What's the next great teaching tool?

I have been in education for more than 25 years. In that time I have seen many trends in teaching come and go. Each time there was some new technique to use to reach more kids, I willingly tried to learn as much about it as I could.

This lead me to using technology in the classroom. As a computer science teacher it seemed like a natural progression to me to add technology elements to my math classes as well. I found myself working with my fellow faculty members in my spare time, showing them what I was doing to get the kids involved and interested.

When a change in my husband's career had us move to Western New York, I found a position training teachers to use the technology they already had in their classrooms as a part of their curriculum. The more tools that came about the more exciting this process became! From simple computer uses, to virtual field trips, to handheld computers, and now online learning and more still to come.

I recently changed my focus to work with Community College faculty. As the world of post-secondary education moves quickly into the virtual world, I find myself asking - What's next? What will be the next tool that we use to reach out to more students than ever before? And how can we make sure that learning is really taking place?