7 Ways Technology Is Improving Education

Like every other aspect of human life, education has been greatly influenced by the technological revolution in the last few decades. Expanding the teaching techniques from a linear textual approach to a versatile student-centered active learning process, technology is offering more and more digitalization in all teaching tools and methods. Multimedia classrooms are becoming more than just teachers and students and in the same pattern, there are continuous developments and new approaches to help technology contribute more in developing education.

Here are 7 ways in which technology is practically improving teaching, training, and assessment methods for education in real-time:

1. Digital Models And Simulations

The traditional demonstrative approach has been quite successful in making pupil understand concepts like earth’s circular motion or how vibrations make sound in tuning fork. However, to demonstrate the exact model of the continuous motion of sun, moon and earth and eclipses are much easier to make up in a digital format. Moving sound wave or prism effect, molecular mixing, relativity or sub-atomic behavior can be made easily understandable to high schoolers using the computer simulations. You will possibly find models and simulations for all kind of math, science topics relevant to child education.

2. Learning Has Become Global

Distant learning may be the most benefited part from the technological revolution in the context of education. There are actually programs and apps, like Unruly Splats, that allow kids to learn coding in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) to enhance their understanding of the subjects. With universities offering courses online, students and professionals alike can utilize these programs in order to further their studies and career. One can even take up a civil engineering online program right at home without the need to enter a physical college hall. One may easily use online tools like video conferencing to learn a foreign language from a native speaker living in that foreign land. Social media platforms are making cultural interactions more flexible and widespread, which in turn contributes to the global education too. All these would take a travel bill in absence of modern information technology.

The use of learning apps has revolutionized education as well. The best tutoring app can be a perfect solution for students of all ages to understand any subject they may be finding difficult. This online learning app available on iTunes has made life easier for students. Say for example, English might be a subject of concern for students of non-native English speaking countries but the learn English app can be the best app on android phones for students from those counties.

3. Virtual Math Lab

I am not talking about hardcore scientific tools available online like MatLab, RStudio or Mathematica, which themselves are a great advancement in making a scientific calculation, statistical analysis etc. much handy and friendly, rather the simple models of addition and subtraction for preschoolers and children have their own contribution in advancing education. Students get a strong sense of power of mathematics by playing with the very simple codes or even cartoons and games, this virtual math-world can become like a theme ride for children with proper touch and tuning.

4. Educational Games

Now a day’s games are designed to make children play an adult constructive role like city planner, journalist, scientist or even as a prime minister. These allows the children and students to engage their mind with solving real-time problems and can help mental maturity if nurtured in a controlled way. Simulations of these kinds may help develop real-world skills, which was pretty tough in the classroom setup.

5. Electronic Books

E-books are becoming the central part of modern education. In the traditional format, textbooks are no less burden than an education tool for early schoolers and even for the elders too. Carrying a big bag full of textbooks and home-works are becoming more and more questionable in the face of book-free digital education of the modern age. A textbook as a pdf file in a lightweight tablet, is way more portable and at the same time allows more versatility in using more resources than a single book.

6. Multimedia Classrooms

Use of multimedia in the classroom has been a revolution in-itself. This has changed the classical lecture-oriented class education, to a more participatory, active and interesting technique to engage the student-minds to the learning topic. Learning outcome can easily be achieved using a Powerpoint demonstration or playing small Youtube video may be more effective than a whole 40 minutes lecture. There are many different modes of multimedia use, plan well for the learning topic at hand and select the best mode – a teacher would be way more relaxed and stress-free in that way. Assignments can be paper free and become more extra-curricular in the multimedia setup widening the scope of brainstorming and active learning.

7. Digital Mode Of Continuous Assessment

Model, simulations, multimedia are not only helping in enriching teaching techniques but also the digital assessment methods can be more effective and efficient compared to classical manual processes. Maintaining a score rubrics, simply as a Microsoft Excel sheet, can greatly improve the assessment process by helping avoid the human biases. Assessment procedure itself can be diversified and allow a richer picture of how students are internalizing the learning topics.