The Importance of Technology in Education: Benefits for Students and Educators

Introduction

The evolution of technology has impacted every aspect of our lives from banking to the way that we communicate with each other. As mentioned by Himmelsbach, some educators think that technology brings disturbance in the classroom as their students used their mobile phones in the class. But rather than simply assume that technology also can be a powerful tool for transforming learning. it can help affirm and advance relationships between educators and students. According to Cox, technology in the classroom is becoming a more and more important part in education. Therefore the importance of technology in education is the topic of this essay.

Importance of technology in education (essay)

The first importance is technology can give a better approach to information. According to Himmelsbach, students can gain information easily, all the time as long as they have an Internet connection. They can find almost anything online, in its most up-to-date version. With search engines like Google Chrome and Yahoo, students can easily browse anything that they want at any time and anywhere they are. Himmelsbach also stated that students can get resources from all around the world but they may need to check whether the resources were reliable or not. There are a lot of information people can find on the Internet, but not all are reliable enough for students to make use of them, so they need to check where the resources come from. For example, students are not recommended to take references from Wikipedia as it can be edited by anyone at any time. This means that it can contain wrong information. Technology also can connect students from different places using virtual and online platforms. Students can connect with others students outside the school with tools such as Wikis and Cloud-Based applications like Dropbox and Google Drive. They can also virtually meet using online platforms such as Google Meet, Webex, and so on. Himmelsbach also mentioned that instructors can give various of learning materials to their students. As an example, they can use Google Classroom to give notes and give online assignments. They also can provide videos from Youtube to their students as an extra resource.

Other than that, technology can motivate students to learn by themselves. As mentioned by Himmelsbach, students are having a hard time when they are learning in a normal classroom because they cannot pick up the lesson quickly. Some of them are slow in learning a new chapter moreover the teachers might teach too fast and they would quickly fall behind their peers. Himmelsbach indicated that students can get more time and practice of they are given with online assignments. For example, the teachers are giving the students a lecture using recorded video, they can repeat the video until they finally understand the lesson. If they need some extra help, they can practice with guided exercises or additional coursework. Some students are shy to ask their teacher when they are in the classroom, so they can use other alternatives like online forums, emails, and chatrooms. Whenever students need some extra resources, they can get it online and their teacher can give some help to those who in need. According to Himmelsbach, with the skill in using computers, students can make use of the skill when entering the workforce later. they do not teach you the basics of using the computer when you work later, so with the skills, students can easily adapt with the working environment like making a presentation slide or making a report using the computer.

Next, students can improve the assessment process with technology. Modern technology offer educator a variety of tool than can be used not only in the classroom but also in an online class. Dikusar indicates that to ensure the education process operates in full accordance with the expectation, the educator should have to use reliable assessment technology. Other than that, Dikusar also state that by using technology, it can help the educator to monitor their student’s understanding much better than the traditional method and also allows the educator to track student progress by capturing and analyzing real-time assessment data. Online assessment of student performance is particularly common when students is taking MOOC which is a Massive Open Online Course. For example, when students take a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), the student work is both completed and assessed entirely online through the use of an online platform, discussion board, quizzes, and another assessment type. So that, the educator will see how much their student needs to answer a question given and how much progress that has been achieved. Discussion boards are one of an excellent form of assessment that encourages students to dialogue and demonstrates what the student learned through interaction with other students. As a result, the educator can see how much progress that has been achieved by the student and also can see where the student is most struggling.

Other than that, the importance of technology in education is technology helps to implement adaptive learning practices. There is no student equal to another which means everybody learns at a different pace and in different ways. Each of student has their own characteristic, abilities, and weakness. According to Himmelsbach, the variety of resources provided by modern technologies where allow everybody to find a more suitable way of getting an education. These resources will allow people with special needs to resolve the inconveniences of a traditional classroom environment. Competency-Based-Education (CBE) is means of assessing the disparity in skill and speed of learning between different students. With data obtained, educators would be able to build adaptive learning strategies to improve their interest in education. Dikusar also points that Competency-Based Education (CBE) also allow the educator to track students’ performance and adjust method and program to each student's need. In order to assess the success of a particular student, educators can use the education application dashboard that presents data which be been collected. By using this tool, the educator can check and measure the progress of a particular student by subject, the student's grade point average, and the average performance across the subject

Another importance of technology in education is technology can prepare students for the future. According to Cox, many students believe that with using technology in the classroom will help students prepare them for the digital future. Technology has changed the way people live. Many technologies have been implemented in the education sector. For example, many classes have been implemented by technology such as students using tablets to replace the textbook. Cox states that, in education, students need to know how to address complicated challenges and students must be able to communicate in the workforce with others and by implementing and incorporating technology in the classroom will bring students up for a successful life outside of school. Other than that, Educational technology establishes students for the student future and sets students up for this increasingly digital economy.

Last but not least, technology can connect educators with students. This widespread adoption of technology has completely changed how teachers teach and students learn. Teachers are learning how to teach with emerging technologies while students are using advanced technology to shape how they learn. By embracing and integrating technology in the classroom, we are setting our students up for a successful life outside of school. According to Cox, students can connect with technology during the learning process even they are not in the school. For example, nowadays many platforms that can be used by educators and students like google classroom to submit the assignment, google meet as a platform to do video conferences. By integrating technology into the classroom, teachers are changing the way they used to teach. Teachers can reduce their lecture period a day by providing students with other alternatives along with the current technology as a tool to continue the learning process. However, teachers need to be updated with the latest technology, so that they can give a better preparation to their students.

Conclusion

In a conclusion, technology is sometimes seen as a threat, but in education, it has more benefits that can help students and educators to achieve an effective learning process. This widespread adoption of technology has completely changed how teachers teach and students learn. As explained above, students can access information easily through many platforms as long as they have an internet connection. Other than that, which technology it can motivate students to learn by their self and students can get more time and practice if they are given with online assignments. Using technology also can improve the assessment process and technology helps to implement adaptive learning practices. Using technology also can help prepares students for the future. Lastly, using technology can connect students and educators easily.

References

1. Himmelsbach, V. (2019). How Does Technology Impact Student Learning? Retrieved November 26, 2020, from https:tophat.combloghow-does-technology-impact-student-learningDikusar, A. (2018).
2. How Important is Technology in Education? Retrieved October 22, 2020, from https:xbsoftware.combloghow-important-is-technology-in-educationCox, J. (2019).
3. Benefits of Technology in the Classroom. Retrieved November 4, 2020, from https:www.teachhub.comtechnology-in-the-classroom201911benefits-of-technology-in-the-classroom