Benefits of Educational Technology for Students
COVID has created an absolutely new reality with previously unknown rules and approaches to everything, including education. Along with its threats and inconveniences, it has also brought us understanding that things can be different from what they used to be. Under the circumstances when in-person workflows become less and less possible, digital solutions come to the foreground. Hybrid learning and even return to in-person education do not imply any change in the value of digital workflows. A digital workflow is a tool that can make much better experiences for the teaching staff and the students. More than that, virtual learning saves much money and time for them. It is a must-have now and the benefits of educational technology are evident even for those who are against dramatic changes in schooling.
Role of Digital Work Flow in a Classroom
Revolutionizing all aspects of life, technology could not omit the area of classrooms. There is a dramatic difference between the classroom of today and ten years ago. There is a common view that technology in education is limited to use of laptops and iPads along with digital whiteboards. Still, it is definitely a great mistake as technology has made a huge step since then.
A kid cannot learn without being involved into a game. At the same time, gamification works even with adults! No wonder as everyone would like to make his or her learning experience less stressful and more pleasant. Touch subjects, like chemistry or math, needs something to boost students’ participation and encourage their involvement. What can serve better for this than a game? Integrating technology into a curriculum, teachers engage the tools students enjoy using for other purposes and their tablets and smartphones help them learn instead of making their owners distracted from studies.
As for video tutorials as one of the ways technologies are used in classroom, they make up one of the most engaging ways to make learners take effort. Choosing the pace of getting knowledge, a student feels responsible for the outputs of learning. Thus, video tutorials can:
- let students focus on challenging topics;
- allow students correct mistakes;
- prevent misconceptions;
- use visual aids to make learning much more appealing.
Key Advantages of Educational Technologies
- Diversity of materials to use
A significant advantage of technology in education is that it is easy to access different materials. The learning needs of students vary and it is great that choosing the most suitable resources is no longer a problem. A wider choice of learning materials gives a chance for the students to develop the required knowledge and skills in a convenient manner.
- Learning experience brings more fun
Without being excited about getting new knowledge, present-day students cannot study effectively. That is an axiom of modern life and educational technology is a perfect tool that maintains motivation of the students at really high level. Having fun and learning at the same time is a great way to success in studies.
- No restrictions in location and time
With access to the Internet, learners do research and complete the assigned tasks from any corner of the world, no matter whether it is daytime or nighttime. There is no need to travel somewhere or wait for particular morning or day hours. No matter where the students are: at home, in the classroom, or even on a bus, they can connect to their virtual classroom and do what is needed. The latest digital tools in education let the students learn new things and develop new skills. There are a lot of programs online which the students can use with actual joy.
- Personalized learners’ education experience
Learning with the help of digital tools is able to customize the process and make it more suitable for individual needs, interests, ambitions, strengths, and abilities. Learners, not teachers, start driving their learning process. It works well in any subject area no matter whether it is the leaning process for adults or kids.
- Learners keep up with the advancements in technologies
Acquiring knowledge of the subject is great, but it is also important to stay up-to-date with the most advanced technologies. This is the skill the students can use in their further studies and career. It will be easier for them to get employed and gain an insight into the most recent trends in the field they choose. More than that, they will be treated as a really valuable asset in any company as they will know how to apply the newest technologies to achieve the set goals. What can be more important in the present-day world?
Traditional Workflow vs. Digital Workflow in Education
What is digital workflow? How does it differ from the system that used to be the only possible one in teaching? Which benefits does it have?
- Making online education more interactive
- Referring to high quality free tools
- Faster evaluation, assessment, and feedback automatically or manually from the teacher
- Better opportunities for differentiation
- Easier peer assessment
- Convenient monitoring of completing work
- Better organization of the process
- Personalized approach
- Covering multiple schools or classes
- Saving money on print-outs
The advocates of mobile technologies have no objections to introducing digital workflows in schools throughout the process of learning. One of the most essential counter-arguments of those who support traditional approaches is that digital learning creates a perfect environment for plagiarizing their assignments and cheating in exams. Still, such tools as ThePlagiarism.com eliminate this problem as they check papers thoroughly and give a precise picture of the level of originality in student’s writing. Higher chances of academic dishonesty is not a valid reason to vote for a traditional textbook when it goes about fantastic opportunities and new horizons open for the students who can definitely make a difference with their new approaches to getting knowledge. Yes, it may seem to be a daunting task in education, but the teachers should be flexible and adaptable to new conditions and demands in the society.
No more established routines and boredom!
A motto of schooling today can be: Let’s go beyond the paper!
