Education  

With technology increasingly being part of the classroom, do we need new standards to give all students a basic understanding of what they now depend on in their everyday lives. 

One of the biggest challenges in technology is coming up with a good way to train new users in its proper use. The lack of consistent documentation in desktop and mobile applications is one of the best examples of this problem. If a school wanted to teach a technology subject like software development, where would they start? What is the computer programming equivalent of grammar or algebra? Should there even be such standards?

Related articles

• Our Electrical Bodies
• Andrea Morello Explains Moore's Law and Quantum Computers
• Clarence Tan Talks About Singularity University

Why It Works

The basic question posed by the absence of technology standards in school curricula is, why aren't we teaching such standards? The most important part of any mechanical or electronic subject is the basics of how a particular mechanism works. Understanding software and electronics is very much like understanding mechanisms and energy. They are subjects that, while not necessary for everyone to specialize in, should be introduced to all students so they can develop a basic aptitude.

Realizing the Promise of Technology

So much innovation has been introduced in the last 25 years it is difficult for most people to keep up. For example, almost everyone is carrying a fully functional computer in their pocket, yet most only use that computer for text communications. What other kinds of functions might such a device offer, and more importantly, which of the people carrying one will invent those functions? These are important questions because both are answered by education. The great inventions of the 19th and 20th centuries were the result of bright, motivated people who had knowledge about their tools and trade.

Using Technology to Educate

One of the possible solutions to the dearth of standardized education in technology may be solved by online instruction. The advancements in digital instruction technologies have recently made it possible for nearly anyone to pursue and obtain an advanced degree like an online masters degree in education from the comfort of their own personal computer. If such technologies can be employed to establish and advance a standard curriculum for other subjects like software development, electrical engineering and certain sciences, then it might be possible to give all students a basic understanding of the technology they depend on in their everyday lives.

Technology is not as complex and obscure as most people think. Like all subjects its more advanced precepts depend on a few basic principles which can be taught in the context of basic principles from other academic disciplines like language and mathematics. This is the primary justification for a comprehensive technology curriculum in public and private education. Without it, we risk becoming a society that does not understand its own tools.

By Rachelle Wilber

Embed

Education  

Students used to be inspired by colorful textbooks, fun notebooks and flashy pens. Today, they are interested in the lectures only when they are provided through slides, videos, and other visual presentations. What does all of this technology mean for the classroom?

With the great contributions technology has made to the educational process, even the most traditional teachers agree that it has changed the face of learning in a very positive way. Students approach education with much more enthusiasm when they know they can use their favorite devices in class. The times have changed. Students used to be inspired by colorful textbooks, fun notebooks and flashy pens. Today, they are interested in the lectures only when they are provided through slides, videos, and other visual presentations.

Have you ever thought about the specific ways how technology has changed the way students learn? We present 12 of them in the continuation.

1. Plain Poster Boards Evolved into Multimedia Posters

Older generations remember the science or history presentation boards they used to create. They were considered fun, but they cannot be compared to today’s multimedia posters. Advanced tools, such as Glogster, changed the way these projects are being created. Students can now create personalized and interactive multimedia posters that add another level of enthusiasm to homework assignments.

2. Evolved Communication

Teachers can now assign homework through online tools and monitor their students’ progress as they are working on papers and assignments. When a student has to take some time off school due to any reason, the teacher can stay connected with him, so the gap in knowledge won’t be that great when he returns into the classroom.

3. Evolved Essay Writing Process

Essays, research papers, lab reports, and all other projects used to be the most torturous assignments for the students before the technology era. They had to spend days in the library to locate sources for a simple essay. Today, all information is available online, so the research process can be handled much more smoothly. Students can even rely on an essay writing service when they don’t have the needed skills to write a particular paper. They can collaborate with trained and experienced writers who guide them through the essay writing process.

4. Contemporary Education Meets the Needs of Individual Learners

The class is no longer perceived as a group; educators look at it as a collection of multiple intelligences. Technology enables a teacher to monitor the progress of individual learners, so they can adapt the teaching approach and assignments in a way that doesn’t make some students feel inferior to others.

