How Efficient Are Ed-techs In Assuring Quality Education

Vishnu Dutt Sharma Apr 25, 2020

From formal clunky chalk-board set-ups to tech-infused learning and atmosphere, today's classrooms have come a long way and the use of technology is creating and evaluating activities that were once considered out of reach by both the schools and teachers.

Educational technology is the use of technology or IT tools to facilitate learning in a more engaging and individualized learning and teaching experience. Like all other sectors, Technology can be a powerful tool for transforming learning too. Advancing and affirming relationships between a teacher and a student, increased learning and collaboration, bridging accessibility gaps and new learning experiences by meeting the needs of all the learners etc. is what it promises and delivers! But is this everything that a student requires? Well, the answer is No!

While Ed-Tech companies have solved the technology enablement part well, taken the concept to many homes and have made learning easy, accessible and fast, but they still have a lot of ground to cover for ensuring great quality teaching. This tech-savvy and competitive generation of students is simply not satisfied with the good enablement of technology but wants it to team up with a great quality of education. And that’s where the subject expertise, decades of experience of traditional players come into the picture.

In view of this, many traditional players have taken giant strides towards online learning through tech-enabled classes, mobile applications combined with their comprehensive knowledge of the subjects and years of experience. The pedagogy has been scientifically designed to yield the best learning outcomes and allows students to master difficult concepts and hone their skills with the flexibility of online programs.

Ed-tech classrooms coupled with the knowledge of trained and expert teachers can provide a wealth of benefits to both the students and the teachers. Let’s see how:

For Students

Increased learning and collaboration

Technology has opened up new avenues of learning for students, irrespective of their age groups. Online lessons with several group activities provide an opportunity for students to learn and solve problems together, thereby enhancing collaboration. Through chat programs and other collaboration tools, students and educators can work together on projects together. This also helps in increasing creativity and fostering self-learning.

Anytime, anywhere learning

Breaking the barriers of learning inside the four walls, IoT devices are giving twenty-four-seven access to students to learn anytime and anywhere in a digital environment. Irrespective of whether they’re at school or home or in the mall, with wifi connected devices to cloud, students can complete work at their own pace and schedules, without the restriction of needing to be present in a physical classroom. Moreover, various tools allow the students to stay in touch with the teachers, in case they have doubts regarding a certain topic or question.

Personalized educational experiences

Depending upon the skills, interests, strengths, and weaknesses of each student, Ed-Tech opens up opportunities for educators to customize personalized learning plans for them.

Online lectures, video content tools enable students to read and learn at their own pace. It allows students to pause and rewind lectures, and fully grasp lessons. With the help of analytics and tools, teachers can see which students are having trouble and who all are comfortable and can devote their time to each in accordance.

Quality of content and presentation

While tech-enabled gadgets are doing a great job in providing experiential learning, but it is the quality of content and presentation that matters the most to students. Some Education providers are ensuring great quality of content on their mobile apps and online classes. The quality of content is prepared, maintained and updated, keeping the highest standards in mind and response to the changing patterns of the examination. The new Ed-Tech companies may have a good subscriber base, but the outcome is a factor that needs to be tracked over years before one can conclude on the effectiveness. This is something students and parents can be at ease with traditional players who have a proven pedigree.

Technology is truly changing the way education was perceived and will have a great impact on the education system. It will lead to increased communication, understanding, collaboration and improved quality of education. While this is disrupting education, there is still space/demand for both the worlds which is evident from the fact that registrations/interest for classroom programs are also growing steadily and are at par with demand for online education. It is clear that students these days want the best of both the worlds; technology-enabled learning as well as the great quality of education. Education providers who have access to great technology and quality education have the winning formula with them and whosoever will be able to deliver this efficiently will stay in the market and whoever fails to impart this type of education will soon be history.