The Pandemic and Ed-Tech
To deal with the current coronavirus situation which has called for the unexpected closing down of schools and colleges, national efforts to utilize technology in support of remote learning is emerging. Many educational institutions are turning to technology as their only resort during these crises. Education is joining hands with technology and is welcoming new and innovative ways of learning and teaching to avoid lag in learning. Coronavirus has accelerated digital transformation in educational institutions that will benefit the standard and quality of education. This is the right time to test the power of technology in education.
Ed-Tech is educational technology that promotes the usage of computer hardware, software and technology to facilitate effective learning. It is highly beneficial in improving academic performance, since ed-tech creates, uses and manages technological processed and educational resources. Coronavirus outbreak has taught us a lesson to be prepared for any such situation ahead of time. This means this is our time to utilize the power of technology. Therefore, ed-tech plays a crucial role in modernizing conventional methods of learning and teaching.
Technology has already seeped in the processes of education via online or machine learning. In this pandemic situation, many schools and colleges have adapted online learning as the best form of education currently. Online education may have increased the administrative workload but has reduced the stress of educators. Every technology that is used in online learning, benefits the teachers and the students. Teachers become more tech savvy and students are more involved in classes.
Many educational institutions are coming up with new ed-tech applications to facilitate communication with students. Applications that allow students to interact with teachers, leave comments, attend webinars and virtual classrooms, share insights etc. are now evolving.
Artificial Intelligence is largely benefiting education. Artificial Intelligence chatbots available for student communicates with them like a love person and helps in keeping them engaged. AI-based chatbot can also help ed-tech providers analyze students’ behavior and provide them offers from time to time that they might be interested in. It also gives the students the opportunity to attend time to time assessments that are conducted live by the educators. This helps in tracking the progress of the students and how effective is the technology. Students can also request virtual online consultations from their mentors if they face any challenge during learning, that helps in maintaining the student teacher bond.
The pandemic has affected our society in an enormous way however we have to rise to the occasion and get to the shore. If technology is the solution, then we need to up our game and innovate new techniques of education that will change our system for good. Education is a huge field that has been lagging in many areas. Although, the pandemic has caused schools and colleges to stop operations, it has also opened new doors to innovation that needs to be implied before its too late. Ed-tech can help in keeping the education system afloat and can also raise the standard of education to a new level. Making the best out of the wort situation is the ideal way of improving our education system.
