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We’re increasingly relying on technology to teach children. But because technology won’t ever replace great teaching, basic educational aids still have a role to play.

This is because educational aids (such as books, toys or equipment that require some hands-on interaction) create a visual, auditory or interactive experience for children who are learning new things, delivering learning objectives in a way that is highly engaging.

Education is quickly moving into the digital realm. There are apps for everything teachers and students need—from lesson planning to flashcards to behavior monitoring. Whole classrooms are getting flipped; lessons are taking place online, while practice and remediation are happening in person. High schools are offering online courses for graduation credit and, once a student graduates, they can earn certain college degrees without ever stepping foot on campus.

The verdict is in, and when it comes to homework, it appears that less is more. Research shows that several of the countries scoring top in the world for education, surprisingly dole out the least amount of homework to their students.

Online education is a fast-growing industry worldwide, with over 6.7 million students enrolled in at least one course in 2011. More recent U.S. statistics provided that 5.8 million people were learning online last year, which means that the international number grew to at least 10 million.

As a social studies teacher in the Common Core era, my curricular responsibilities have gradually shifted away from historical material and more towards the realm of teaching strategies for reading and creating nonfiction text. More and more, teaching the skills required to engage with social studies content has usurped the push to memorize names, dates, locations, and stories.