Use of Technology in the Classroom, How important Is It?

The importance and use of technology in the classroom are self-explanatory terms, the implementation comes with usage of hi-tech teaching aids and modern tools for easier and faster understanding of educational concepts.

It is scientifically proven that we learn faster using multiple senses and if visual, auditory and demonstrative techniques are employed together, hardest subjects like mathematics and science become very convenient to absorb.

The importance of technology in education is incontrovertible. Educational Multimedia boards have quite efficiently covered the visual and auditory methods. In fact, the delivery power of 3D images, animations, along with text explanations allows the brain to use multiple channels to process the same concept, making learning easier.

The voice information adds an additional layer of explanation and connects those concepts to images and your imagination perceives things in a broader, better way.

Generally, computer technology in education has vast implications. As we get deep into the importance of technology in education, it is requested watch the videos provided alongside the text so you can understand the explanation with proof. In a sense that will be my live demonstration of proving the benefits of technology in classroom, you being my students.

This is “Use of Technology in the Classroom, How important Is It?” Please keep a close tag on the topic of discussion. Let’s begin!!

Use of Multimedia Technology in Education

The above video will help you familiarize with the importance of multimedia technology in classrooms. We will break down more details from here with each individual technology.

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1. Smart Multimedia Boards

Although these interactive boards haven’t fully arrived everywhere in the world, schools, colleges, and universities are actively utilizing the visual appeal and efficiency of multimedia graphics in the classrooms. Smart Multimedia Boards are especially beneficial to young minds whose feeble understanding can’t fully absorb novel concepts without a colorful presentation.

1.1 Benefits of Smart Board Technology to Students

The video below shows how young pupils can enjoy learning complex things on Smart Boards.

Drag and drop objects on the screen is more convenient than drawing and removing with chalks and pens.

Drawings are readily available and highly improved. More 2D and 3D learning content is developed which is reusable, neat and comparable. This saves time. Instead of sketching a picture of the heart, you just import it from the internet or specialized educational galleries. Check out how conveniently the student draws circles around objects using touch recognition―to recognize the objects on the screen.

For fifth-graders, this is fun but for second-graders, this is pure magic, like a reward. It makes sense because science has proven that reward system improves motivation to learn.

1.2 Benefits Smart Board Technology to Teachers

For learners, the benefits of Smart Multimedia Boards is crystal clear. Nonetheless, it is the teacher in the classroom with a brighter smile on her face by the end of the day. Not having to create lessons from scratch or write/draw and rub or trying to explain a scientific phenomenon or theory which can be easily visualized saves their time and energy.

Thanks to the productive use of technology in the classrooms, the education system has received an immense boost in turning more productive students. From junior school, all the way up to post doctorate studies and research, smart boards have enhanced the standards of knowledge and its conveyance.  Studying is more fun.

Smart Multimedia Boards have benefited the learning process, please do check out some of our other articles in this regard that shed more light on various topics about educational technology.

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Financial Benefits of Smart Boards

Use of Smart Multimedia Boards in the classroom is a time saver but their huge price tag is the reason this useful technology is finding it difficult to get into developing and under-developed countries. This is because the financial benefits are more apparent on the long term.

Just like a classic light bulb is very cheap compared to an energy saving led bulb but burns more electricity, chalkboards and ink boards take from your pocket more than the interactive multimedia boards in the long haul. I think the initial price and the little training is the cons required to use them, on the other hand the pros are huge, we highlighted a few below:

• Goodbye dusters!
• No need of pen, ink or colors and you can even use your fingers to write
• No need to create every content from the scratch
• Reusable multimedia-rich digital contents
• Work in low light and even no light
• Remotely operable and navigable
• Smart Notebook software for interactive lessons
• Interactive Tests
• Last but not the least, internet connectivitySmart Multimedia Boards will continue to evolve (in both software and hardware) and better before they are replaced by a better, cheaper, and more affordable technology. Hey, if you missed out on Google Tango, you will love this video.

2. Virtual Reality

Compared to multimedia boards, virtual reality is an emerging technology, years away from perfection. Pioneers like HTC Vive and Oculus Rift are trying their best to set high standards but reducing the size of VR headsets and making the experience more immersive is a challenge. The use of VR technology in the classrooms can produce highly immersive experiences and that’s important because the purpose is to deliver information. But how and why it matters; learn more in this dreaming technology article.

VR Technology is all about imagination one day it could become the most advanced form of teaching methods. The ultimate form would be a flawless human-machine interface but until that time, we’ll have to do with educational virtual reality apps that are available on Google Play and App Store. The current limitation of quality and price prevents VR technology from getting educational enough.

