Erik Ofgang

Erik Ofgang

Erik Ofgang is Tech & Learning contributor. A journalist, author and educator, his work has appeared in The New York Times, The Smithsonian, Washington Post, The Atlantic, and Forbes.com. He currently teaches at Western Connecticut State University’s MFA program. While a staff writer at Connecticut Magazine he won a Society of Professional Journalism Award for his education reporting. He is interested in how humans learn and how technology can make that more effective.

Latest articles by Erik Ofgang

A 3D printer

Using 3D Printing and Student Input to Aid Accessibility

By Erik Ofgang published

3D printing has provided young adults at one nonprofit an opportunity to design and build their own assistive technology.

A futuristic artest rendering of quantum spaces.

Quantum Computing In Education: 5 Things To Know

By Erik Ofgang published

The AI revolution in schools may soon be supercharged by the power of quantum computing

Classroom Tools
student tutors

Cross-Age Tutoring: Student Tutors Teach Others And Themselves

By Erik Ofgang published

A new study found that cross-age tutoring leads to improvements in both tutees and tutors.

A sign with the words "dream job" on it

Getting A Teaching Job: Cutting Through Digital Clutter By Telling Your Story

By Erik Ofgang published

By talking about myself in the right way, I've found new opportunities in education and beyond.

The cover of David Sobel's book: "Childhood and Nature: Design Principles for Educators."

Design Principles for Outdoor Teaching

By Erik Ofgang published

A new edition of a classic book on outdoor learning guides educators on creating lessons that harness students’ natural love of nature.

An illustration of a blank notebook.

Do Students Learn More Writing or Typing?

By Erik Ofgang published

The answer of writing or typing is complicated, says a cognitive scientist, and has been oversimplified in the past.

An illustration of the author teaching an imaginary college class after giving OpenAI his headshot.

OpenAI’s New Viral Art-Generating Tool and Its Potential for Teaching

By Erik Ofgang published

OpenAI’s new and improved art-generating capabilities have led to a Studio Ghibli-style viral trend and millions of users. What does it mean for the classroom?

A lock on a keyboard.

Student-Led Security Operation Centers

By Erik Ofgang published

A growing number of universities are employing students at their Security Operations Center. Here’s what that looks like in practice.

chatgpt

ChatGPT Talks Now. What Does That Mean For Teaching?

By Erik Ofgang published

OpenAI’s Advanced Voice Mode ChatGPT assistant is light years ahead of more common voice assistants, and can sometimes be so lifelike, it’s spooky.

A child works with an educaitonal toy.

Competency-Based Learning and Microcredentials

By Erik Ofgang published

Competency-based learning is an important teaching strategy for students and teacher professional development. The strategy also connects naturally with microcredentials.

An illustration of a computer with the letters AI written.

Explaining Your School’s AI Approach To Parents

By Erik Ofgang published

As more and more schools are using AI, an award-winning educator shares tips for making sure parents are on board with it.

An image of a Google logo.

Gemini: Teaching With Google’s AI Chatbot

By Erik Ofgang published

Gemini, Google’s flagship generative AI model, can help educators with lesson planning and more, though it's not as effective as platforms specifically designed for education

Binary code on a computer

Ransomware 2.0: Recent Hacking Trends and How To Guard Against Them

By Erik Ofgang published

Ransomware methods and strategies are evolving but there are still low-cast interventions to counter these attacks.

A screenshot of OpenAI's logo

GPT-4.5: What Educators Need To Know About The New ChatGPT Model

By Erik Ofgang published

I tested OpenAI's latest and greatest large language model, GPT-4.5. Here's what I learned.

An image of various social media icons on a screen.

Mindful Social Media Use Can Reduce Negative Impact, Says Research

By Erik Ofgang published

A new study found that refraining from using social media improved the mental health of young adults, but so did reframing their relationship to these apps

An artist rendering of a wormhole

Teaching Quantum Mechanics In K-12

By Erik Ofgang published

Learning about quantum science can be a great way to prepare for a career in STEM

Class Companion

Class Companion: Teaching With The AI Grading and Tutor Tool

By Erik Ofgang published

We tested Class Companion, the GPT-4 powered AI tool, which is designed to assist educators in providing individualized feedback to students.

Classroom Tools
2025 written in a futuristic way.

4 Brand New AI Tools For 2025 With The Potential to Change Teaching

By Erik Ofgang published

2025 has already been a wild year for AI models and teaching.

ai teaching

One High School Teacher's Strategy For Using AI to Enhance Learning

By Erik Ofgang published

Kevin Hudson has encouraged his students to use AI in specific ways, and he’s seen their assignments improve as a result.

A screenshot from DeepSeek's homepage.

DeepSeek: Everything Educators Need to Know About The New AI Model

By Erik Ofgang published

DeepSeek R1 is a new reasoning AI model that has made the next generation of AI tools more readily available to students and teachers.

A screenshot from a session with LearnLM

Google’s New AI Tutor LearnLM Is Trained On Learning Science and It Shows

By Erik Ofgang published

I tested Google LearnLM and it’s the best AI tool for teaching that I’ve seen.

Classroom Tools
A side by side comparison of a large print book vs. a traditional print book.

Large Print Format Books Help Young Readers, Says New Research

By Erik Ofgang published

A study conducted by Project Tomorrow found large print books help student readers, even those without vision impairments.

A robot arm appearing to offer assistance.

AI In Education: 4 Ways To Avoid Falling Behind The Curve

By Erik Ofgang published

Arizona State University professor Andrew Maynard has tips for educators on keeping up with AI developments and harnessing its educational potential in the process.

A robot hand holds a lightbulb.

AI Prompt Writing For Middle School English

By Erik Ofgang published

Bill Henry, an 8th grade English teacher, shares prompts and advice for teaching English with the help of AI.

A chalk drawing of a student next to steps that ultimate lead to success.

The Remembered Success Effect: Adding Easier Math Questions Can Boost Student Motivation

By Erik Ofgang published

A new study of the remembered success effect finds that adding less challenging questions to the beginning or end of an assignment can improve student motivation.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Archives