If there was any lesson we all learned from the lockdown, it was the benefits of digital technology. Every business sector, regardless of the size, had to join the train of digitalization if it was going to thrive during the lockdown. What was most surprising was the effort schools put into creating online classes for students to keep them engaged educationally, while at home. School businesses which were not flexible enough to hold digitally oriented classes, suffered a great deal in the past months, as they had to stay on hold till the pandemic subsided. Worst still, school businesses whose employees did not know how to use digital technology suffered a great setback as they could not function whether or not they had the tools for holding online classes.
In our world today, your business can barely survive without the infusion of some bits of digital technology. The barber on your street either has a Facebook or an Instagram page he uses to promote his business; how much more your school business? Your school can have all the necessary digital tools like computers, projectors, etc., but if your employees do not know how to operate digital technology, it would be a major setback for your business. Take, for instance, the schools that were able to hold online classes during the lockdown; if the teachers were not familiar with or knowledgeable about technology, they would not have been able to operate their phones, laptops, or the apps used to organize the classes.
If you are wondering how educating your employees on digital technology would improve your school system, check out these few points:
1. It makes learning more interesting: For a generation born into the technology age, nothing would excite them more than the technology itself. As a result, schools are now beginning to infuse little bits of technology into the educational system. Visual images stick faster in memory than written texts, and they are more engaging too. Students will be more excited to do assignments given to them online because it allows them the opportunity to explore their technical skills. Since children nowadays spend most of their time online, bringing education where they are will make them more than eager to learn.
2. It saves time: Digital technology saves a lot of time for teachers. Imagine one teacher having to stand and teach for hours, and still go back to his or her desk to mark about 50 students' assessments, then hold extra lessons for students too. All these and more, contribute to what makes teaching less exciting and more of a burden. Through digital technology, teachers can give students online assessments, and rather than marking them one after the other, the computer gets to do the marking and grading, and sometimes, even recording. They can also use digital technology to conduct online lessons for students from the comfort of their homes; this way, no one has to stand for extra hours teaching students who are already fagged out from the day's stress.
3. It helps teachers improve on themselves: Learning is constant, and we learn new things every day. Learning informs an understanding of a thing. Through digital technology, teachers can go online anywhere and anytime to read more on subjects that interest them so they can have more understanding of them. This way, they can improve on themselves, as they become more enlightened as a result of what they have learned online. Teachers can also enroll in classes online, regardless of their background education or experience. They can explore new knowledge areas or professional fields to have more knowledge, and they can also develop the skills they already have by taking professional courses online. This way, they can combine both the teaching job and learning, unlike before, when they would have had to take a leave from work to go to a physical school to learn or get professional certificates. Most importantly, the knowledge teachers gain through digital technology will influence their teaching, and students can profit more from this.
4. It creates a teacher-parent relationship: For some working-class parents, physical interaction with the children's teachers is impossible, as they have to leave their homes early for work and return late at night. Some parents may never get to know their children's teachers till they graduate, and the teachers likewise. With popular social media chat apps, parents can interact with teachers through messages, online appointments, and even video conferences. They can also track their child's performance and development in school easily. This helps strengthen the relationship between parents and teachers and breach the gap in communication.
CONCLUSION
The benefits of using technology in the classrooms are huge and they have been proven in the last couple of months. In our globally evolving world, using technology in education is no longer an option; it is essential. For this reason, your employees need to be educated on the benefits of digital technology, and much more they should be encouraged to start implementing it in their teaching. This reduces the stress of teaching and it makes both teaching and learning fun.