Thanks to cheaper VR headsets like Google Cardboard and its upgraded successor Google Daydream, developers are now exploring more possibilities. All the smartphone apps you see on online stores were made because smartphones spread at explosive rates and VR technology, as evident by a low number of available games and apps, is just taking flight.

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3. Augmented Reality

AR technology is sometimes called mixed reality because through the lens of AR wearables, you are able to see holographic imagery that overlays the scene in front of your eyes. Augmented reality can have groundbreaking results in junior classes. Imagine a teacher is trying to explain planetary system suspended over her table and other students are also watching it through their goggles as she plays with it.

As to the use of AR technology in classrooms, the story is the same as virtual reality because they were born almost simultaneously. Besides AR being in developmental stages, the price factor is also a major setback because they are even costlier than their VR kits. Microsoft HoloLens developer kit, for instance, costs $3000.

The year 2016 proved revolutionary for virtual reality headsets, on the other hand, we have only two major champions in the AR league: one costs $3000 other is Magic Leap which has often been hoaxed for its secrecies.

4. Holographic Technology

The use of holographic technology in the classroom and education overall completely removes the need of AR and VR. That’s because holograms don’t need any goggles or other types of visual aids. Hovering, see-through, interactive, and indestructible artifact in the air can prove very educational and practically implementable.

From 3D skeleton models of biology and blobs of orbiting planets to fine detail architectural structures… three-dimensional holograms provide demonstrative capabilities like no other. Teachers and lecturers could attend live classes in remote locations without having to travel. Holographic technology is promised to be a lot less expensive with triple the advantage.

5. Smartphone Technology (Includes Tablets)

I wanted to give it a mention in the last because smartphones are generally regarded too distracting to be educative. That’s true but that’s also just a choice and the outcome highly varies from individual to individual. One way to measure its success is the number of educational apps on online stores. MCAT 6 app for premedical students couldn’t be any better, but how many people choose the platform is completely a different question.

That’s why parents often prefer tablets instead of smartphones because they have a much larger screen to fiddle with and they supposedly do a better job from an educational standpoint. The best thing about the use of smartphone technology in education is that unlike other technologies, they move beyond classrooms because their portability is unmatched!!

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The variety of educational apps and their level of interactivity also add to the charm. If smartphones are attractive and study is not, then by putting the later into the former might make it interesting. I know, a lame logic but is it? I’ll let you do the justice. Today kids know about blackholes, wormholes, time travel from smartphone games and that’s huge because it prepares them for the tough future subjects.

5.1. Benefits of Smartphone Technology in Education

• Educational apps are very interactive and fun to play
• More study material is at your disposal 24/7 within a tiny storage
• Rich multimedia educational content can be streamed from anywhere over the internet
• Kids’ apps make learning a more cartoony and less stressful
• Large number of educational apps are available for smartphones
• Leaderboards inside educational app creates friendly competition among app users
• Real-time learning experience in group studies
• Online classrooms remotely accessible in your bedroom with voice and video chat
• Youtube educational channels serve as knowledgeable resources

Benefits of technology in the classroom

Technological equipment whether they are related to scientific or general subjects provides demonstrative abilities to the students. For instance, when learning robotics, a teacher can easily demonstrate how software code performs a specific function in a robotic arm. Thereon, the students can run their imagination wild and manipulate the code according to their creative skills.

This points out that the teaching method doesn’t have to be just hi-tech, but completely designed around easiest way to learn.

Benefits of technology in Special Education

Use of technology for students with disabilities teaches us the importance of innovative gadgets. The braille tablet shown in the above video is a very bright example of how certain information can be made accessible the blind with speed and accuracy.

Good Old Days of Pen and Paper

I do agree that days of pen and paper are not over yet and they will continue to provide their services as long as there is a drop of ink left inside in any pen. It is not the pen we have to worry about, it is the paper. Yes, evolution is pen technology is trying to teach us that trees are important in this world for our own sake. Ink or not, Pen will write and they will write in the air when the good old days of paper and ink are gone (3D Pen don’t count).

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Use of Technology in the Classroom and its Importance: Summary

The smart multimedia boards and smartphones were central to our discussion because they have been most influential technologies in education. AR, VR, and holography are some novel aspects that will eventually prove their full worth in the future. It doesn’t mean they are not being used, just that their prices and quality of performance is well below the ideal line. For them to truly benefit the classroom environment, they must first enter the consumer market with rates that are affordable in underdeveloped and developing countries. We will definitely see decisive breakthrough in the years to come.

My Opinion based on above facts: learning can be uninteresting and this definitely depends on the complexity of topics. But adding visual elements like colors and graphics in a graphical sequence to make stories creates the linking effect that science has proven to be a very essential for long-term memories. A flawless and well-composed video can teach hardboiled biology, physics, and chemistry chapters like pouring the water into a glass without letting it spill.