EdTech, also known as education technology, can be defined as the combination of IT tools and education practices that facilitate and enhance the learning environment.
What Is EdTech?
EdTech can be defined as the practice of introducing various IT tools into the classroom to provide a more engaging, highly inclusive, and personalized learning experience. As we all know, these days, classrooms have moved beyond the traditional clunky desktop computers and are now more inclined towards tech-enabled tablets, highly interactive online courses, and even robots that can now take notes and record lectures for students who are unavailable.
This influx of EdTech tools is transforming classrooms in a number of ways. EdTech is making it easy for students to stay engaged through fun and interactive forms of learning; IoT devices are also being praised for their ability to create a digital classroom environment for students, whether they're physically present in school, on the bus, or at home; even machine learning and AI tools are helping teachers with grading tests and holding students accountable for homework.
The potential and scope for scalable individualized learning have played a crucial role in defining the need for EdTech. The way we perceive things, learn, interact with our classmates and teachers and our general enthusiasm and energy for the same subjects is not a one-size-fits-all situation. We all learn at our own pace and in our own style.
EdTech tools, therefore, make it easier for teachers to create customized lesson plans and provide holistic learning experiences that easily foster a sense of inclusivity and also boost the learning capabilities of all students, no matter their age, background, or learning capabilities.
More than 90% of teachers believe EdTech is going to have a significant impact on the way they educate in the near future. For this reason, it's critical to understand the benefits EdTech brings in the form of increased communication, better collaboration, and overall quality of education.
Importance of EdTech for Students & Teachers
Students
An influx of technology is now opening up new avenues of learning for students of all ages, simultaneously also promoting better collaboration and higher inclusivity in the classroom. Given below are five important ways EdTech is directly impacting the way students learn.
1. Increased Collaboration
Cloud-enabled tools and tablets are now fostering collaboration in the classroom. Tablets filled with interactive learning games and online lessons offer children the tools to solve problems together. At the same time, cloud-based apps let students upload their homework and digitally communicate with one another about their thought processes and for any assistance they may need.
2. 24/7 Access to Learning
EdTech is making it easier for students to have complete access to the classroom in a digital environment. Even if they are at school, or on the bus, or at home, connected devices are offering students WI-FI and cloud access to finish work at their own pace and on their own timeline without being disturbed by the restriction of being present in a physical classroom. A number of apps today help students and teachers to communicate in case students have any doubts or need to alert teachers to an emergency.
3. Flipping the classroom
EdTech tools are gradually changing the traditional setup of classrooms. Earlier, students had to listen to the lectures in class or read in the class and then work on projects and do homework at home. With the help of video lectures and learning apps, students can now watch lessons at their own pace, thereby using class time collaboratively to work on group projects as well. This kind of learning fosters self-learning, creativity and adds a sense of collaboration among students.
4. Customized educational experiences
EdTech provides new opportunities for educators to create personalized learning plans for each of their students. This approach now aims to provide customized learning as per the student's strengths, skills, and interests.
Video content tools also help students learn at their own pace and because students can pause and rewind lectures whenever they want, and these videos can also help students fully grasp lessons with ease. With the help of analytics, teachers can also understand which students had trouble with certain lessons and offer further assistance on the subject.
For Teachers
Students aren't the only ones benefiting from EdTech. Teachers are also seeing educational tech as a means to develop efficient learning practices and save a lot of time in the classroom. Here are four ways in which EdTech is helping teachers get back to doing what they do — teaching.
1. Automated Grading
Artificially intelligent tools and machine learning are making grading easy. Using these apps for objective assignments like true/false or fill-in-the-blank assessments frees up hours that teachers usually spend grading assignments. Extra free time for teachers provides more flexibility for less prep, and they can focus one-on-one time with both struggling and gifted students.
2. Classroom Management Tools
As we all know, trying to get a large group of kids to do anything can be challenging. Educational technology or EdTech has the potential to make everything — from the way teachers communicate with their students to how students behave — a little easier and comfortable. There are now several apps that help send parents and students reminders about projects or homework assignments, as well as tools that also allow students to self-monitor themselves. The addition of management tools in the classroom brings forth a less chaotic, better collaborative environment.
3. Paperless Classrooms
Printing budgets, wasting countless paper and time spent at the copy machine is a thing of the past, all thanks to EdTech. Classrooms that have gone completely digital bring about an easier way to grade assignments, lessen the burden of having to safeguard hundreds of homework files, and also promote overall greener policies in the classroom.
4. Removing the guesswork
Teachers and educators spend several hours attempting to assess the skills or areas of improvement of their students. EdTech can change all of that. There are currently myriad tools, data platforms, and apps that correctly assess students' skills and needs, and they transfer the data to the teacher.
These can help teachers discover a student's strengths, weaknesses, and even signs of learning disabilities, setting in motion a proactive plan to help.
Conclusion
Since EdTech is something that is going to pave the way for future learning, Teachmint is supporting the futuristic learning approach and helping to create strong experiences for educators and students. It is helping to bring a collaborative environment to nurture and nourish growth possibilities.
Teachmint is keen on changing the future of education with its advanced LMS and ERP tools. With more than 20+ modules for educational institutions like admission management, attendance management system, performance management, and more; it is changing the teaching-learning experience.
