Technology has played and will continue to play a crucial part in providing kids with education outside of the classroom. An impressive feat was that all nations were able to implement remote learning technologies employing a combination of radio, television, online, and mobile platforms. There have been serious learning losses as a result of the pandemic. If no corrective measures are done, learning poverty is predicted to worsen from 53 percent to 63 percent, especially in low-income nations. This is because of school closures and limited access to distant learning.

The crisis has vividly shown the disparities in internet access and shown that delivering education to all students will not be possible under “business as usual.”

Focus must be put on bridging the gaps in the following infrastructures:

  • Digital infrastructure – connectivity, devices, and software;
  • Human infrastructure – teacher capacity, student skills, and parental support;
  • Logistical and administrative systems to deploy and maintain tech architecture.

These will help to close the digital divides in education and leverage the power of technology to accelerate learning, reduce learning poverty, and support skills development.

The ways in which we live, work, play, create, and communicate are all being altered by technology. Therefore, it makes sense that developments in digital technology are also bringing up revolutionary prospects in the field of education. Technology is giving educators new ways to develop and engage students’ minds. The possibilities of assistive technology, virtual and augmented reality, high-tech collaboration tools, gamification, podcasting, blogging, 3D printing, artificial intelligence, personalized learning, and many other things are currently generating growing interest.

Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality

Technology innovation specialist Daniel Newman discusses using AR and VR to “enhance teacher instruction while simultaneously creating immersive lessons that are fun and engaging for the student” in his Forbes.com article about the Top 6 Digital Transformation Trends In Education. 

He invites us to imagine using virtual reality to transport students to ancient Greece.

Gamification

According to Newman, who argues that integrating gaming technology into the classroom, he said “can make learning difficult subject matter more exciting and interactive.”

Gamification integrates playing and learning by using gaming as an instructional tool.

Artificial Intelligence

According to Newman, an Australian institution employed IBM’s Watson to develop a 24/7/365 virtual student advisory service. In the first trimester, Watson’s virtual advisors reportedly answered over 30,000 queries, freeing up human advisors to handle more challenging problems.

Future innovation will actually emerge from the brains and hearts of the educators who acquire the information and abilities required to find the most interesting, efficient methods to apply educational technology tactics in real and virtual classrooms everywhere.