Would you say that Educational Technology has brought changes to the classroom and to the teaching and learning process? Would you be able to explain the impacts on your institution both in school management and in pedagogical practices?
This super post brings together everything you need to know about Educational Technology: what it is, what is its importance, usage examples, etc. In addition to a series of guidelines so that you can increasingly integrate technology into your school’s daily life.
Why is it important? If you are an education professional who wants to teach to new generations, first of all you need to understand the changes in habits, behavior and reality of today’s students. You must always be looking for updates and new ways to communicate.
So, let’s learn?
Teaching to New Generations
It’s rare to see any kind of interaction between teacher and students in a classroom that completely ignores new technologies. Even in a classroom without the latest equipment, with the most traditional teacher, interaction is always permeated by it. And it couldn’t be different: in addition to the technological advances that conquered generations X and Y (do you remember how you sent messages and made plans with friends before the smartphone) students of new generations are digital natives. This means that most of them have never known a world without internet, mobile, Google or social networks.
Like technology, the communication involved in the teaching and learning process is also constantly changing. For this reason, it is no longer possible to be in front of a classroom with the expectation of capturing the attention of a whole group of children and teenagers and using a language from the last century. Today, it is no longer possible to talk about ecology, without talking about sustainability and clean technologies. Or talk about languages, not to mention memes and fake news And these are just some of the possible examples.
To establish true communication with the reality of students of new generations, the teaching and learning process invariably needs to take into account and make use of technology. From this need emerged Educational Technology. Designed specifically to bring innovation and facilitate the teaching and learning process, it appears in classrooms in different ways: in new devices or gadgets software and educational solutions. Later, we’ll get to know each of these ways in depth. But first… do you know what Educational Technology is?
What is Educational Technology
Educational Technology is a concept that concerns the use of technological resources for educational purposes. Its objective is to bring to education whether inside or outside the classroom innovative practices that facilitate and enhance the teaching and learning process. The use of ET has been widely discussed in academia, the media and social circles, spaces where it is not always well received. The biggest criticisms are related to its relationship with the role of the school and the teacher and the difficulty of accessing technology, especially in public schools and among students with lower family income.
But, contrary to what may seem at first glance, the main focus of Educational Technology is not on technological devices (the school does not necessarily need to have the most modern equipment to work with ET), but on the practices that its use makes it possible. In other words: having the purpose of using technology in the classroom well defined is more important than the means and technological resources that will be used for such practice.
And this is where the fundamental role of the teacher and education professional in the use of Educational Technology comes into play: defining the most appropriate resources and tools for the reality of their students, and also the most relevant way to use them in their pedagogical practices Even so, the question may arise: for what purpose should an education professional insert technology into pedagogical practices and into the day-to-day of their educational institution?
Educational Technology: Why Use It?
Over the last few decades, practically all areas of society have experienced great technological evolution. Every evolution comprises a change in communication, in social relationships and, of course, in the teaching and learning process. But, as we said in the topic above, the use of Educational Technology is not always well received even by educators. The root of this resistance may be found in the misinformation about the different possibilities it offers to education.
Here are some reasons for using Educational Technology in your school.
- Expand access to information.
- Facilitate school-student-family communication.
- Automate school management processes.
- Encourage the exchange of experiences.
- Bringing the dialogue between teacher and student closer.
- Enable new forms of interaction.
- Improve student performance.
There are several reasons why using technology can improve student performance. Some of them are obvious, such as the ability to arouse students’ interest; others, not so much.
Educational Technology can be present in education in different ways, some of which are:
- in gadgets (devices), such as the digital whiteboard, tablets and educational tables;
- in software such as applications, games and digital books;
- and in other educational solutions such as augmented reality, virtual learning environments and video platforms.
Several educational practices and initiatives only became a reality with the use of ET.