An educational technology fair hosted by the College of Education and Professional Studies will be begin at 4:30 p.m. today in the Grand Ballroom of the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.

Professors, teachers and students will participate in the fair by explaining the enhanced role technology has played in their teaching and learning, Michael Leyden, technology fair coordinator, said in a press release.

Around 70 students from area schools will help their teachers present projects and demonstrate how they utilize technology at the fair.

“The children are a vital part of the program,” Leyden said. “People would much rather listen to an eight-year-old than a professor.”

A group of eighth graders will show how they write, produce and broadcast a televised meteorology show every day, and first through sixth graders will prove that they are not too young to use software that would have been called science fiction just a few years ago, the press release stated.

There will also be 26 other displays related to traditional and advanced topics, such as technology.

The fair is designed to showcase how professors and teachers use federal and state grants to integrate technology standards into their education programs, the press release stated.

“These grants are enabling teachers to help children develop the communication skills they will need for the rest if their lives,” Leyden said. “Visitors will be surprised at the sophistication of technology and the ability of children to explore and demonstrate the value of such technology.”

Admission to the technology fair is free.