Ashwini is currently the CEO and Co-Founder of Winuall, a Bangalore headquartered online education platform that helps coaching institutes go digital. Founded in 2019, Winuall offers a SaaS plug and play platform on a subscription model for tutors and coaching institutes. The subscription-based offering lets them create, market, and teach courses by setting up their own brand on the platform. Ashwini is a graduate from Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) with a B.Tech in Computer Science.
Technology integration in the classroom is more important than ever. Due to the global Covid-19 pandemic, approximately 1.8 billion students were affected by school closures around the world. Technology cannot replace the personal interaction and physical learning that students experienced in the classroom, but during the Covid-19 pandemic, technology was the most effective tool for teaching and learning. The advantages of technology in education are numerous and far-reaching for all parties concerned.
The largest problem we face in the K-12 sector is designing and implementing technology that meets educators’ demands, as well as ensuring that instructors fully comprehend the technology. To be honest, the K-12 industry has yet to fully realize and understand the issues that teachers, students, and parents face in finding long-term solutions.
Let us get to the issues faced by K-12 teachers, students and parents due to underlying factors, which can be pulled out by streamlining with technology.
Resistance to Change
Technology evolves daily, and educators have consistently proven a reluctance to alter and adapt to the market’s technological trends. When it comes to solving difficulties, this is one of the most common issues that IT directors face. The solution to this problem is to train teachers and keep them up to date on the modern technological trends and changes, which will assist them in adopting the technology that they are afraid of.
The idea is to make the best use of a child’s mobile distraction in a positive way. That can be easily achieved, as we do not have to make an effort to draw their attention to this technology! Also, parents who have to always keep themselves alert for how their child is using the technology will be a bit relaxed.
Thus, the role of the teacher becomes very important in carrying this purpose on a technological platform!
Professional Training Deficit
Technology advances daily. And, to make the most use of technology, one must be trained and knowledgeable about the instruments at hand.
For students studying in various classes up to 12, they have to be shaped robustly, so their future is not compromised. Technology is not only a worry for teachers, but it is also an issue for students. If any of the persons involved do not have a comprehensive understanding and experience with the technology, it can be frustrating and time-consuming.
As a result, professional training for teachers and students is strongly recommended and essential. Professional training can be costly and time-consuming for both students and teachers, but it is critical for achieving the intended outcomes.
No Study Focus
The K-12 school systems that have implemented this facility could not wholly see students getting involved in what is being explained in the class. Rather, they were seen scrolling their tablets, using social media accounts during important lectures, and playing games. This is a total distraction, and teachers have a hard time concentrating on what knowledge they’ve come to impart to their beloved students. Thus, this amalgamation isn’t also successful!
No Personalized Touch in Imparting Knowledge
There is a disconnect between the idea of giving personalized, differentiated teaching and the technology that can make it happen. While K-12 instructors appear to recognize the need for customized learning, they aren’t provided the resources they need to do it. On the other hand, parents who rely on schools for an efficient and modernized education system expect their hard-earned money to be utilized successfully in imparting knowledge to their children in the best possible way.
Failure to Offer Effective Formative Assessments Through the Use of Technology
Assessment is a key motivator of educational practice and development, and we’ve seen a welcome increase in the use of formative assessment in educational practice in recent years. However, there is still an assessment gap in how curricula modifications and new skill demands are implemented in education; as a result of these changes, schools do not always make the necessary adjustments in assessment methods. Basic digital media tools, such as webcams that allow for non-intrusive classroom observations, hold a lot of potential for providing teachers with fast feedback they can use.
Challenge for Creating Opportunities for Problem Solving
The most difficult aspect of introducing challenge-based learning in schools is altering students’ and teachers’ mindsets. Students must understand the problem-solving process, which entails spending more time asking questions than jumping to solutions. Teachers, on the other hand, must provide pupils complete control over how they learn the standards. Along with hard-working teachers, the parents are also keeping up the hope that the involvement of technology in their child’s future and knowledge do not confine their ability. These small but important issues stress out parents a lot at some time, more than a teacher or a child.