000 lantern slides. 1873 1872 1871 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1870 1879

3. 1883 1882 1881 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1880 1889

4. School Slate/ Chalkboard Widely used throughout the 19th century, it was praised by a Boston school superintendent in 1870 this way: “If the result of the work should, at any time, be found infelicitous, a sponge will readily banish from the slate all disheartening recollections, and leave it free for new attempts.” 1893 1892 1891 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1890 1899

5. Pencil In the late 19th century, mass-produced paper and pencils became more readily available, gradually replacing the school slate. 1903 1902 1901 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1900 1909

6. 1913 1912 1911 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1910 1919

7. Filmstrip Projector The cousin to the motion-picture projector; Thomas Edison predicted that, with the advent of projected images, “books will soon be obsolete in schools. Scholars will soon be instructed through the eye.” 1923 1922 1921 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1920 1929

8. Radio New York City’s Board of Education was the first to pipe lessons to schools through a radio station. Over the next two decades, “schools of the air” would broadcast programs to millions of American students. 1923 1922 1921 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1920 1929

9. Overhead Projector Widely used by the U.S. Military to train forces in World War II, the overhead projector eventually spread to schools. 1933 1932 1931 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1930 1939

10. 1943 1942 1941 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1940 1949

11. Educational Television By the early 1960s there were more than 50 channels that included educational programming on the air across the country. 1953 1952 1951 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1950 1959

12. Liquid Paper A secretary made the white liquid in her kitchen and sold her company to Gillette for nearly $50 million. 1963 1962 1961 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1960 1969

13. Filmstrip Viewer All the benefits of a filmstrip projector, personalized. 1963 1962 1961 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1960 1969

14. Hand-Held Calculator Though studies showed that calculators improved students’ attitude towards math, teachers were slow to adopt them for fear that they would undermine the learning of basic skills 1973 1972 1971 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1970 1979

15. Scantron The Scantron Corporation eliminated the hassle of grading multiple-choice exams. The machines were free to use, but the company made money by charging for proprietary grading forms. 1973 1972 1971 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1970 1979

16. Plato Computer Public Schools in the United States averaged one computer for every 92 students in 1984; in 2008, there was one computer for every 4 students. 1983 1982 1981 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1980 1989

17. CD-ROM Drive A single CD-ROM disc could store an entire encyclopedia, plus video and audio. 1983 1982 1981 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1980 1989

18. Hand-Held Graphing Calculator Cartesian equations made easy. 1983 1982 1981 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1980 1989

19. Interactive Whiteboard The traditional whiteboard was reinvented using a touch-detecting white screen, a projector and a computer. 1993 1992 1991 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1990 1999

20. iClicker It allows professors to poll or quiz students and receive results in real time. 2003 2002 2001 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2000 2009