For decades, technology has guided the evolution of education in electronics to trend with the times by broadening views, and through the frontiers of software engineering. This is the tech that made us.

The 1980s

1981 CBS News Sony WALKMAN

Sony released “WALKMAN” in 1979. The first personal portable media cassette player. WALKMAN created options for people on-the-go to select their own choice of music.

The electrifying sounds of Pop, Hair-Metal, and Hip-Hop resonated throughout its headphones surrounding the 1980s.

WALKMAN boosted appearances and increased clout like, “Instagram” does but in real life. So, wearing a pair of NIKE Air Jordan’s, Ray-Ban’s, or a piano neck-tie with your WALKMAN was a carefully calculated course of action.

WALKMAN united tech trends with 80s fashion. Furthermore, WALKMAN’s user community in the early 1980s enhanced the product’s social status and presence with every workout, business meeting, or skate park stunt.

1983 NBC News Sony Watchman

Today’s top trending product in tech is the latest “Apple iPhone 12” (Pro Max). Smartphones do sharp things but sometimes should say less. Smart Watches too.

It’s unsettling how similar WALKMAN is in shape and size to Pro Max. WALKMAN didn’t recognize my face, understand my taste in music,
or make listening suggestions.

Smartphones solve a lot of stuff. Short of putting my headphones on and tying my shoelaces for me; Pro Max can virtually do everything else.

1988 20/20 News Nuts for Nintendo

In the mid-1980s a couple of tech whales from Japan created major waves which reverberated across the Pacific Ocean. The following two made the biggest splashes in a growing U.S. gaming industry.

Whale 1, “Nintendo” produced the first 8-bit home video-game system when they delivered, “Nintendo Entertainment System (NES).” Nintendo released “Mike Tyson’s Punchout!!” in 1987.

Whale 2, “Konami” released one of their most critically-acclaimed video game franchises the following year, “Castlevania.” In 1987, Konami released its riveting sequel to Castlevania, “Simon’s Quest.” My personal favorite Konami game, “Contra” came out that same year.

Castlevania’s franchise continues expanding into media using continuous development practices. Konami coined Castlevania comic books, an animated TV series, and several spin-off games.

Nintendo evolved into one of the largest video game manufacturers of all-time. In 2020 the company reported earnings of $11 billion in gross sales.

2014 Teens REACT to Nintendo (NES)

The PC and gaming industries of the 1980s developed the foundation for what would become “computer class” in later years. 

“Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?” was the first game geared towards classroom education available on all three devices that decade.

For the rest of the 1980s leading into the 1990s; “IBM PC-DOS (PC),” “Apple II” and Nintendo produced more games centered around education and computer classroom learning.

Feedback from my network of students, parents, and teachers in the U.S. and Canada about student learning in COVID-19 and digital classrooms have generally been positive.

Project Tomorrow and the Speak Up Project, a nationally recognized education nonprofit organization identifies a significant drop in group activities and school sports due to the pandemic, and the desocialization of quarantine.

The impact to children and teenagers long-term is unknown. The report suggest students should increase participation in “eSports.” A form of competition using video-games.

Approximately two-thirds of students between grades 6-12 say playing video games help them in making effective decisions. Read the full report here:

“Digital Learning during the Pandemic: Emerging Evidence of an Education Transformation.”

Before games like “Fortnite,” and “Minecraft,” PC games like; “Lode Runner,” and “Frogger (by Konami),” were some of the first games which piqued the curiosity of kids (now adults) leading a New Wave of technology in modern computing.

In the late 80s, MS-DOS floppy disk introduced, “WordPerfect 5.1.” A program which in ways would influence the next decade’s wizard of tech, “Windows 95.”

My prediction in tech trends this decade is the advancement of “Mixed Reality.” Specifically, in digital classrooms, mixed reality video games, online learning through IoT, and in businesses development.

What are your predictions surrounding IoT, online learning, and digital classrooms in 2021?

What tech trends do you remember most about the 1980s?

What are your predictions on tech trends this decade?

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