2016 – Revolutions in Educational Technology

Technology has revolutionized every sector of the world whether it be government, healthcare, defense or education. It has given the world a new shape and dimension to think through. Let it be staying connected to your friend and family sitting thousand miles away or knowing everything about the world, technology is present around is in form of social media always. It is difficult to even imagine to have a life without technology. It has become an integral part of our life.

Millions of new devices get connected to internet every year. Increase in use of technology is at alarming pace and the effect can be seen on education sector as well. Most of the educational decision makers believe that technology is playing a pivotal role in learning environment and has a big impact on everyone including students and parents.

2016 has so far been a great year for education. It has been a year of revolution by introducing new trends in educational technology. Here are few top technology trends that we believe had a huge impact on our education system this year:

Relive reality in a virtual world
VR is setting a new level of learning in educational institutes by proving them a completely new dimension of teaching. Education sector is one such sector that took VR to a very fruitful stage of learning. We always thought that it would have been very easy if we could jump into inside of a molecule to understand its structure. VR has turned this thought into reality. Just put on your VR headset and you will enter a virtual world where you can explore any aspect from multiple angles.

Intelligence that is not so artificial
Yes, you got it right. Artificial Intelligence is moving fast is not as artificial as it used to be. Computers are getting more superpowers than ever and are able to think ahead than they could ever do.

Mobility
Powerful mobility devices like smartphones, tablets and laptops have replaced the traditional old methods of teaching like books. Blackboards have been replaced by virtual classrooms. This has not only resulted in better learning experience but also lower costs for schools. More and more players including Microsoft and Google are stepping in with new technologies for education industry considering the huge scope.

Being Social
An in-describable role is played by social media in almost every industry these days. It allows students, teachers and parents to connect better and know virtually about anything that they would have never been able to do in absence of technology.

Smart Classes
One of the key features of smart classes is that it allows the learners to participate in the teaching process directly. With ready and reusable material and a large database, smart classes can provide ready references to students on the go. With added advantage of mobility, students can now access smart classes from anywhere in the world. It compiles a huge collection of learning material including drawings, illustrations, 3D models, videos and readable material, helping them to learn efficiently.

Videos and Videos
Videos have always been a good source of information. It has been observed that people tend to learn quickly from audio-visual aids rather than reading. According to some rough figures, around 46% of teachers are teaching their students with the help of videos in their classrooms and around 1/3 of the students and parents are managing home work by assessing online videos.

The Power of Cloud
There are situation when a student is unable to attend his normal class session. Cloud based education is the solution to such hurdles. Cloud based session may be restricted to a few lessons or more advanced level that includes videos and live chat session with the concerned teacher. Major technology companies like Microsoft and Google are providing cloud based solutions including cloud based virtual classrooms.

Massive Open Online Courses
This has been one of the biggest revolution in education. MOOC is a platform from gives free access to online education via internet. This opens up doors to education and cuts the barriers of costly education. With the features like online forums and discussion boards, MOOC can be taken a level ahead of just learning through available material.

Leave a comment