My name is Shivali. I am from India and this is my third course in master of education. I think that every aspect of life is significantly impacted by technology. Technology allows for the automation of numerous manual tasks. A lot of difficult and important activities can also be completed more easily and effectively with the help of contemporary technology. Furthermore, Education has undergone a transformation thanks to technology. It is impossible to overstate the value of technology in education. In fact, the introduction of computers into the classroom has made it simpler for both teachers to convey knowledge and students to learn it.
online teaching
when I was in primary school I did not have an interest in technological gadgets and mostly teachers preferred to teach students with the help of books and they did not have enough funding to provide computers, projectors, and smart boards. but after some time the importance of technology in the classrooms increased when I was in 6th standard I learned about the various parts of computers and the basic concepts of computers. Moreover, my science teacher usually taught various concepts with the help of projectors and I was always excited to attend her class. At that time I did not have a computer or internet facilities and I used computers only in school. but when I got admission to college than I purchased my own computer for making my presentation and projects. From my perspective, The usage of technology has increased the fun factor of teaching and learning. We are now more reliant on technology than ever because of the COVID-19 Pandemic. I can still clearly recall the moment I earned my bachelor’s degree in teaching in 2019 and started working at Tagore Model School. My first job was really exciting, but after three months all the schools were shut down due to COVID-19, and I used to teach science and math. Science is a way to learn how things actually work. It is also a very practical subject; therefore, I was excited to teach it to students in a lab setting. It was an extraordinary experience for me to educate students in grades 6 to 8, but everything changed as a result of COVID-19. Academic normalcy remains out of reach for many students, teachers, and parents due to the COVID-19 education shutdowns. Parents, educators, and students must now all acclimate to a new type of learning environment: distance learning. For the first time, I created online academic materials that students could utilize at home to maintain academic continuity.
The approaches we take to educating students to change along with the globe. It goes without saying that technological advancements have accelerated over the past few decades, and as a result, instructional technology has changed. In most settings, including the classroom, technology is at the heart of our life. Many kindergarten–high school students have grown up in a technologically advanced society. They have never known life without smartphones, laptops, televisions, and other popular electronic gadgets. Technology offers a wealth of materials that are helpful for students. For instance, a website like Khan Academy is very useful if a student needs assistance with their math assignments because it offers sample problems and lessons. I am a math teacher and I usually used khan academy to teach students students were always interested to use this app because it makes mathematics an interesting subject.
Learning-Apps
I think the importance of technology is increasing day by day. I am using technological gadgets on the regular basis. Being a teacher I think that the importance of technology never is ignored. There are various apps for example khan academy, busy shapes prodigy, Quizlet that are very helpful for students and I am using these apps on daily bases to teach the students and I think it is the best way to teach the students because they are always interested to learn different subjects with different teaching strategies and it makes teaching-learning more interesting. I think the government and school agencies should provide computers and internet facilities to students so they become tech savvy. I see this program as a fantastic chance to learn different ways of using technology in the classroom and I will implement these methods to teach students in the classroom.
Thank you for the thoughtful post Shivali. You have come into the teaching profession at an interesting time in history. I cannot imagine the amount of work it must have taken to both develop teaching materials as a new instructor and suddenly have to adjust to emergency remote learning. I have read research that indicates young teachers adapt more quickly to technological changes, but I remember scrambling for my first 5 years of teaching (without having to worry about the pressures of COVID-19). Did you notice that older teachers had a more difficult time transitioning to online instruction? I’d be interested to hear your perspective.
yes, older teachers faced difficulty to teach students during Covid 19. because they do not proper knowledge to use technological gadgets. before Covid mostly preferred to teach students through books but now the importance of technology is continuously increasing. according to my perspective schools should provide training to teachers so that they can learn new teaching strategies and use technology in classrooms.
Shivali, I am curious to know if you felt successful with your online academic tools created out of an emergency situation. I am not afraid to admit that I was not happy with what I pushed out in the spring of 2020, but I believe that I have improved in that area out of necessity. A couple of things that you mention in your post really jump out for me, funding and fun factor. Funding will always be an issue – finite dollars and infinite places to distribute it. Education cannot change fast enough to keep up with technology, and funding those changes is coming at a loss to what? The fun factor has been an interesting topic for me. Yes, making learning fun will pull in some students who may need that extra pull, but am I an educator or an entertainer? An edutainer? I do agree that EdTech has put the fun factor at a shorter distance, but I feel like I am double, triple, even quadruple checking to see if the learning is fun or is the novelty holding student attention. Thanks for sharing Shivali.
What a great back story Shivali! I really enjoyed your blog, the fact that we both come from the same country I couldn’t agree more about the funding issues also the lack of tech faculty in schools, however i do remember those science classes with projector presentation because of the pictures and videos it excites chidden and take away the pressure of learning rather it becomes fun learning process but the good part is now a days every subject is adapting to include tech component in it’s content. My principal informed me that using presentations and labs in your lesson plans at least twice a week is required when I started teaching mathematics at my first school this itself reflects that times have changed now and it has changed for better. Also not to mention the smart content curated with the help of AI by these Edu tech giants in India that you also have mentioned like Byjus, khan academy academy etc have contributed a lot in making education technology a main stream learning.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Thank you for sharing an insightful post that provides me with great thinking. Not all students learn and retain information in the same way or at the same speed. Technology is an opportunity for teachers to differentiate instruction to modify information for the appropriate learning capabilities of their students. The use of technology can also allow students to work at their own pace. Technology has become its own form of literacy because of how often it is used in everyday life.