Related articles Ray Kurzweil On The Computers That Will Live In Our Brains  iRobot and Cisco Collaborate on the AVA Telepresence Robot  Ten Best Multi-Touch Display Systems

5. Learning Is No Longer Limited to the Classroom

Edmodo and other online platforms make learning possible at any time, from any place. The classroom is extended into the online community, so teachers and students can use these platforms to post and discuss assignments. In addition, students can collaborate with each other throughout the creation of a project without being limited by space and time.

6. Children With Special Needs Have Access to Appropriate Content

Speech-recognition programs are a big trend at the moment. Students with special needs, as well as those with below-average English proficiency can communicate effectively in language-based contexts.

7. Chalk Boards Are History!

Students are encouraged to engage in the learning process through much more powerful platforms like Smart Boards. New online tools and programs are being developed by the day. Teachers can explain the lectures much more effectively through videos and online presentations, so the chalk boards went to history.

8. eBooks Are Taking the Place of Textbooks

Let’s be realistic: textbooks are expensive, and it’s not easy for the student to store them once the course is over. He would surely need to refresh his memory at one point or another, but it would be hard for him to locate the right book in the pile, and discover the needed information in the text. Everything is easier with eBooks. The future of education is bright: students will no longer carry heavy backpacks around, and they will easily store all learning materials in a single device.

Now, most textbooks are paired with websites that provide additional educational materials, videos, animations, and interactive assessments that support the traditional content

9. No Need for Disorganized Notebooks

There is nothing messier than a student’s notebook. A laptop, tablet, or even a smartphone can serve as a note-taking device. The student can keep everything neat in folders with clean, searchable text.

10. More Learning Resources

Students of previous generations relied on the teacher and textbook as the main sources of knowledge. Today, the world is the source of knowledge. They can access any information they need with a single Google search.

11. iPad Educational Apps

The iPad is a real game-changer. There are tons of educational games that are taking place in the classroom. Stack the States, Math Ninja and iWriteWords are only three of the many successful examples. Students of all ages love learning through games, so the iPad has made education more appealing than ever before.

12. Interactive Learning

Today’s textbooks are not limited to the combination of text and images. Most of the contemporary textbooks are paired with websites that provide additional educational materials, videos, animations, and interactive assessments that support the traditional content.

The Advantages of Technology Outweigh the Drawbacks

Yes, students can get distracted when their teachers allow the usage of iPads and smartphones in the classroom. However, when the learning environment is under control and the teacher chooses the right EdTech resources, the students gain immense benefits and the educational process becomes more appealing.                     

By Melody Cleo

Embed

 Education  

Education has and will continue to evolve and change as we develop new relationships with ourselves and our technology. Explore the latest infographic from Open Colleges that tracks the past and future of learning technology.

From Egyptian hieroglyphs. to the pencil, to the  use of computers and smartphones in the classroom, education and the tools of teaching have evolved over the centuries.

Related articles Top 10 Jobs for the Future  Some of the Coolest Creations Made with 3D Printing How Education Will Change in the Future

Explore some of these changes in this interactive infographic from Open Colleges.

The infographic also explores the future of education, including the use of robots, 3D printers and the use of brain implants.



SOURCE  Open Colleges

By 33rd Square

Embed

 Google Glass  

Google Glass has the potential to be a real game-changer in the classroom of the future. Students and teachers could both benefit from a more involved and interactive classroom experience as this infographic shows.

Although Google Glass has not emerged as a consumer product yet, and some are likening it to Apple's Newton, the idea behind the product does have a lot of promise.

Google Glass is still in its very early stage, with only the Explorer edition available for $1,500 in the United States. It's raised the possibility of a new class of personal apps and expanded the possibilities of wearable computing.

Related articles IBM's Manoj Saxena on What Watson Will Mean for the Future  Google Once Again Shows That It Is Serious About Making The Singularity A Reality  Ray Kurzweil On The Computers That Will Live In Our Brains

In the classroom with Google Glass, teachers and students alike can display information in a smartphone-like hands-free format, while interacting with the Internet via natural language voice commands. With limitless possibilities at its fingertips, the education community can build closer working relationships with students, and allow children to get more involved with their learning experience.

Here's a look at how Google Glass, and similar products might be used in education.

(Click the image for a larger view).




SOURCE  Open Colleges

By 33rd Square

Embed