Contributed Post
Tech is changing every aspect of society and indeed our daily lives. It’s certainly leaving a mark on the teaching industry. It’s worth exploring the changes that tech has brought to teaching and whether they are all positive. Once you explore the new world of education thanks to technology, you’ll probably find that it’s not quite as rosy as you’d hoped. Still, there are also fantastic benefits, so let’s get started.
Everyone’s On Phones
Remember being at a school where a few kids had phones and were hiding them under their desks? Well, these days the kid without the phone is the odd one out and it starts at a very early age. Last December there was a campaign to make sure children under ten did not brag about getting iPads for Christmas from Santa. This should tell you everything you need to know about how much tech is used by children these days. How can teachers compete when kids constantly have a piece of tech in their pockets or in their hands?
Well one option would be to incorporate this tech into the teaching environment. Do you need a question answered? Don’t bother me kids, Google it. Or, alternatively, you could have a ‘phones switched off policy.’ Even then though, it’s going to be difficult to keep the interest of class full of students who constantly want to know how messaged them.
There’s An App For That
However, technology has also made teaching easier. You can create more exciting, energetic and entertaining lesson plans with technology. While we’re not quite at the point where VR is possible in classrooms, state of the art projector screens, touch systems and personal tablets are all available.
Apps from personal devices also make things easier for teachers in a variety of ways. Take music teachers for instance. Music teachers no longer need to count to keep kids in time. Instead, they can use a voice counting metronome. This means that they can instead focus on other areas of the lesson instead while an automated device counts in time for them. It’s just one simple example of how teachers can benefit from tech.
Are Teachers Safe From Automation?
For now, yes because we’re not quite at the point where a teacher can be replaced by an automated software. The tech just isn’t quite there yet but it does get closer every year. So, who knows, one day students could be staring at a wall where there’s no teacher but instead a robotic voice is talking to them. While it sounds like science fiction, we are heading in this direction.
For now, there’s an increase in e-learning with live classes, tutorials and lessons being given to students online. Students can still interact with the teacher and the rest of the class but there may be no need for the classroom. Typically, this is used in colleges and university but it could quickly become a part of the highschool set up as well.
Perhaps then it’s best to decide for yourself whether or not tech has been a blessing or a curse for the teaching industry as a whole.
