In recent years, all of us are witnessing how much technology has and still is changing the way we live. Just a couple of decades ago, it would be impossible to imagine having daily video calls with someone from across the world, as even regular international phone calls were considered quite expensive at the time. Also, if you could travel back to the 1990s, do you think they would believe you that in the near future we will have online classrooms, online lectures, and online courses? Probably not, because education is one of the spheres that has greatly been influenced by the development of technology. In the last few years, we have seen that lectures can almost be completely held online. This is because modern technology is transforming traditional education and keeps on reading to find out in what ways.
The role of the teacher has changed
In traditional education, the center of any class as well as the classroom is the teacher. All the information is delivered from the educator to the students, as they tell a lesson or instruct from which book or textbook to read. Nowadays, with the help of modern technology, a student can collect information about a certain topic himself/herself, while the teacher is there to guide them and help them. Students have become more active during their process of learning, which is essential for their future professional careers. For instance, the teacher can prepare an online lecture in an online classroom after which a student is instructed to write an essay on a topic discussed in the class. So, he or she will use the facts that they have learned that day and find extra relevant information using reliable e-books, video presentations, relevant websites, and more. They can then simply send the essay via email. Also, teachers can now have more time to dedicate to individual students and their specific needs, often in the form of online office hours.
You can learn anytime and anywhere
Going in at 9 AM in your university classroom, taking out your textbooks and pencils, and listening to the teacher who is writing on the green board using chalk is what the traditional ways of education looked like. Nowadays, with a stable internet connection, a laptop or smartphone, and a pair of headphones, you can attend your lecture from your home, a fabulous beach, or from your favorite coffee shop. Even more, some lectures can be filmed or made in the form of a presentation, so that you don’t have to attend them at a specific time, but whenever suits you. More and more educational institutions and especially universities are using the help of professional online program management experts to create quality online courses on different topics and for different degrees, so that their students can attend them from different parts of the country and even worldwide. Remote learning makes university education accessible to more people, while it is also time and cost-efficient for both the students and the educators. Online education has thus helped many people to decide to enroll in online degree programs and get their education while at the same time working full-time, which is just another benefit technology has brought to our society.
You can experience more via virtual reality
In the classroom, students could only hear about various events, experiments, etc. but they weren’t actually able to be a part of a certain activity. Luckily, via virtual reality, this is now another great possibility that many universities use to help their students engage more in the matter in question. For example, science students can do virtual experiments in a simulation of a laboratory, while future engineers can virtually make constructions that wouldn’t have been possible without the help of modern technology. As a result, future professionals gain more knowledge and more confidence and thus perform better on their tests and exams, but also, become better experts in their field.
Collaborative learning has become much easier
Especially for students at universities, but also in primary and secondary levels of education, working together with your peers is a necessity. One cannot know it all, so sharing knowledge with your friends and colleagues can help you learn more and find solutions to a problem much faster than if you were working on your own. You no longer have to organize multiple group meetings at a location that works for everyone or at a time when everyone is free. With the help of technology, you can all do the research on your laptops and collect the findings in a shared online document or stored in a virtual cloud. Moreover, you can even work with fellow students from another city, country, or even continent. Sharing knowledge helps achieve great accomplishments and also helps one widen their horizons, both academically and personally.
As we can conclude, technological advancements of the 21st century have made a great impact on traditional education. The improvements are beneficial for students, as well as teachers, while the quality of education only improves. This important sphere of our lives is still changing, helping students learn faster and better, and with more confidence.
